Possession
by Courtanie
Summary: Kenny isn't the only one sick of his constant dying. Now a pawn in the Devil's playground, he must fight for himself and a certain Jew to keep them from falling apart. K2 slash; M for...many many reasons
1. Tired

_A/N: I'm starting another one! Yays =)_

_This is actually gonna be Kenny and Kyle slash, I don't know why. I had this idea randomly as I lied awake for four fucking hours while spending the night at a friends house. I should've brought my damn laptop. I could have actually accomplished something._

_Anyways, enough of my rant. This is going to be filled with smexiness just like "JAY" , but whether or not it'll contain torture...well that's up to my mood to decide XD_

_Enjoy =D_

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"MOTHER FUCK!" he screamed into the darkness. He took his right hand and ran his fingers through his coarse blonde hair in frustration.

"What's up your ass?" came a voice from behind him.

He whipped around and came face to face with a pale boy with dark ebon hair and glowing ruby eyes. "Hey, Damien," he muttered.

Damien walked up to him and slapped him on the back playfully. "Another few hours to hang out, huh?"

He sighed deeply. "Yeah. Because you know," he stated sarcastically, "it's not like I have anything better to do." Damien laughed at this.

"Like what," he chuckled. "drinking and fucking everything in sight?"

"Well, while that sounds tempting, no," he replied. "I actually had a social engagement today."

"Oh," Damien grins. "a social engagement. Sounds really prissy."

He turns and glares at the raven boy. "Actually, it's one of my best friend's birthday. I was supposed to go over and hang out with him and the other guys," he sighed. "Why does this keep happening to me?"

"Why don't you come tell me about it over some beer?" Damien suggested. He stared into the emptiness and suddenly, a table with two chairs and a cooler full of beer burst into existence. He wasn't awed though, he'd seen it plenty of times before. Damien took his arm and guided him over to the table and sat him down.

"Now then," Damien begins, staring at him as he took a few sips of his beverage. "What's on your mind, Kenny?"

Kenny slammed his beer down on the table and looked into his piercing red eyes. "I'm just so fucking sick of this day in and day out. I'm sick of transporting between this world and the next without even knowing how the fuck I'm doing it," he paused and looked at Damien, who hadn't touched his beer yet. "I just....I just don't know what to fucking do anymore. I can't do anything because I'm always fucking getting killed," he finished.

Damien leaned back in his chair and took a sip from his bottle. Once he finished, he set it down and stared intently at Kenny. "What's so bad about it?" He finally asks. "You have some unknown power that no other human possesses!"

"I don't want the stupid power if it's the reason I die constantly! Why do I die on a day-to-day basis?"

"You spilled a hell of a lot of salt?" Damien suggests with a shrug.

"My family can't fucking afford salt. Just ask Cartman," Kenny muttered, rolling his eyes.

"The fatass? You still hang around with him?"

"Well, it's a piss-poor town, Dam. There aren't a lot of people to get acquainted with. You take what you can fucking get."

"True I guess. There's a lot of people to hang with down here though. We're the most heavily populated area in the universe."

"Yes, but a lot of them are either total jackasses or they're decades older than me!"

"Well, it is Hell, Kenny. You can't expect everyone to be Mother Theresa."

"And even she's a total bitch down here!" Kenny whined, sipping down another mouthful of beer. "I don't know. I just want the damn dying to stop. I'd love a normal life, ya know?"

"How'd you die this time?" Damien inquired.

"There was this hobo who stopped me on the street and asked for some money. When I told him to fuck off, he smacked me over the head with his fucking cart."

"Humans are so cruel," Damien stated.

"Oh, and you're just perfect, aren't you Mr. Son of Satan?"

"Hey, I'm better behaved than most people down here. I just hang around and drink. I haven't killed anyone in a long-ass time."

"And we're all so very proud of you," Kenny replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh fuck off, McCormick."

"Love to, but burns like crazy trying to fuck down here."

"There's a reason for that. You're being punished."

"For what? I was a freaking kid when this started happening!"

"Even then you were a twisted little sex-freak."

Kenny leaned back and smiled. "True. I've always loved me some action."

Damien rolled his eyes. "So, who's birthday was it you were trying to celebrate?"

"Kyle's."

"The ginger boy?"

"Daywalker."

"What the fuck ever. Shouldn't he be somewhere...you know...around intelligent people?"

Kenny laughed at this. "Ya know, I've been saying the same damn thing for years. But nope, he presses on with us three."

"Marsh still around, too?"

"Geez, Damien, I talk about them constantly when I'm down here. Do you ever listen to me?"

Damien smiled sheepishly. "Honestly, no. I hear you start gushing about what wonderful friends you have and it makes me nauseous. I tend to just tune you out...or try to imagine how to kill you twice over to shut you up."

"Lot of good it'd do you. I'd be right back."

"True. I still don't know why you have that ability."

"Do you think your dad knows?" Kenny asked.

"Probably. But he's up to his horns in paperwork lately."

"The devil does paperwork? He filing for an audit or something?" Kenny asked, trying his best to suppress his laughter.

"Ha ha, very funny," Damien stated dryly. "No, the number of deaths have skyrocketed since that Cyrus bitch died from her little OD-spree."

"I personally almost wet my pants with joy that day," Kenny responded.

"Yes, but you have good taste. All of her little pre-teen minions and their mothers who started her fucking career have been offing themselves in 'grief'."

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Ya know, I've died 365 days a year for seventeen years, and not one of those deaths have been suicide. People like that are so fucking weak."

"Agreed. Total wastes of the air that you could be breathing."

"Don't rub it in, demon boy."

"Sorry. Anyways, my father. We can ask him later. Well, try at least."

"Do you think he'll be able to do something about it?"

"Depends on his mood. He'll probably say yes since he knows you so damn well."

"I doubt that's something I'd be able to brag about later in life," Kenny stroked his chin.

"Hm, could be useful if your being threatened."

"Oh yea, that'd be great," Kenny replied. "'FEAR ME, FOR MYSELF AND SATAN HAVE HAD TEA TIME TOGETHER!'" He joked, holding his arms above his head in exclamation.

Damien laughed softly. "Okay, maybe not. But, why is it such a problem? I mean, why does it bug you to die so much, especially since you know that you'll be back in a few hours."

"That's not the point, Damien," he glanced at his watch. "The point is, right now I could be celebrating my buddy's special day and I fucking can't. It's just upsetting."

"He's had other birthdays."

"And I've missed them all!"

"Well then he should be used to it!"

"Once again, my demonic pal you've missed the point."

"I get it, Dude. You want to be there. Nothing you can do about it right now," Damien commented.

Kenny slammed his hand down on the tabletop and glared at Damien. "Look," he started. "I'm going to fucking figure this out. I'm going to see Kyle and get him his present before the day is over. Got it?"

Damien sighed and stood from the table. "Why don't you look, Kenny? Let's say you do figure this out and you get rid of this ability. Then you get in a car accident or something. Then what? You die for real. Think that your friends would appreciate that?"

Kenny stared at him for a moment, considering this situation. "Well...I think they'd be happy that I'm not in a constant motion and I finally can rest."

Damien cocked an eyebrow at him. "Bullshit."

"Okay, well, I'm sure that someone would be okay with it. Cartman probably wouldn't give two shits. And Stan's too busy with sports for really dealing with his feelings..."

"And the Daywalker?"

"_Kyle _would...well. He'd probably....um. Well considering...uhhhh..."

"He'd be heartbroken?"

"How the fuck should I know? Kyle's fucking impossible to read. Cartman's constant bitching always has him keeping quiet so he doesn't start the Fatass's rampage."

"I thought he was the opinionated one."

"Oh, like you wouldn't believe," Kenny grinned. "But lately he's been...I dunno. He's seemed a bit distant. Especially towards Stan and me. It's a little weird. But it's just family problems, I'm sure. His mom's fucking insane."

"Poor kid."

"Eh, he's all right, I'm sure. That kid has a will strong enough to withstand just about anything."

"You tend to gush when you talk about him, ya know," Damien grinned.

Kenny grinned back. "Yea, but what can I do? Me and him have been pretty much inseparable since elementary school. He's the only other person I trust."

"Hm. Well, then we better go get you to your party then, huh?"

"Thought your dad was busy."

"He always is," Damien shrugs. "But I'm sure he'd be okay with a momentary distraction."

"Sweet," Kenny replied, pushing himself off of the table.

"Alright, hold on," Damien stated as he focused towards his dad's location. Kenny bit his lip. He knew that this was perfectly safe...but he still found it just a bit weird and quite a bit on the impossible side. In mere seconds, they found themselves in the office of Satan himself.

"Hey Pops," Damien greeted.

"What is it, Son? I'm pretty busy," the dark figure asked.

"Kenny here has something he'd like to ask you," Damien responded as he gave Kenny a gentle shove forward.

"Ah, yes. Hello, Kenny," Satan waved.

"Hey, Dude. How ya been?"

"Busiest season of my life. Now, what seems to be the problem?" He asked with his back turned, shuffling papers.

"Um...well, I was wondering...how come I can keep coming back to life?" Satan stopped his shuffling and put his papers down. He turned towards Kenny and stared at him for a moment before breaking into a malicious smile.

"I've waited for seventeen years for you to finally ask that question, Kenny McCormick."

Kenny looked at him confusedly, glancing towards Damien and seeing that he too was staring at his father.

"Y-you have?" Kenny stuttered.

Satan motioned towards two chairs and the boys took the seats. He himself sat behind his desk, pushing his stacks of papers to the ground and folding his hands in front of him.

"Yes, Kenny. There is a special meaning to you and your...gift."

"With all due respect, Sir. I hardly consider it a gift."

"That's understandable. I would think the same. Every day you've found some new way to die. It's stressful I'm sure."

"You should hear him bitching about it, Pops," Damien said. "He hates it."

"Why'd it take you so long to finally ask me, Kenny?"

"Well, I just wasn't sure what to say. I mean, I'm sure you know what's going on and everything...but still. I dunno. Maybe I'm just too fucking lazy."

"I bet," Damien sneered and Satan shot him a warning glance.

"Not necessarily lazy. Probably just confused."

"So, you know what's wrong with me?"

Satan smiled gently. "My boy, there's nothing _wrong_ with you, per se. You have, as I said, a gift. One that can be cured."

Kenny sat up on the edge of his seat. "Really?" He squeaked. "How? I'll do anything! Anything!"

Satan leaned back in his chair. "You do realize that you just said that to the devil," he chuckled.

"I don't care! Satan, Dude, I need to live a normal life! This whole thing is driving me completely insane!!!!!"

"Now, I never said that your life would be normal if you do this," Satan warned. "I merely said that the death-life cycle you live now would cease. You'd die once more and only once."

"Kenny," Damien put a hand in front of him and pushed him back into his seat. "You need to hear him out first, otherwise who knows what you might end up in?"

"Damien, you wouldn't make a very good Prince of Darkness if you keep that up. Let the gullible fools go down. It makes the job so much easier."

"Not if they're my friend, Pops," Damien mutters. Kenny grinned at this. Though it was heavily implied, neither of them had actually claimed that they held a friendly relationship, even though they saw each other on a daily basis.

"Please, Sir," Kenny pled. "I just want to go back for my friend's birthday. Tell me what I have to do."

"Ah, Kyle Broflovski's big day is today, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Kenny stared at him. "How'd you know?"

"Ha ha, in all honesty, I await all of your friend's birthdays because I knew that they'd be the most likely day that you'd ask me this question so you could get back to Earth."

"Why, Dad?" Damien questioned.

Satan grinned. "Kenny," he leaned forward. "In exchange for your normal life, I need a favor."

"What kind of favor?" he asked.

"Well, actually, it's less a favor and more a job. That with a few conditions."

"Ok...."

"You see, Kenny. I'm a very busy man. Death doesn't stop, no matter how you try to control it. And since all but the Mormons end up here, we work nonstop while God is up there playing with his friends and their magic underwear," he commented, waving his hand up towards the ceiling.

"Okay, what do you need me to do?"

"Kenny, what would you say if I told you that you were to become me, in a sense?"

"Um, I'd say...oh my god what the fuck are you talking about?"

Damien stared at his father with awe. "Father," he began frantically. "This can't be him, right? He can't be the...the vessel, right?"

"Vessel?" Kenny asked.

Satan nodded at them both. "Yes, son. He's what we've been waiting for for thousands of years."

"What?" Kenny asked, more confused than before.

Damien turned towards Kenny and took a deep breath. "You're the passage between the living and the dead. It's you who can find spirits, once Father awakens your powers that is," he pauses and gestures towards Satan.

"Why would I want to find spirits?"

Satan sighed. "As I said, I'm a busy man, and not all souls are actually able to pass on. They get lost or confused or they have unfinished business that they need resolved. I need you to go find those spirits and help them pass so they can finally take their place here."

"Wouldn't that like, dramatically increase your workload?"

"Quite the contrary," Damien stated. "It's the souls that can't pass that back up the system and cause things to fall out of order."

"Why me? Why can't Damien do it? He's got powers." Kenny points out.

"But I don't have a pure, human soul as you do," Damien answered.

"Kenny, the reason you keep dying is because you needed to learn of the passage between Earth and Hell. You needed to realize that you have a unique ability."

"Why couldn't you just tell me the first time?" Kenny asked, his anger beginning to slightly spike.

"As I said, you needed to realize it on your own," Satan replied. "Otherwise, you may not have been up for your task."

"So, I just have to get people to like, fully die?"

"That's putting it rather blatantly, but yes," Satan said.

"Doesn't that make me, like, you know...a murderer?"

Damien laughed, "Not since they're already dead, you moron."

"Oh," he responded quietly. "How many souls are there?"

"Billions," Satan replied dryly. "But your job is to get as many as you can situated for the afterlife. You can't get them all, but you need to get as many as possible. I know this seems like a lot of responsibility, but I think you'd do just fine," he smiled gently.

"You said there'd be conditions," Kenny breathed. "What would they be?"

"First," Damien started. "You'd be obligated to live a full life. No suicide or any shit like that to shirk off of your duties."

"I already said that people that off themselves are fucking pussies, Damien."

"If you died," he continued, "from like, a hobo, you'd be brought back to life as always. But you would not die everyday. You'd experience death as often as the average person."

"I like that condition," Kenny thought as he nodded.

"The second condition," Satan began, "is the knowledge of your abilities. You MUST keep them under wraps."

"What if I don't?"

"Then that person would gain your abilities as well, but it'd take a major toll on both of your life spans."

"And third," Damien continued as he leaned towards him, "is what happens should you refuse your responsibilities."

"Okay...?"

"You would lose the most precious possession in your life," Satan finished.

Kenny gasped. "Not my Playboys! I beg you, take me instead!"

Damien laughed and hit his arm. "You're such a douchebag, McCormick."

"You should talk," Kenny smirked.

"So, Kenny. Do we have a deal?" Satan asked, grinning and outstretching his hand.

Kenny weighed his options. On one hand, he'd have to constantly work and listen to spirits bitching about their problems and then having to fix them...on the other hand, he may be constantly caught up in work...but he'd be able to live everyday and see his friends.

"Today, Kenny," Damien growled impatiently.

Kenny looked towards him then towards Satan himself. He grinned and slapped his hand into Satan's and shook.

He saw a golden light and heard the angelic sounds of nature briefly surrounding him, engulfing him in a sense of inner peace. It ended far too soon, however as the light dimmed down into blackness.

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_A/N: A REALLY slow start, but I'm kinda pumped about this story. I may even start the second chapter after I post this =D_

_I think this will be a pretty long story, full of hardships, heartbreak...and smexiness, haha._

_And I JUST now realized that once again, I've started the story on Kyle's birthday XD_

_This time, he's 17, haha. But I don't think the poor lad will be as tortured as I made him in "Just Another Year"...not physically at least. But as I said in the first A/N....it all depends on my mood._

_I hope you enjoy this! And yes, there will be lots of dialogue in this story, it's just gonna happen. Deal with it. Please?_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!!!!!!!!!_


	2. Auras

_A/N: It is the same night that I typed Chapter one of this story...and I may finish this chapter by tonight too! (Well, the combination of tonight and tomorrow morning, haha. It's about 11 o'clock.) _

_I can never just leave a chapter unfinished I HAVE to write the whole thing in a sitting, otherwise I freak out over it. That's why my chapters are so short =D_

_Okays, well, enjoy_

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Kenny woke up in a daze. "What the fuck happened?" He asked himself. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, looking around at his surroundings. He was in his bedroom on his discarded mattress.

"When did I get back here?" He wondered. "I wonder if that little deal thing really worked..." He glanced over at his clock, which read at 10:45.

Kyle.

Shit, he only had an hour left of Kyle's birthday. Time sure flies while you're having a rip-roaring good time with Satan and his son. He bolted off his mattress, grabbed Kyle's present by his door, and ran out of the house.

The trek between their houses was about ten minutes, and he fucking hated it. He hated going past those fucking tracks beside his house only to be greeted by nice, clean houses with nice, clean families...and Cartman's house. He wasn't too jealous of Cartman's house. He refused to let himself be jealous of _anything_ that Cartman had. That'd give the fucking fatass too much of an ego trip.

As he continued walking down the street, his mind drifted back to his deal. Damien said that Satan was going to awaken his powers...but he didn't feel any different. He still felt like plain old Kenny McCormick. He probably should have asked a few more questions about this job of his. Like how he was supposed to find all of these stupid spirits. And how he was supposed to use his powers...or even what his powers were! And he should have requested minimum wage and health benefits. They did say it was a job after all.

Kenny walked past Stan's house and grins when he sees Stan through the living room window lifting weights. Seriously, Stan was like ultimate jock around South Park High. Quarterback, soccer and hockey captain, best damn batter on the baseball team...he had it all. Except for basketball and running track, those titles belonged to Kyle.

Kenny wasn't incredibly jealous of Stan's godlike stance though. Though the ladies drooled over him, Wendy kept him in a neat little package from which there is no escaping. Kenny, however, could have any girl, or guy for that matter, with just a wink and a touch on the leg. His powers of flirtation were undeniable, he'd lured in everybody except for his three best friends. He wasn't about to go after them, Cartman would kick his ass, well, at least sit on him. And Stan was under Wendy's constant radar. Kyle would probably just sit there and look confused.

He laughed at the image of himself flirting with Kyle. He could see his cheeks turning a bright rouge and his emerald eyes searching desperately for the logic of the situation. He'd never been too great at being caught off guard, but damn it was cute when he tried to recover.

He shook his head and laughed again as he walked up to the Broflovski's house. All the lights were off. Mrs. Brof must have them on curfew or something. It wasn't really that big of a deal, he'd snuck into Kyle's room before. He circled around to the backyard and walked over to a tree. He grasped the ribbon of his present in his teeth and began to climb.

Luckily Kyle's room wasn't that high off the ground. He swung himself onto the window ledge and sat down, trying to catch his breath. He turned and saw that Kyle's bedside light was on. He turned a bit more and saw Kyle on the bed and laughed softly.

Kyle was fast asleep on his back with his right hand bent up towards his face and his left hand covering the book that laid across his chest. His mouth was slightly open and his breathing was slow and even, his short, vibrant curls flowing around his face. Kenny could have stayed and watched him lay like that forever, but he had to finish what he came for.

As he was about to knock on the window, he noticed something a bit strange. There was some light surrounding Kyle. It was gentle and golden. It was almost like an aura, or the light that one sees surrounding an angel.

"What the hell?" Kenny muttered softly.

"I see you found the first part of your powers."

Kenny whipped around and found Damien floating behind him.

"Don't fucking do that, Dude. You fucking freaked me out," Kenny said, trying to slow down the rapid beating in his chest.

"Ha ha, scared you, hm?"

"Just a little. Now, what did I discover?"

"That light surrounding Kyle. It means something important for you."

"What?" Kenny insisted.

Damien's face deepened a bit and he joined Kenny on the ledge, watching the sleeping boy. "He's very important to you, yes?"

"Well, he is one of my best friends."

"Then you better watch out for him."

Kenny stared at him. "Why?"

"That light means that the ascension will commence soon unless someone stops it."

"The ascension? What the fuck is that?"

"The ascension is your job. He'll ascend from his physical body and become lost."

"Wait, wait, wait," Kenny breathed rapidly. "You mean Kyle's gonna..."

"Die. Yes. Unless you can prevent it. Which of course, it's totally your choice."

"Do all those who are about to die have that light?" Kenny asked softly, turning his attention back to the unconscious teen.

"Only those who will become lost. Those who will die soon, but are so far set in their course for the afterlife will have a blue aura around them. However, it only takes a second for the blue to turn golden, so I suggest you stay on your guard."

"Damien," Kenny asked. "What exactly am I supposed to do?"

"Your job is to make it so people like Kyle don't die lost. If they do, it's also your job to track down their spirits and turn them onto the right path."

"How do I find spirits? I'm not a ghost hunter."

Damien chuckled at that. "No, no you're not. Spirits have a green aura, so they're not too hard to spot."

"So...I can see dead people?"

Damien nodded. "Yes, but they'll try to appear as normal people walking the streets and such, but you're the only one who can see and hear them."

"So I should probably take them somewhere private to work out their issues."

"Only if you don't want to be dragged off to the mental asylum. And you don't because that would put a serious dent in your work."

Kenny sighed. "Is there anyway I can know how or when someone is going to die?" He stared intently at Kyle.

Damien followed his gaze and whispered "I don't know. Even my father isn't sure of all the rules in this game. A lot of what you do is going to have to be on a whim, I'm afraid."

"Great," Kenny muttered.

Damien patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Look," he said. "I'll be checking in on you every once in a while, but you're going to have to work this out."

"Okay."

"Oh! And before I forget," he threw a book at the blonde.

"What's this?" Kenny asked, flipping through the pages.

"You need to record your savings."

"What? My finances? I'm penniless, Dude."

"No, you dumbshit," Damien sighed impatiently. "You need to write the names of people or spirits you save, their date of birth, date of death, and reason that they were stuck."

"So, do they all know why they're stuck?"

"I don't know," Damien grinned. "That's something you'll have to find out. I'll see ya later, Dude. I've got to get back to Pops."

Kenny nodded as Damien vanished into the night air. He shivered. He couldn't believe that he was actually doing a job that involved dead people. It was a bit unsettling. He gazed back into the room at the glowing child.

"Why is Kyle going to be stuck?" He wondered. He tucked the notebook into his parka and knocked softly on the glass pane.

"Ky?" He asked. "Kyle?" He asked again, louder. He could see Kyle stirring and he persisted tapping on the window. Kyle opened his eyes and sat up, trying to find the source of the noise.

"Kyle, the window!" Kenny said softly. Kyle turned his head and saw Kenny and he smiled softly, getting up to open the window for him. Kenny hopped into the room and grinned at the boy.

"Sorry I'm a little late for the party, Dude."

"Only by about eight hours," Kyle replied sleepily, closing the window to stop the draft.

"Hey, at least I made it this year."

Kyle smiled at him warmly. "Yes, you did. Thank you." He sat on his bed and motioned for Kenny to join him. He obliged and held out his gift.

"Sorry it's not much," he said sheepishly as Kyle took it from his hands.

"Dude, you didn't have to get me anything," Kyle stated. "I'm just happy I actually got to see you for once."

"Well," Kenny brushed some of the redhead's hair out of his eyes. "I think I owe you a little more than just my appearance," he smiled as he noticed a slight red tinge on the boy's face from his motion.

Kyle cleared his throat softly. "Well, thanks then I guess," he said as he started to carefully unwrap his gift. Kenny could see his eyes brighten as he beheld a new sketchbook and a slew of drawing pencils.

"Kenny," he said quietly, turning to gaze into the blonde's eyes. "This stuff is really expensive! Why would you waste your money like this?"

Kenny scoffed. "Since when is buying one of my best friends a birthday gift a waste of money?"

Kyle's face paled slightly. "Well...well I mean, I really appreciate it, I really do! But...you can barely afford to eat."

"Ha ha, I always swipe some food from Hell," Kenny lied. "They have awesome cookies down there."

"Still...," Kyle started. Kenny took his hand and placed it over his.

"Look, it's going to break my heart if you don't just accept it. So please, just enjoy it, pal," he smiled softly. Kyle looked into his sad blue eyes and returned a smaller smile. Kenny threw his arm around Kyle's shoulders and brought him closer into his larger frame. He could see Kyle's blush working it's way up again and he fought back the urge to kiss his cheek. He wasn't about to risk his friendship with the kid, especially since the light around him reminded him that he had to be there to protect him.

Kyle sighed softly and looked at Kenny. "So, how's Damien and them?"

"Malicious as ever. How was the party? Was it totally wild and out of control? Boobs everywhere?" Kenny asked, knowing full well that Kyle never indulged himself in crazy things like that. He was far too mild mannered and sensible.

He giggled a bit and shook his head. "No, it was just me, Stan, and Fatass."

Kenny stared at him for a moment. "It was your seventeenth birthday...you're one of the most popular and well liked kids at school...and yet you only invited two people?"

"Three," he corrected.

Kenny rolled his eyes. "You know what I meant. Why didn't you invite more people? I mean geez, Brof, we might as well put you in a bubble as little as you do outside of school."

He looked out of the window and sighed. "I don't know," he said softly. "I wanted to...but I couldn't. I just...I just can't stand the way they all judge me."

This completely takes Kenny by surprise. "Judge you? Who judges you?"

He puts his face into his palm. "I don't even know. But I feel like they are."

Kenny stares after him for a moment. "Ky...," he starts gently. "Are you hiding something?"

Kyle looks up at him. "What? N-no! Why would you ask?"

"You're lying."

"I don't lie, Kenny," he mutters.

"First time for everything."

He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Look, Ken. I trust you more than anyone...," he looks away briefly and sighs, "even Stan at this point."

"Are you serious? Aren't you supposed to be like, Super Best Friends or something?"

"He doesn't really seem to care anymore. He's too busy with his sports...and _her_," he mumbles.

"Jealous of Miss Testaburger?"

"Not so much jealous as I am annoyed," he countered. "I don't like the fact that Stan blows me off every time we're supposed to hang or even when we're just talking to go discuss who loves who more with her," he sighed.

He couldn't exactly say that he understood. After all, he'd never had an actually serious relationship that wasn't built on the pure foundation of getting some action. "Well," he started slowly. "Have you talked to Stan about this?"

"Psh," he scoffed. "He'd say 'well she's my girlfriend, I have to be with her,'" he imitated in a flawless impersonation. He'd hung out with Stan way too much in the past.

"Hey, don't go getting down just because Stan's getting laid by some ho," Kenny said. "What it comes down to is his stupid popularity. I'm sure he'd much rather be hanging out with you, but if he only does that, you'll be dubbed as fags for the rest of high school."

"I'm already dubbed a fag," he mumbles miserably.

"Ah. I see. So you came out of the closet?"

Kyle stared at him with wide eyes, trying to comprehend Kenny's sudden statement. "N-no...I never said that..."

"Uh-huh. Tell me Kyle, when was the last time you dated? Hm?"

"...sixth grade."

"With who, Kyle?"

He sighed in aggravation. "Bebe."

"And how did that turn out Kyle?"

"You already fucking know, Kenny. She was a slut and it bothered me."

"Right. She tried to give you a blowjob and what did you do?"

"I dumped her," he said gently, then suddenly regaining his vigor. "But, I mean, we were too fucking young for that kind of thing! Why would I want to be subjected to that type of degenerate behavior?"

"Any boy in that school would have killed for that 'degenerate behavior' from the fucking hottest girl in school. You, however, did not. Have your feelings changed at all, Kyle?"

"Kenny, why are you interrogating me?" He asked miserably.

Kenny tugged Kyle closer and put a hand gently on his knee. "Because, I care about you, Broflovski. Don't know why, but I do. I wanna know what's been bugging you so much. I think it's this."

"I'm not gay, Kenny."

"How do you know?"

He stiffened up under Kenny's arm. "I just do."

"Hm. I highly doubt that. I went through the same shit, you know." Kyle gazed at him apprehensively. Kenny chuckled and continued, "yeah, you remember Clyde, right? Well I had a total boner for the dude. It was really fucking weird at first. I mean, masturbating and finding yourself thinking of not a chick, but a dude doing it to you? Talk about strange."

Kyle shifted uncomfortably and Kenny raised his eyebrow. "Oh come on now, Kyle, don't tense up. I know you've masturbated. It's not like it's a private subject nowadays."

"No...I haven't," Kyle said. Kenny stared at him.

"Dude, are you serious? Are you really that sheltered? You have feelings, Kyle. We all do. We're fucking teenagers with horrendous hormones. You can't seriously sit there and tell me that you've never had a dirty moment."

"Yes, I can," he stated, looking into Kenny's eyes without a trace of lying within them.

"Wow. Dude. That's...that's odd," Kenny said slowly.

"Sorry I'm not a perv, Kenny."

"Exploring your feelings doesn't make you a perv, idiot. It makes you more ready when you get to the real thing."

"Maybe I'm not interested in the real thing."

"Now that," Kenny stated, "is bullshit. Everyone has hormones. We all just have different levels of control."

"Yea," Kyle smirks. "Total," he gestures to himself, "and none," he waved towards Kenny. Kenny smirked back.

"I'm just totally comfortable with my body and know how to make myself feel fucking amazing. Is that a crime?"

"Well, in religion, yes."

"Oh, whatever."

A moment of silence passed between them before Kyle sighed and began to nervously rake his fingers through his orange curls. "What if," he began, "hypothetically, I was gay?"

"What do you mean 'what if?'"

"I mean how would you feel about that?"

Kenny broke into a shit eating grin. "Hey, I'd be all for it. I'd totally have rights to flirt with you."

Kyle laughed nervously and felt his face begin to heat up. "What about Stan?" he asked suddenly. "Do you think he'd...ya know, freak?"

Kenny placed a hand on his shoulder and said firmly, "Look, Stan's been your best friend for years. I know he's preoccupied with Wendy, but he is still your pal, ok? I'm sure he'd support you no matter what."

Kyle glanced at him uncertainly, then broke into a small smile.

"See," Kenny said, "I knew that coming out would help you feel better. Is this why you thought people were judging you?"

He nodded slightly. "Dude," Kenny began. "I don't think you quite understand just how this stupid world works. You are at the top of the popularity food chain. If you become gay, it's going to become something that's really cool to do. Of course, they'll do it just for popularity, and you'll be looking for love as you live your correct lifestyle," he grinned. "Technically, you come out on top."

"You're logic is...interesting, Kenny," he chuckled.

"However, I do have one question."

"What's that?"

"You say that you didn't invite people because you didn't want to be judged...and yet you let Cartman over?"

"Psh, that fatass just walked in behind Stan. I didn't fucking invite him. I never do."

Kenny laughed, "sounds like him alright. I'm guessing he didn't catch on."

"He was too busy bitching about eating 'Jew food'...which he ate three times as much as myself and Stan. Besides, he isn't exactly observant."

"True," Kenny mused.

Another short moment of silence passed between them, with Kyle staring intently at the floor in deep thought, and Kenny staring at the light surrounding the boy. It was terrifying, really, to think that his friend was apparently on the brink of death, and he didn't know what to do to stop it.

"Kenny?"

"Hm?" He asks, still halfway in his thoughts.

"Thanks," Kyle said sleepily and leaned his head lazily on Kenny's shoulder.

Kenny laughed softly and ruffled the boy's hair playfully. "No problem, Dude. I'm gonna hit it, you get back to sleep."

"Be careful...please? I'd like to see you at school tomorrow if at all possible," he mumbled with his eyes drooping drastically.

Kenny grinned and carefully pushed Kyle onto his back and covered him with his sheet. He gently planted a soft kiss on the boy's curls as he drifted back off to sleep.

"Poor kid," Kenny thought as he watched him begin to slow his breathing once more. "I was a lot more comfortable with being bi...but Kyle's just too damn innocent and old fashioned for his own good." He opened the window and stepped out on the ledge. As he closed the window back down, he felt his footing starting to slip,

"Oh fuck!" he cried as he plummeted towards the ground and landed on his head. He sat up and rubbed the impact point, noticing a large stick that he'd just barely missed.

"If I was still like my old self..." he wondered, "that thing would have went straight through my skull." He smiled at this thought and stood up to brush himself off. He took one quick glance back towards Kyle's window and smiled wider. What a night. He'd broken his eternal curse and learned that Kyle was more likely to respond to his flirting.

Fucking best day ever.

He glanced at his watch and saw that it was about 1:00, he needed to head home before the fucking police came around and tried to enforce the dumbass curfew.

As he headed back towards his shithole of a home, he noticed something in the woods across from the row of houses he was passing. He inched closer and gasped when he saw a figure standing by the bushes picking flowers. He looked closer still and saw a little girl staring back at him with long, brunette curls, and a ghastly green glow flowing around her.

___________________________________________________________________

_A/N: I finished this by 1:19. I'm fucking proud. Sort of. I was actually going to make Kyle wait a bit longer to come out, but I started a brainstorm and got things to start making sense in my mind for later in the story, so this scene just seemed right._

_And yays! Kenny's gonna get his first...i dunno what to call them. Mission? Job? Assignment? Hehe, ass._

_Ignore my childish retardation. Please review my friends. I love you for it =)_


	3. Anna

_A/N: Kenny's first job is tonight, huzzah. I think that all of the jobs he has are going to be their own full chapter, with the spirit or person's name as the chap. title. I dunno though. We'll have to see how this goes =)_

________________________________________________________________

"Hi," he quietly waved at the girl in front of him. She stared at him with wide eyes for a brief moment. He could see her shaking violently before she whipped around and started running in the other direction.

"Wait!" He cried out, taking pursuit after her. She led him through a mass of trees, skillfully evading every branch and rock in her path. Kenny, however, continued to stumble over his feet at every obstacle he came across as he ran behind her. "Wait up," he pled in-between pants. "I just wanna talk to you!" He could see her running into a clearing beyond the woods. He tripped and fell over a tree limb and landed painfully against the hard ground.

He blinked and rubbed his head, looking around the clearing. There was no sign of the girl anywhere.

"Fuck," he muttered. First fucking job and he blew it. He stood up and brushed himself off. "Maybe this deal wasn't the best idea," he thought to himself. He looked around and saw that he was at Stark's Pond. It'd been awhile since he'd been there, so he decided to just walk around and think for a bit.

He started to circle the pond and let his mind flow on it's own for a while. Why was that girl so afraid of him? Why couldn't he keep up with a child? Why the hell was he even doing this? Why did he of all people have this power? He shook his head at these questions. They weren't worth asking, it's not like he was going to get a response anytime soon. He sighed and looked back towards the trees. He squinted and saw a glow arising from behind a shrub. He quietly and slowly made his way towards the light and pulled the shrub back a bit. He was met with the terrified gaze of the young girl.

"Hey there," he said softly. She trembled and looked at him with untrusting eyes. "It's okay," he assured her. "I'm here to help you."

She stared at him and whispered, "I'm not a'sposed to talk to strangers."

"Well...I'm Kenny," he told her with a gentle smile. "What's your name?"

She sniffled slightly. "I'm Anna."

"Anna? That's a pretty name. Why are you out here, Anna?" Kenny asked.

"I'm waiting for Mommy," she told him.

"Would you like me to wait with you, Anna? I'll keep you safe if you want me to," he stated.

She shook her head. "Mommy will get mad if she sees me with a stranger."

"Well, we can tell her I'm one of your friend's older brothers or something," he suggested.

She considered this for a moment. "Okay," she nodded. He held out his hand and offered to help her up. When she clasped down on his palm, he could feel his body turn cold and it sent violent shivers up his spine.

He could see something...something dark and mysterious. It was like a looming shadow with an upraised hand. He continued to stare into it, and could make out what seemed to be glowing red eyes...a bit like Damiens... but a lot less friendly. It glared back at him with a hungry gaze in it's demon eyes. It began to inch forward towards him, he tried to move away from it, but he seemed to be paralyzed to the spot. He could see it gaining speed as it approached him and he closed his eyes, awaiting the inevitable. He gasped for breath as the shadow tackled him and enveloped his body.

"Kenny?" He heard echoing in the distance. "Kenny?"

He opened his eyes to Anna, who was standing over him in concern. He shot his head around in confusion, finding himself of the ground at the pond. He did a double take to search for the shadow, but it was no where to be found.

"You just fell over shaking," she whispered. "Are you okay?"

He stared at her for a moment and quickly gathered his senses. "Yeah," he responded, though not too sure of it himself. "I guess I had like a mini-seizure or something," he chuckled. She continued to gaze at him as he stood up. He reached over and took her hand once more, receiving the same chill but he no longer saw the shadow.

"You're freezing, kid," he whispered.

"No, you're just really warm," she retorted. He chuckled slightly.

"So, where do you think your mommy is?"

"I don't know," she stated miserably. "She said she would be back soon..."

"How long have you been out here, Anna?"

"I don't know..."

He sighed deeply. This isn't getting him anywhere. He needed to find her mother and help her, but he had no idea where to start. He looked over as she yawned. He had no idea that spirits got tired.

"Sleepy, Anna?" He asked softly.

She nodded and rubbed her eye. He bent down and picked her up gently. "Why don't you take a nap? I stay up and protect you, okay?"

"But what about Mommy?"

He smiled, "I'll wake you up when she gets here." She smiled back and nestled into his arms. He needed to find someplace to lay her down so he could think. Her mother wasn't coming back, he was sure. So he started back into the woods and headed back towards his home.

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As he gently placed Anna down onto his mattress, he tried to figure out just what the girl was doing lost...but most of all why she was already dead. He glanced at her clothes, seeing now in the gentle glow of his bedroom lamp that she was in a laced, white dress. She had long and beautiful brown curls that fell just below her waist, with a large, soft lilac ribbon tying the sides of her hair back. She had very pale and fragile skin, he was afraid of touching her again, she looked like she could break from a touch of this fingertips. The glow surrounding her flowed steadily and softly, reflecting lightly off of her silken dress.

She looked so young and innocent. What the hell could have happened to this poor kid? And where the fuck was her mother?

He ran his fingers through his hair. What the hell was he supposed to do now? He tried to put together a plan of action to help Anna, but soon figured out that he couldn't tonight. He was exhausted and couldn't think straight, he would have to figure this out later. He lied down next to her and slowly began to drift off into a deep slumber with his only dream being the red eyes of the shadow.

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"Kenny McCormick, get your lazy ass up!" He heard.

He squinted in the bright light of the day. Oh god, what a long night. He glanced towards his door and made out the shape of his father.

"Come on, Son, you gotta go to school!" His father insisted, though a bit gentler this time.

Kenny regained his vision and look confusedly at his father. "Dad...you're um...in a suit?"

His father smiled gently. "I have a job interview today."

"Really?!" Kenny squeaked in surprise. "Dad, that's fucking awesome!"

"Your mother's going job-hunting today, too. We need to start living instead of just wasting away in this shithole," he gestured around Kenny's room.

"Oh sure," Kenny thought to himself. "I'm a year away from being kicked out and they decide to turn around their lives."

"That's great, Dad," he smiles supportively.

"I know, now get ready for school," he turned and shut the door.

Kenny glanced over and saw that Anna was still next to him, inhaling and exhaling slowly. "I thought they didn't breathe," he wondered. He shrugged off his confusion and stood up to grab a shirt from his closet and threw it on.

"Mommy?" he heard her whisper and he turned around. Anna was trying to sit herself up, glancing confusedly at his room. "Kenny?" she asked.

"Hey, kid. Your mommy didn't show up, so I brought you here to sleep," he paused and watched her face droop with sadness and fear.

"B-but what if she comes? She'll be mad at me!" She said fearfully.

"I left a note by where I first saw you," he lied. "I told her not to worry and where to find you." He could see her calm down after that. He didn't want to lie to her...but he had to do something, otherwise she'd just stand there all day and wait for her mom.

"Kenny..." she started slowly. "How come everybody ignores me?"

"What do you mean?"

She glanced at him sadly. "I ask everyone who passes me if they've seen my mommy, but they just keep walking," she explained, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Oh my god...," Kenny thought. "She doesn't even know that she's...oh god." He saw that she was still staring at him and cleared his throat. "Well...I don't know," he lied again. "But I'm not ignoring you, am I?" He asked with a smile.

"No...but I wish someone would have helped me."

"Well, I will, kid. Don't you worry about it," he winked. He could see a faint smile spread over her lips. "You wanna tag along with me to school?" He asked. He really didn't think it was too smart of an idea, but he really didn't have any other options.

She considered this and nodded. "Okay," she whispered. Kenny smiled back and turned back to getting ready. He grabbed his backpack and held out his hand towards her.

"Let's kick it," he stated. She grasped his hand and he led her through his house and out the door.

Kenny always caught a ride with Stan, Kyle, and Cartman to get to school, since he had no mode of transportation to call his own. As they trekked towards Stan's place, he could see Anna out of the corner of his eye looking around frantically.

"Don't worry," he assured her softly. "She'll find you, I promise."

"How do you know?"

"I just have a feeling about it." She seemed to believe him as she slowly set her eyes ahead of them and stared. He let out a breath of relief. This was going to be pretty hard on him.

He saw a shock of red hair approaching them and grinned widely. He held up his hand and waved towards Kyle, though Kyle was not looking back at him. He could see Cartman behind Kyle, holding up his green hat and smiling.

"Give it back, Fatass!" he could hear. He sighed and shook his head. Why did every day have to start like this?

"Cartman, give him his hat back!" He could hear Stan shout.

"Why? The little Jewrat and his boyfriend gonna cry about it?"

"Kenny?" Anna asked. "What's a Jewrat?"

Oh god. He sighed in aggravation. "It's a horrible term that you should never say, Anna. Cartman, the big kid who said it, is just a jerk. Don't do anything he does. Ever." He stated firmly. She gave him a confused glance but turned back to watch the other three they were approaching.

Kyle lunged for his hat, but Cartman held out his arm and sent Kyle twisting and spiraling to the ground.

"You fucktard!" He sputtered as he stood back up. He had a trail of blood trickling down his chin. He glanced up and saw Kenny. He's scowl turned into a bright smile as he waved. "Hey, Ken!" he greeted.

"Cartman, give Kyle the fucking hat back," Kenny glowered at him.

"Don't tell me what to do, Poor boy," Cartman spit out. Kenny saw Anna trembling at his side from Cartman's tone and pulled her closer towards him. She wrapped herself around his waist and continued to shake.

Stan walked over and smacked the back of his head and grabbed the hat. "Here, Ky," he handed off the item with a smile.

"Thanks, Dude," Kyle replied gratefully. Kenny placed his hand against Anna and slightly nudged her forward as he began to walk towards Kyle. He held his hand up and gently wiped away the blood from his chin.

"Psh, gaywads," Cartman scoffed. Kenny shot him a warning glance and turned back to Kyle.

"You okay, Dude?"

Kyle blushed slightly. "Yea, Dude. I'm fine. Just fucking agitated," He glanced down towards the ground and raised his eyebrow. "Why are you holding your hand like that?"

Kenny followed his gaze and looked at his hand. It was pressed against Anna's back. From their prospective, it probably looked like he was expecting a low five or something. He shrugged and responded, "hand cramp. It's having weird-ass spasms."

"Huh. I'm sorry."

He laughed slightly at that. "Not your fault, Brof. So, shall we?"

Stan stepped up and nodded. "We're gonna be late if we don't move it, come on." The four, well five, of them moved towards Stan's mustang. Stan and Kyle hopped into the front while Cartman slid into the rear left side. Kenny discreetly helped Anna slide into the middle and climbed in beside her. She smiled warmly at him and playfully swung her feet as he settled in. He returned the smile and turned back towards the front.

"So, Kenny," Stan started as he backed out of his driveway. "You going to that seminar thingy after school?"

Kenny blinked at him blankly. "Seminar?"

Kyle turned and laughed softly at Kenny. "Only the seminar that the teachers haven't shut up about in weeks."

Kenny grinned. "The only teacher I've ever listened to was the sex-ed teacher."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I'm well aware of that, but this is about college and shit."

"Yeah," Cartman replied in a bored tone as he stared out the window. "They're telling us how to apply and where to get help and other useless junk."

"Furthering one's education isn't useless, Cartman," Kyle stated.

"What the hell do I need to do that for? I already know everything I need to survive in the real world and I can just support myself with a shitty job!"

"You don't know everything, you moron," Kyle replied bitterly.

Cartman turned towards him and narrowed his eyes. "Sure I do. I know that Jews are fucking annoying, dirty Chris killers and need to all be put to death in the most painful and efficient manner. That's plenty to get me through life."

They all lurched forward as Stan skidded the car to a stop. He turned and glared furiously at Cartman. "Listen to me, Fatass and listen well," he started in a dark tone. "Lay off the fucking Jewish jokes and stop fucking saying they need to be killed. Or you can fucking walk to school. Got it?"

Kenny turned and watched Kyle's reaction, which was nothing more than a big, goofy grin.

Cartman scoffed and turned his head back towards the window. "Fucking fags," he mumbled under his breath.

"I get more action than you do, Fatass," Stan retorted as he turned forward to continue driving.

"I don't think that butt fucking constitutes as action, Stan," Cartman said.

"Cartman, I swear to God," Stan started with forced, even breathing.

"Cartman, seriously," Kenny stated. "You need to know when to quit while you're ahead, Dude."

Cartman shot an angry glare in his direction, causing Anna to jump a bit back. Kenny slowly wrapped his hand around hers so as to not draw attention.

"Just stop, Cartman," he growled. Cartman huffed and turned back towards the window. Kenny could see him shooting furious glares in Kyle's direction.

Kyle sighed and turned back towards Kenny to smile again. "So, you coming along or what?"

"To what?"

Kyle laughed. "The seminar, you moron."

"Oh...well...I don't really plan on going to college," Kenny stated slowly. He watched as Kyle smile turned into a frown of concern.

"What? Why not? Your grades are fine for getting into most colleges."

"I dunno. I don't see much point in it, I guess," he turned and glanced at Anna, who was staring at him with a faint tinge of confusion.

"You don't wanna go to college, Kenny? How will you be super smart?" She asked innocently.

He couldn't help but break into a small grin at her tone. She was just too damn cute for her own good.

"-ny?" He heard.

"Huh?" he snapped back into reality.

"I said what are you smiling at? This isn't exactly a good thing. You should go to college so you can support yourself better in the future."

"Oh fuck off him you nagging Jew," Cartman started. Stan gave him a warning growl but he shrugged it off. "If he doesn't want to, he doesn't want to."

"Look, Kyle," Kenny started. "I appreciate what you're saying, but I just don't think that college is right for me. Aside from the frat parties of course," he grinned.

Kyle stared at him for a moment then sighed softly. "Alright, dude. Whatever you say." He turned back around and leaned back into his seat. Kenny looked down as he felt Anna put her hand on top of his. He gave her a small smile and leaned back himself.

As they approached the school, he could see Anna getting excited. He raised an eyebrow at her and she turned towards him with her eyes shining.

"I always wanted to see the big kid school!" She squeaked. Kenny turned back and sighed. It was going to be a long day.

As they pulled into the lot, Kenny started to think more about Anna's presence. He hadn't thought about where to sit her or how she was going to be able to keep up with him in the halls. Oh shit.

"What the hells the matter, Poor-boy? Get out of the damn car!" Cartman shouted from beyond the window.

Kenny quickly motioned for Anna to follow him and opened the door to climb out. As he did, he deliberately moved slowly so that she could clamber out behind him without it seeming odd to the other three.

They started walking towards the campus, Kenny trying as well as he could to make sure that they did not see him holding Anna's hand. He fell back behind them so as to appear less suspicious. The others held little attention to his lagging. Cartman had started looking for his history book in his bag, mumbling explicatives as he searched. Stan and Kyle were talking quietly and laughing every now and then.

Kenny had to smile at this. He had observed these two making an impenetrable bond over the last seventeen years, and he couldn't be happier for them. No one made a better duo in his mind, yet one would never expect them to be quite so close. Stan was brimming with muscle and good looks. Kyle was on the scrawny side, about five inches shorter than Stan, with black rimmed glasses and frizzy hair. Stan surrounded himself with people and was the life of the party, while Kyle was much more content in a corner reading a book. It was quite hilarious in Kenny's opinion to watch them walk side by side. It was funny to other people, too. As Stan had often been asked why he hung with the dorky ginger kid instead of the rest of the football team. Kenny loved it when people asked this question because the best side of Stan always shone through. He would defend Kyle's honor and proceed to break the kid's nose for insulting his best friend. It was sweet...in a violent sort of way.

"Kenny?" Anna tugged on his arm.

"Hm?"

"Why didn't your friends say anything to me?"

Oh geez. "Well, Anna...," he stated as quietly and discreetly as he could. "the thing is...," he hesitated. Oh what the hell, she was going to find out sooner or later anyway. "I'm the only one who can see or hear you."

"How come?"

He sighed. "Anna. Are you sure you can't remember when your mom disappeared?"

"It was a while ago...but she didn't disappear! She's still looking for me. I know it," she beamed.

Kenny bit his lip. How the hell was he supposed to break this to her?

"Kenny! Look up!" He heard.

"Huh?" He jerked his head up to slam his face into one of the support pillars outside the door. He stepped back and muttered, "Goddammit." He looked up and saw Kyle and Stan pointing at him in a bout of laughter while Cartman just rolled his eyes and continued down the hallway.

"Nice going, Poor boy," he shouted over his shoulder.

"You okay?" Anna asked with worry.

"Ha ha," he rubbed his nose. "I'm fine. I'm just not paying attention is all."

"Ya got that right," He looked up and saw Kyle in front of him with a wide grin on his face. He turned and waved good bye to Stan as he turned to walk down towards his class.

"So," Kyle continued, "what the hell are you thinking about?"

"I don't even know, Dude," Kenny laughed. "My minds just fucking going everywhere lately." They started to walk down towards the one class they shared: English. Oh how Kenny fucking hated English. Too many damn books to read and too many papers to write on them. He usually just copied some of Kyle's work and tried to learn from that. Luckily Kyle's papers were more detailed than the books themselves, so it wasn't hard to figure out what he'd been missing.

"I'm going to just take a swing and guess that you didn't do your homework, Ken."

"Oh, Kyle, you can read me like a book."

"Now if only you would occasionally do the same thing, I wouldn't have to keep letting you read all of my papers."

"Not like I understand most of what the hell you say, Brof," he laughed. "I don't know how the fuck you know so many big words. I personally think that you go to a school outside of South Park on the side."

"No, I'm just the only person who actually does their work."

"And that's why you're the biggest nerd around this here town," Kenny grinned.

Kyle grinned back. "Perhaps, but it's the nerds who end up earning the most over their lifetime."

"True," he agreed as they turned into their class.

"Hello boys!" a cheerful voice sang out.

"Hey, Mrs. Troyer," they responded simultaneously as she approached them.

"Kyle, I am very impressed with your paper on the "The Scarlet Letter". Would you mind if I read it to the class as an example of how it was supposed to be written?" Kyle blushed slightly at this.

"Yeah...I guess so," he muttered.

"Excellent! I am so proud of your work, Kyle, I should have you teach the class," she gushed.

He just nodded his head and headed for his desk, with Kenny and Anna following.

Once Kyle sat down, he slammed his head onto his desk and sighed in frustration. Kenny looked around and then leaned over to Anna and whispered, "can you sit on the floor today?"

She looked at him and nodded with a giant smile spread over her face. As Kenny took his place at the desk next to Kyle's, Anna sat in front of him with her legs crossed and drawing pictures with her finger on the carpet.

"You okay, Kyle?"

"Psh, I hate having my papers read," he groaned into the desktop. "I feel like such a loser."

"Nah, you have other qualities that make you a loser, my friend."

Kyle rose his head and half-heartedly glared at him. "Shut up, Dude."

Kenny laughed as the other students piled in and took their seats. The bell rang and Mrs. Troyer was calming everyone down.

"Now then, everyone. I went over your papers from last week. Those of you who turned them in anyway," she glared at Kenny and he smiled goofily back. "And I don't think that you all quite understood what I was asking from you. However, one student did and I'll read their paper for you so you know exactly what I'm looking for."

"The ginger nerd's paper, right?" A voice arose from the back of the room. The class laughed and Kenny looked towards Kyle, who's face was in his palm, turning into its usual rouge shade.

Mrs. Troyer scowled at the kids before continuing. "It is _Kyle's _paper, yes. And this kind of work is the reason that he's the only one of you who's actually passing this class. He's also the only one who won't be doing the extra paper I assign for such behavior."

"Oh god, no," Kenny heard him mutter as the class groaned and complained about how unfair of a bitch she was.

"Ahem, now then. Listen as I read this and try to plan your own papers accordingly this time." She started reading Kyle's paper aloud and glanced around towards the other kids. They were all either asleep or texting, except for Kyle, who was looking down at his desk and biting his lip.

Kenny took out a sheet of paper and jotted down a note, handing it off to Kyle.

'_You okay?'_

Kyle took out a pen and wrote back, '_They're going to kick my ass.'_

'_Not necessarily.'_

'_Yes they will. No other kid ends up getting them extra homework.'_

'_Well, they'll have to go through me first.'_

'_Kenny, at the rate you die, you'll be down in a second flat.'_

Kenny smiled at this, but remembered his condition and quickly responded,_ 'Nah. I got a good feeling about today.'_

'_Never mattered before.'_

'_Oh, what do you know?'_

'_I know how to write papers, apparently.'_

'_Ha ha, whatever, Dude. You tell Stan yet?'_

'_About what?'_

'_Don't play stupid, Broflovski.'_

'_I don't think that I should...not yet at least.'_

'_Why?'_

'_I still don't know how to break it to him.'_

'_You make it sound like you're telling him someone died.'_

'_Well, it'll probably change his whole perspective of me.'_

'_So?'_

'_What do you mean 'so'?! It could be a total disaster to our friendship!'_

'_I told you, it'll be fine!'_

'_How do you know? Are you psychic?'_

'_I know Stan. Not as well as you, but pretty damn well.'_

'_Not for this particular situation.'_

'_Hey, I told you all that I was bi!'_

'_No, we found out when we walked in on you and Craig fucking, remember?'_

"Oh yea," Kenny thought to himself. He'd tried to repress that memory since it was perhaps the worst and most embarrassing experience of his life. He turned back to the note: _'My point still remains, he's totally cool with it!'_

'_But you don't sleep in the same bed as he does when you sleep over!'_

'_Touche. But still, he's totally cool with gays.'_

'_I still don't know.'_

'_Reassure him that you aren't going to try to hump __**him**__ and I'm sure that everything will be just fine.'_

Kyle looked at the note and sighed heavily, turning his attention briefly back to Troyer, who was still rambling off his paper. "ugh," Kenny heard him sigh as he picked his pen back up. _'I will sometime soon...I hope you're right, Kenny.'_

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------_

The rest of Kenny's day passed without much of a hitch. Anna clung close to him and just hung out in his classes as he pretended that he was paying attention. Actually he was trying to figure out just how to fix Anna's problem...and how to tell her that she was dead. How does one go on and not realize this? He knew that she was just a child, but still...it was...strange.

As the final bell rung, Kenny waited for a moment before fleeing out the door so he wouldn't lose Anna. When he judged it to be clear enough, he grasped her wrist and led her to the hallway. He stopped and waited for Kyle and Stan outside his room just as he had every day.

Anna caught sight of them first, however, and started waving at them frantically. Kenny looked towards her and gave a sympathetic look. She sees this and stopped her waving, looking at her feet guiltily.

"I had to try," she whispered. He squeezed her wrist gently before walking towards them.

"Hey, Dudes," he greeted.

"Hey, Ken. How was your day?" Stan asked.

"Same as always. Boring and retarded. You?"

"Same. Kyle?"

Kyle looked down at his feet and shrugged. "Nothing special," he gazed up and briefly met Kenny's stare, and quickly averted them again.

So he still hadn't told Stan. Wonderful. Kenny saw that he was going to have to push him harder towards it. They all continued down the halls towards the exit.

"HEY GINGER!" They heard from behind them. They whipped around and saw a tall, muscular boy behind them.

"Yeah, I'm talking to you, ginger," he sneered at Kyle.

"Well then, what?" Kyle snapped.

Time seemed to blur for Kenny as he saw the boy running up towards Kyle and punch him straight in the jaw. He blinked before he could comprehend what was happening. Stan seemed to be caught in the same state too as he momentarily stood and watch Kyle as he flew back onto the tile with a loud thud.

They both quickly gathered their senses however and ran to Kyle's aid. Stan grabbed the boy's collar and turned him around. "What the fuck do you think you're fucking doing?" He spat.

"That fucking kid keeps overloading our fucking classes with homework! Just because he's oh so perfect," he glared over his shoulder at Kyle, who was still on the floor, just staring at him with a vague look of fear and shock.

"That's no fucking excuse to hit him, douchebag," Kenny growled. He bent over and helped Kyle onto his feet.

"I'm failing all of my fucking classes because of him! There's so damn much that I can't fucking keep up! My parent's are threatening to fucking kick me out of my damn house!" the boy shouted, pushing Stan off of him.

"It's not his fault you can't keep up!" Kenny spat.

The boy seemed to ignore him as he lunged for Kyle. He tackled him and clamped his hands down hard on the scrawny kid's throat.

"Get off of him!" Stan screamed in fury, trying to pry the boy off, but to no avail. Kenny reached down and tried to pull him off as well, having just as much luck. His eyes widened as he saw Kyle struggling desperately for air. The boy's arms were beginning to bleed from Kyle's fingernails digging into his arm.

"You fucking ginger!" the boy screamed as he increased the pressure. Kyle coughed and spluttered, his eyes begging Stan and Kenny to help him. They persisted, but could not move the fucking kid.

"Hey! Back off!" They heard. Kenny saw a fist come in contact with the boy's face and looked up to see Cartman looming over them. "If anyone's going to kill the fucking Jew, it'll be me!" He raged on with pure fury in his eyes.

Kenny looked at him, completely bewildered, as Stan reached down to gently smack on Kyle's back, trying to get the air coursing back through his lungs. Cartman stepped over them and approached the boy, who was trying to make a quick getaway.

"Listen to me, fucktard," Cartman hissed. "I am the only one who causes him pain, got it?"

The boy quickly nodded, threw Kyle another dirty look, and scampered away. Kenny continued to stare at Cartman in awe, as Anna clung to his side and cried softly. He turned towards her after making sure the other three weren't looking and gave her a reassuring hug. She smiled at him gratefully, then looked towards Kyle in concern.

"Dude," Kyle gasped out. "What the fuck just happened?! Am I the only one who didn't fucking see that coming?!"

The others looked towards him with gentle expressions. Except for Cartman of course, who was looking at him with fury.

"You fucking pussy, Kyle. Why the fuck didn't you fight back? Are you really that fucking weak?"

Kyle shot him an angry glare as he stood himself up. "I was caught off guard, you fatass! You wouldn't have known what the hell to do either!"

"Oh please! I know that when someone's running towards me with an angry expression, I need to fucking raise my fists, Kahl! You'll never fucking survive if you keep trusting everyone around you!"

"I didn't trust him, dumbshit! I just wasn't expecting it!" the boy screeched back.

Cartman threw up his hands in exasperation. "You Jews just never fucking learn, do you? You think that you're right and everyone else is wrong just because they don't agree with your methods."

"Oh like you should talk!" Stan retorted loudly.

"Kenny...I'm scared..." Anna whispered, clinging to his side once more. He sighed deeply.

"Look," he stared at Cartman. "You weren't there. You didn't see what happened. Thanks for helping get the guy off of Kyle, but don't say he's fucking weak just because he couldn't push someone your size off of himself."

Cartman stared at him a minute before shoving his hands in his pockets and muttering a hasty "whatever." He turned to make his retreat, and the four of them stared after him before shaking their heads and making their way back towards the doors.

"You alright?" Stan asked Kyle.

He nodded slightly and rubbed the back of his neck. Kenny could see faint bruises around his neck and along his mouth. Kyle whipped his head around to face Kenny and gave a sheepish smile.

"I told ya so," he laughed softly.

Kenny gently put his arms around his shoulders and squeezed gently before releasing them again. "Sorry I didn't exactly fulfill my promise back there."

"It's fine. I'd rather you be alive for the time being," Kyle chuckled. Stan stared at them in confusion and Kenny just shrugged at him.

"Private conversation," he stated. Stan accepted this and turned back to open the doors for them.

"You still not going to the seminar, Ken?" Kyle asked quietly.

Kenny smiled and shook his head. Kyle sighed.

"I don't think I will either," he remarked.

Stan and Kenny stared at him.

"What?" He asked. "I already know how to do the shit they're going to be 'teaching' us. Why waste my time? Besides, I'd rather not get questioned about these," he pointed towards his marks.

"That thing was going to be lame anyways," Stan laughed.

"You weren't going either? I thought that you and me were supposed to do that then hang afterwords" Kyle asked with an eyebrow raised.

"I was...but -"

"Wendy?" Kyle finished.

Stan looked at him sheepishly. "She's my girlfriend, Dude."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Just take us home, Stan."

"Sorry, Ky."

"I'm used to it, Stan. It's not a big deal," he turned and met eyes with Kenny. "You wanna hang for a bit tonight, Kenny?"

.

Kenny gave a small sideways glance towards Anna, who looked up at him with shining eyes and nodded her approval. Apparently she was taking in all that she could get.

"Sure, why not?"

Stan smiled. "I'll just take ya both to Kyle's then. Let's hit it." With that, they climbed in the car and set off towards home. They sat in silence for the entire car ride, well aside from Anna, who kept bouncing up and down and saying how cool the big kid's school was and how she couldn't wait to go.

Kenny winced when she said this. This was not going to be a fun explanation. He let out a small sigh as they approached Kyle's house.

"See ya, Dudes," Stan smiled as they climbed out. They waved back and watched as he drove down the road, probably to Wendy's place.

"He blew me off again," Kyle whispered blankly.

"Forget him, Ky. He's just having a grade-A douchebag day."

"Yea...so, whaddya wanna do, Ken?" Kenny shrugged. "Do you want something to eat?" Kyle suggested.

Kenny smiled and nodded and they headed into the house.

"Hello, Bub-," his mother started before her jaw dropped. "Kyle! W-what happened?"

"Nothing, Mom. We're raiding the kitchen."

"But...but Kyle! Your neck! And your mouth!" she reached over and grasped her son's

chin, turning it left and right to examine the damage.

"Mom! I'm fucking fine!" He snapped. He turned to Kenny and muttered, "I'm going to get soda. Stay here and do whatever," he finished as he walked towards the kitchen.

Kenny turned towards Kyle's mother and gave her a reassuring smile. "He got into a little fight, Mrs. Brof. No biggie."

"A fight? What about?! Was it that Eric boy again? I know it was! That child has been nothing but trouble since you were in elementary school!"

"Mom, it wasn't Cartman," Kyle replied as he returned with the sodas in hand. "It was some asshole from my classes. No big deal."

"Are you sure Bubbie? I can call the boy's parents."

"Not necessary. Come on, Ken," he motioned towards the stairs. Kenny nodded and pulled Anna along beside him following Kyle.

As soon as they got into his room, Kyle closed the door and leaned against it with a huge sigh.

"You okay, Dude?"

"Just peachy."

"Oh, well that's good."

"Shut up, Kenny." They walked over and leaned back on Kyle's bed.

"So, why haven't you told Stan yet?"

"Still not sure how he'd take it."

"Goddammit, Kyle. Listen to me for once in your fucking life, STAN WILL BE JUST FINE WITH IT."

Kyle sat up and looked at him. "You don't fucking know that, Kenny."

Kenny looked at him and rolled his eyes. "We've been over this, you'll be fine." Anna crawled up and sat on the bed beside Kenny.

"Whatever, Dude. What do you want to do now?"

"I dunno? You?"

Kyle stared at him with mild horror in his eyes. Kenny sat up laughing. "Dude, I was just kidding! I don't really care."

"Hm...well...we could-"

"Kyle! Come downstairs for a minute, son!" his father's voice rang out.

"Fuck, Mom must have said something. Just hang out in here for a bit, Ken. Use the computer or something," he stated as he headed out the door.

Kenny got up off the chair and moved to Kyle's desk and switched on his monitor. He was greeted by a picture of himself, Kyle, Stan, and Cartman they'd had taken by Wendy about two years ago. The four of them were sitting on a small wall outside of the school. Cartman and him looked like they were in the middle of a fight, with Cartman halfway through wrestling him to the ground. Kyle and Stan sat side by side, with Kyle turning away from the book in his hand and looking at Stan, who was running his hand through his hair and laughing with him. Kenny smiled. Those two always looked like this when they were together.

"Kenny, I'm bored," Anna stated, pulling on his shirt.

"Why don't you look around for something to do?" He suggested. She turned away from him and began scanning the room for ideas. "He has a boring room," she pouted.

"Ha ha, well, his mom doesn't let him have many exciting things." She shrugged and started to hum to herself and dance around the room. He smiled at her before turning back to the computer and clicking on the internet. He had an idea.

He accessed the South Park police's website and clicked on the link entitled 'Missing Children'. He turned back towards Anna and asked, "Hey, Anna?"

"Yes?"

"What's your last name, kid?"

"It's Williams," she said. "Why?"

"No reason," he lied and turned back to the site. He entered 'Anna Williams' into the search engine and waited for his results. He watched as a picture of Anna slowly appeared before him and gaped. He skimmed through the information and felt his jaw slowly drop more and more.

_Anna Williams was reported missing on April 18th of 1965, Easter Sunday. She was only nine years old at the time of her disappearance, born on March 15th, 1956. Shortly after her disappearance, her mother was found dead in their South Park home from multiple stab wounds. A Brandon Williams was soon arrested and convicted for the murder of Amelia Williams and sentenced to life in prison. Anna was said to be in the area surrounding Stark's Pond, but was never recovered. Search attempts stopped in September of 1957._

Kenny whipped out his notebook that Damien had given to him from his backpack and wrote down all of the information that he could. He turned and looked back towards Anna, who was still humming and dancing her little heart out. What could be the reason that she's stuck? Was it because she didn't find her mother? Did something happen to her and she got murdered? Did she see her mother get killed? Kenny continued to stare at her and didn't even notice Kyle walking back into the room.

"Kenny, what the heck are you staring at?"

"Huh?"

Kyle walked over to him and quickly scanned the webpage. "Dude, why are you looking stuff like this up? I was half expecting a porn video or something, but not this. What's up?"

"I...I needed to look up something for my psychology class. Sorry."

"Don't be...it was just odd to see. What's the notebook for?" He motioned down towards the book in front of Kenny.

"Notes. I just needed to check this out. So, what now?"

"Felling up to some Gamesphere?"

Kenny grinned, "sure. Sounds good." He motioned for Anna to follow. She stopped her dance in mid-spin and nodded at him, bounding down the stairs after them. They played for a few hours, Anna consistently shouting directions for Kenny, which usually ended up with Kyle kicking the hell out of his ass...but it made her happy.

"Ken, you suck at this today," Kyle smiled.

He shrugged. "Too distracted, I guess."

"Oh? By what?"

"The fact that your neck is fucking purple," he frowned.

Kyle frowned with him and involuntarily rubbed the marks. "Are they that noticeable?"

Kenny nodded. "You probably need to ice it...who was that kid anyway?"

Kyle sighed. "His name's Toby Fischbach, you know sort of know him. He's some jackass I have all my classes with. He was the one who made the comment in English. Fucking illiterate retard," he finished in a mutter.

"Well, I think that Cartman put him in his place, so you don't really need to worry about him anymore."

"He only did that so he could have the pleasure of killing me himself," he retorted sarcastically.

"Maybe so...but I think he saved your life."

Kyle snapped his eyes straight into Kenny's with a glaze of anger tinting them. "What, you saying I need to thank the fucker?"

"Psh, no. I know there's no way Hell that's happening. But still, you don't need to worry about him anymore."

"I guess."

"So...you telling Stan tomorrow?"

"Kenny, will you get off it?"

"Not till you fess up, Kid."

"Why is this so damn important to you, Kenny? I mean, what effect does it have on you?"

Kenny frowned and stared at him deeply. "You're right, it really doesn't. I mean, I already know, so what more do I have to grain from it?" He paused, "however, if you continue to hide this from the world, you'll just be digging yourself deeper and deeper into denial until finally you can't stand to even leave your house. Is that really what you want?"

"According to you, I already don't leave my house. I belong in a bubble."

"Oh, come on, Kyle. Either you tell him tomorrow or I do."

"Fine, ok?! Geez, if it's that important to you, I'll fucking tell him!"

"Atta boy."

"Whatever. You wanna hang out for dinner?"

Kenny considered this, but then turned towards Anna and remembered that he had to still help her. "I'd love to, but my stupid parents had job interviews today...I wanna go see how they went."

Kyle's eyes brightened at this. "Really? That's great, Ken. You better get home then. Let me know how it turns out!"

Kenny stood to begin his exit and smiled. "Will do, talk to ya later, Dude," he stated as he and Anna walked out of the door.

"See ya."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Anna?"

"Hm?" she responded as she skipped along beside him.

"Why do you wait in the woods for your mom?"

"She told me to wait around there while she was talking to her friend. She told me she'd be right back..." she trailed off.

Kenny ran this through his head. It was Easter Day when she disappeared, which explained such a fancy dress for her to be wearing. She had been told by her mother to wait by the woods alone when she was only nine...who knows what could have happened to her in that time?

"Anna, do you remember anything shortly after your mom le- um, went to talk to her friend?"

She furrowed her brow in thought. "Not really."

"What was your mommy like?"

"She was a real lady, Kenny. She raised-ed me to speak and act like a young lady," she boasted.

"Well, she certainly did a good job."

"Thank you," she blushed.

"You're sure that you don't remember anything?"

"Well...there's this...shadow. And it...it was really really scary. But that's about it."

Shadow? Kenny saw the demon figure flash through his mind and he shuddered. "Was it hurting you, Anna?"

"I think it tried to, but I felt okay. It got really really quiet. So I guess I just imagined it or something," she laughed.

"If it got quiet so fast...it could mean that she died instantly and didn't really get to see what happened," Kenny thought. Damn...that was going to make things a hell of a lot harder for him.

"Do you know who your mommy was talking to?"

"I don't know...it was a big man though. He smiled at me and patted my head before Mommy told me to go wait for her...I don't know who he was though."

"Tell me about your Daddy, Anna."

She stared at him briefly, then looked down towards the ground. "Mommy said that...that he didn't want to be around when I was there. She said it was because she made a mistake when I was born...and Daddy didn't like me being there. So he ran away from home."

Child abuse, hm? Kenny knew the game well. Growing up with an alcoholic father and a constantly-pissed off mother had made him a regular target for all sorts of domestic violence. He'd learned to live with it at an early age though, never letting it bother him. But he'd never been blamed for the disappearance of a relative, so he still had no response to her unsettling statement.

"Anna...did your mommy ever...hurt you?"

"She only hit me if I was being a bad girl," she stated in a matter-of-fact tone. "I deserved it for being so out of line."

"How were you out of line?" He asked, his suspicions growing stronger by the minute.

"I would speak out of turn...or I would bring up Daddy. Or other things like that."

"That's...that's horrible," he whispered.

A moment of silence passed between them as they continued to walk back towards Kenny's house.

"Kenny?"

"Hm?"

"How come only you can see and hear me?"

"You've already asked this, Anna."

"But you never answered me," she pointed out.

"Well, I don't think you'd like the answer, to be honest with you."

"I don't care what the answer is!" She insisted. "I just wanna know how come I can't talk to Kyle and your other friends!"

Kenny winced and sighed heavily. "Anna...do you know what it's like to be dead?"

"Sure. You go up towards a bright light and then you're surrounded by family and friends that have passed on already, and you get to meet God! It's exciting!"

This was going to be extremely difficult to pass by her.

"I've seen it, ya know," she stated suddenly.

"What?"

"The light. I've seen the light! But...I don't see any of my loved ones..."

"Anna, you know that you're dead...don't you," he asked softly, placing his hand lovingly on her shoulder.

"But...but I can't be," she insisted. "I'm still in South Park! I'm...I'm alone! My family isn't with me! I can't be dead!"

He sighed once more. "What year is it?"

"Huh?"

"Do you know what year it is?"

"Well, yes, Silly. It's 1965."

"No...no it's not. Anna, it's 2009."

"What? Well that's silly. That'd make me...um..."

"44 years old."

"Yeah. See, I'm only nine!"

"Anna, time stands still around you. You only think that it's still 1965. You died back then...and times progressed to now. You've been dead for forty-four years, Anna."

They had stopped on the sidewalk by now, with Kenny placing his hands gently on her shoulders and holding her as she trembled in place. "But...but why?" she quivered.

"I...I don't know exactly..." Kenny stated. He pulled her tightly into his arms as she began to sob uncontrollably. He noticed something odd as he looked down atop her head. The green aura that had been in a constant stream around her was starting to waver. What the hell?

"Anna...what did the shadow do to you exactly?" he asked once her sobbing had somewhat subsided.

"I-it tried to hit me...I...I didn't remember it until just now...but it tried to hit me...it was almost like...like..."

"Mommy?" This guess caused another outbreak of tears. "Anna?" he whispered. She just nodded her head up and down against his shirt. He watched with awe as her green glow slowly disintegrated into a pale pink hue.

"Kenny? Kenny, what's happening?!" she whispered in a panicked voice.

He smiled softly at her. "You're going to go meet God, Anna," he whispered. She blinked at him and slowly started to turn opaque.

"But...but I wanna stay with you!" She clung onto him tighter.

"You can't, you have to meet up with your family in Heaven, Anna."

"But..."

"It's time for you to go. I'll see ya around, kid," he grinned.

She hugged him tightly. "I'll miss you, Kenny..."

"Same to you...same to you," he whispered as she vanished away. He dabbed away tears that were stinging his eyes and looked towards the sky in disbelief.

How could someone allow a child to just die this way? How...how could humans be so cruel? Would every case he encountered be this heartbreaking?

"You did well," he heard behind him.

He didn't have to turn to recognize the voice. "Damien...," he started. "What's going to happen to her? Did I just lie to her by saying that she was needed in Heaven?"

He heard Damien sigh and felt a hand on his shoulder. "I don't know, Kenny. She was only a child...so I'm sure that she'll end up there," he gestured. "But...you never know."

Kenny reached into his parka and pulled out his notebook. He wrote down 'unknowing of death/reason for death.' beside Anna's line, he watched it glow a bright golden light before fading back to it's plain black markings again.

"You did well," Damien repeated. "But now...it may be time to work on who you feel needs the most protection."

"You must mean Kyle," Kenny replied softly.

"I said whoever you feel, not me. Go save him, Kenny." He patted Kenny's shoulder gently. Kenny turned to thank him, but was met with nothing behind him. He guessed this was going to be a regular thing.

He sighed once more and gazed up at the sky. He had finished his first job...and felt miserable. What would Kyle have to go through? Was it going to be as severe and painful as Anna?

As far as he knew, only time could ever tell. And there was no fucking time like the present.

____________________________________________________

_A/n: This was a long one!_

_I really wanted Anna's story in one chapter, but I also wanted to fit in a bit of Kyle's ordeal and something to make Cartman seem all kickass-like._

_Well, if you read all of it, I congratulate you! I wouldn't have!_

_I hope you like the story so far! I'm having a lot of fun with it and I can't wait to get to work on developing Kenny and Kyle's relationship. It's gonna be awhile before any smexiness though, I must warn you._

_Oh well, thanks for everything as usual!_


	4. An Expression

_A/N: Hello, all =)_

_Doubt this chapter will be as long as the last one...but you never know! And I know that this story is mildly confusing...if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask! Unless you wanna know what'll happen later on, then don't bother. Patience is a virtue =)_

_To respond to a question I got from Hypothisos: Kenny is not able to tell a living person about his power or job. He can tell the dead however, since one of the backfires of him exposing his secret is both of their lifespans being drained, and you can't really take life away from the dead, haha. _

_As I said, yes, it is confusing. But as time goes on, you, as well as Kenny, will begin to piece things together and understand the extent of his powers =)_

_Enjoy!_

______________________________________________________________

"So, you got it?" Kenny asked the next morning.

"Yep," his father responded proudly.

"Awesome, Dude! Where do you work?"

"Alcoholics Anonymous."

Kenny blinked. "Uh, Dad...no offense...but I don't think that's your kind of place."

"No, no, no. You see, I've been hired to do presentations on how fucked up my life has been since I started drinking. I'll get to travel around and meet a lot of new faces...and on the way, they're going to start my road to recovery so I can compare my lifestyles for the presentation."

"Well, in that case, I wish ya all the luck in the world, Dad," Kenny smiled. "_You're gonna need it_," he thought to himself.

"Thanks, son. Shouldn't you be heading to school?"

Oh shit, he forgot. "Yea, see ya. Have fun at work, Dude."

"Tons, I'm sure," his father grinned.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Kenny briskly walked up the road towards Stan's house. As he approached, he noticed something a bit off: Cartman wasn't there. What the hell?

"Hey guys," he greeted Stan and Kyle, who were sitting atop Stan's car.

"Hey," they responded.

"How'd things go with your parents, Ken?" Kyle asked.

"My mom is waiting for some callbacks, and my dad got a job as a presenter for Alc....an organization."

"That's awesome, Dude!" Kyle smiled brilliantly at him. Kenny smiled back, genuinely glad for Kyle's enthusiasm.

Stan showed less interest though as he hopped off the car and stretched. "We might as well go, I don't think Cartman's showing up."

"What a shame," Kyle clicked his tongue. "I don't think he'll meet his personal quota for Jew jokes for today."

Kenny and Stan chuckled as they got in the car.

"I dunno," Stan was saying about halfway through the drive. "I think I'm pretty pumped about football season starting back up. But our baseball season's kicked ass."

"I've heard you've creamed every team," Kenny stated.

"Ha ha, yea. It's been pretty tight. How about you, Ky? How's track going?"

"Eh, it's alright. Boring as hell...but alright."

"Then why did you sign up for it?" Kenny questioned.

"Scholarships...and it's one of the few things I'm good at."

"Oh, Kyle, that's bullshit. You're good at plenty of things," Stan said.

"Uh huh."

"I'm dead serious, Dude," Stan insisted. "For example, you kick fucking ass at schoolwork, and your -"

He was interrupted by the familiar ringing of his cellphone.

"Probably Fatass wondering where the hell we are," Kyle commented.

Stan whisked it out of his pocket and shook his head. He flipped it open and said, "Hey, Wends."

Kyle turned towards Kenny and rolled his eyes. Kenny smirked at him and mouthed, "you're just jealous."

"Oh, go fuck yourself," he mouthed back.

"Hold on a sec, Wends," Stan said, looking in the rearview mirror at the two of them. "You don't have to mouth anything, you dumbshits. And Kyle, don't be jealous," he winked.

Kyle's face started to tinge and Kenny could barely suppress his laughter. "Shut up, Stan," he whispered, punching him jokingly in the arm.

"Ha ha, yea I'm back," Stan continued into the phone.

Kenny reached up and tapped Kyle on the shoulder, leaning towards him. "You tell him yet?"

Kyle sighed. "No, I haven't. I will today, I swear. I'll do it in Chem."

"That's your last class though."

"Yes, but we're lab partners and it gives me a great opportunity to talk to him about it alone...That and it'll take me all day to gather up the damn courage."

Kenny patted his shoulder supportively, "you'll be fine," he promised. Kyle flashed him a grateful smile as Stan hung up his phone. He turned slightly and raised an eyebrow at Kenny's hand on Kyle's shoulder.

"What are you two talking about?" He asked.

"English assignment," Kyle blurted out quickly.

"Oh, okay. How's your neck, Dude?"

"It's okay. A little sore, but whatever," he replied quietly.

A moment of silence passes over the car before Stan stated softly: "If that fucker gets anywhere near you again, run out of your class and towards mine, got it?"

Kyle chuckled. "I think I'll be okay, Stan. I'll just steer clear of him at all possible times."

"But he's in all of your classes, it's not like you can avoid him," Kenny pointed out.

"All of your classes?" Stan repeated. "Ky, I don't like that."

"Not like I can change it," Kyle shrugged. "I doubt he'll do anything with a teacher right there, anyway. I'll be fine."

"Alright...," Stan said uneasily. "But still. If anything _does_ happen, run."

"Why would I have to run? I am capable of defending myself, Stan. I just totally was not expecting it yesterday."

"Kyle. He's like, 250 pounds. You're like, 120, okay? He has a bit of an advantage on you."

"I could just kick him in the balls. That'd send him spiraling towards the floor," Kyle grinned sheepishly.

"Kyle, just don't do anything stupid," Kenny said softly. Kyle looked back and forth between the two.

"Guys, I'm not seven, okay? I appreciate that you care, but I don't like the fact that you're basically telling me I don't stand a chance against him. I've beaten the hell out of Cartman before, and he's about that guy's size."

"True," they agreed.

"But Cartman's hurt you before, too," Stan replied.

"Yeah, let's count, shall we?" Kenny starts, holding up his fingers and counting the injuries one by one. "Twisted ankle, busted nose, black eye, seven broken ribs on two separate occasions, who knows how much blood loss..."

"Alright!" Kyle sighed in exasperation. "Point taken, Kenny. If anything happens, I'll back off, alright? Geez, you two are worse than my mother!" He pouts.

"Now why do you say that, Bubbe?" Kenny asks with a shit-eating grin.

"Oh fuck off, Kenny." Stan and Kenny burst into laughter as Kyle's red tinge grows deeper. "Ugh, finally," Kyle sighs as Stan pulls into the school lot. They all clamber out of the car and head towards the building.

As they walk towards the door, Kenny suddenly stops and stares at the figure in front of him.

It was a tall, muscular kid with jet black hair and dark chocolate eyes. He was wearing tattered jeans and a Purdue University sweatshirt. He had an all but too familiar green glow surrounding him.

"You. Blondie," the boy mumbled. "You can see me, can't you?"

"Kenny?" Kyle walked back towards him and looked at him in concern. "You alright? You look like you've just seen a ghost."

Oh Kyle could read him like a book.

"Hey asshole," the spirit spat, "I'm talking to you!"

Kenny nodded at him, though Kyle took it as a gesture towards him. "Come on, then. We don't wanna be late, or Troyer will tan our hides."

"You go ahead," Kenny stated slowly. "I'll be there in a minute, I just want to think for a second, ok?"

Kyle gave him another concerned stare, but shrugged it off. "Alright, see ya soon." He walked off and went with Stan into the school.

Kenny looked around, and saw no one around him, with the first bell minutes away from ringing. "Yeah, I can see you," he addressed the boy. "How did you know?"

"I saw you walking with that kid yesterday," the spirit replied, his facial expression softening.

_Anna...._Kenny shook his head. Now was not the time to be getting sentimental.

"How can you see and touch us? I've never seen anyone do that, and I've been dead for about twenty years."

"Well, at least your case will be a bit easier to figure out than Anna's."

"Who?"

"The kid from yesterday."

"Oh. And what do you mean case?"

Kenny took a deep breath and moved towards the boy. "I have this power, and I'm supposed to use it to help lost souls find their way into the afterlife. You're one of these spirits...," he saw the boy giving him a weird look. "I know it sounds fucking insane, believe me, it is. But it's the truth. We've gotta figure out why you're like this." He groaned as he heard the first bell ring.

"You need to get to class, Kid," the spirit said.

"Yea, tag along with me. We can talk throughout the day."

"Just meet me out here after school, I'll talk to you then."

"Fine," Kenny stated as he hurried past him and towards his class. "_Just great. I'm supposed to be focusing on Kyle_," he thought to himself as he bolted down the hallway.

"Welcome to class, Mr. McCormick," Mrs. Troyer greeted him. "Only three minutes late this time. Lucky for you you missed the tardy bell. Now please take your seat."

"Dude, what the hell were you doing out there?" Kyle asked softly as he sat down.

"Just thinking is all."

"Oh. Didn't hurt yourself did ya?" Kyle smirked.

"Not this time," he grinned. They turned towards the front and started listening to their teacher begin her daily ramblings. Kenny's attention kept fading in and out though, drifting from one thought to the next. His eyes drifted behind him and he discreetly looked at Toby Fischbach, who was glaring daggers at Kyle. He had a bruise on his cheek from where Cartman socked him, but aside from that, he was unfortunately healthy. Kenny turned his eyes back towards his side and eyed Kyle's wounds. Kyle was bent over his paper and pen, quickly jotting down everything Mrs. Troyer belted out. He smirked at this. Kyle was such a little overachiever. He admired his passion for his work and the pure focus he could put into the most trivial of matters. Kenny had always wanted that, but had severe selective ADD; perhaps the most common of all teenage ailments.

He continued to stare at Kyle, but started to no longer see the boy, but only the glow surrounding him. Kenny shivered. He wish he knew how to save him...or even when it was going to be necessary. He didn't know if 'dying soon' meant within the hour or within the next five years! It didn't matter though, he was going to make sure that Kyle lived a full life, becoming the success that he was destined to be. There had to be something that he could do...

The ending bell rang and the boys stood up together and walked out.

"Kenny, why the fuck did you keep staring at me?" Kyle asked out of the blue.

"You're just so damn cute, Broflovski, I just can't control myself," Kenny grinned as he playfully pinched his cheek, careful to avoid his bruising. Kyle brushed off his hand and shot him a half-annoyed look. Kenny laughed and continued, "Okay, okay. Maybe it's because I was wondering how the fuck you can write down all that shit that she spews out...," he pauses and then turns to smirk at him. "Ya, know, wrist power can be really great for some things."

"Um...okay?" Kyle asks.

"Well yea. I mean, it's not easy to jerk off with a weak wrist. It gets exhausting after awhile." He laughed as Kyle playfully pushed him towards the lockers.

"You're such a perv, Ken," Kyle shook his head and smiled.

"Yeah," Kenny agreed, slinging his arm over Kyle's shoulders. "But I'm your favorite perv and you know it."

"Not my fault I don't know many others," he retorted.

"Au contraire, my dear Kyle. This school is filled with perverts of all shapes and sizes. You're buddy Stanny included."

"Stan's not a perv."

"Hey, your definition of perv is anything that has humped anything else or who makes comments related to sexual acts. So yes, in your world, Stan is a perv."

"Whatever, Kenny. You're still the biggest one I know."

"And I hold that title with honor," he beamed.

Kyle laughed and waved him off as he turned into his class. Kenny watched outside for a few moments, seeing if Fischbach looked like he was going to control himself. When things seemed okay, he went on his way to Psych.

"Well, well, hey there Kenny!" a familiar voice called out.

He turned and smiled brightly as the boy came bounding up to him. "Hey, Butters."

"Well, how've you been?"

"Eh, alright I guess, you?"

"Aw geez, I've been pretty darn swell. I guess aside from that Psychology paper last night. I was three words under the minimum, and by gosh, my father made me re-write it three times until he was sure that I hit 500 words over."

Kenny winced. "That's pretty harsh, Dude. You need to give your dad what-for."

"Well, why would I do that?" Butters asked as they walked into the class and sat down.

"Well, he's like...mentally abusing you, Butters. You can't let him torture you like that!"

"Aw, geez, Kenny. It's awful sweet of you to have such concern, but I'm okay. After all, I'll be a much better person for it one day."

"Is that what he tells you?" Kenny asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"Well, well yes. He's been saying it a lot more since Ma left though. I guess he wants me to end up happier than they did, so I'm pretty thankful for my Pop putting me on the straight-a-way."

Kenny shook his head. "Butters, you're so naive that it scares me."

"Aw, I'm not naive. I'm just straight-laced is all. Kinda like Kyle."

"Even Kyle has his limits. He doesn't let people push him around like that...at least not his family."

"Well, I guess there's never anyone just like you, but it's close enough. My father tells me that I need to be 'more like the Broflovski boy' so I can make a whole lot of money so I can support him in the future."

Now abusive parents were using Kyle as a model? If Toby's parents had done that, it's no wonder he wanted to beat the living hell out of him. He needed to keep Kyle away from Toby, because if this was the case...he could be in serious trouble.

"Kenny? Hey, ya still there?" Butters asked softly.

"Hm? Oh, yea. I was just thinking..."

"About Kyle?"

"How'd you know?"

"Well, well you looked like you always do when you're thinking or talking about Kyle."

Kenny raised his eyebrow at this. "What do you mean look? How do I look?"

"Well, you always look really happy, but really sad at the same time. You look like you're completely lost, but content with where you are. It's kinda funny looking, but at least I always know what you're thinkin' about," he chuckled.

Kenny stared at him. He had no idea that Kyle gave him an expression all his own. Of course, now that he thought of it, he probably had an expression for everyone. For Stan, he guessed, it'd just be a blank but content stare. For Cartman, he'd constantly roll his eyes. But for Kyle...apparently he looked completely stupid. This was news to him. Was Butters the only one that ever noticed that? Maybe he's just really good at reading people. They were in Psychology after all...

As the class began, he found himself once again thinking of Kyle, and tried desperately to hide his face from Butters. He didn't want him to think that he was obsessing, after all. He just was trying to figure out how to save his life. And nothing more.

He kept reassuring himself of this. He tried to take his fearful mind off of Kyle's problem and began to reminisce just for the sake of not having done it for a while. He leaned forward with his head in his hands and drifted back to the last day of summer.

He could see the water at the coast's edge glittering brilliantly in the sunlight as they made their way down towards it from the top of the hill.

"Come on, Fatass, move those fucking chubby legs," Kyle shouted behind him.

"Shut up you stupid Jew!" he retorted as he ran closely behind Kyle and pushed him forward. Kyle's shoe got caught on a piece of driftwood and he started to fall downwards, grabbing Cartman to try to regain his balance. Both of them ended up tumbling the rest of the way down the hill, with Cartman ending up right on top of Kyle.

Kenny and Stan ran down to see if they were okay, but ended up bursting out laughing when they saw the position that they had ended up in.

"Get a room, you two," Kenny had managed to chortle out. Kyle lifted his head and Cartman met his gaze.

"Oh, weak!" Cartman yelled, pushing himself off of the boy.

Kyle tried to regain his breath after having 230 pounds of flab being thrown onto his skinny frame. "Geez, Cartman! You're fucking heavier than I thought!"

Stan and Kenny continued to pretty much roll over with laughter as Cartman made gagging noises and Kyle started blushing furiously.

"Come on you dicks," Kyle started. "Let's hit the water."

They nodded their agreements and followed him down towards the beach. Once they picked a spot to throw their shit down, they began shedding their tshirts and heading towards the ocean.

Kenny breathed in, fully inhaling the salty scent of the water. It was the first time in years that he'd seen the ocean, and damn it was just as beautiful as before. He followed the other three into the water, shivering slightly when the cold came into contact with his warm skin. He could see Cartman grabbing Kyle's head and dunking him underwater, then Stan tackling Cartman down himself for attacking Kyle. He saw them go down as Kyle came back up, gasping for breath. His skin was slick and shiny with the ocean water, his tight abs and small arms pale against the crystal blue surrounding him. His hair had been shed of it's frizziness and was a glowing beacon, soft and delicate looking. Just like him. Kenny walked up and pulled a piece of seaweed off of his small shoulders. Kyle looked at him, his green eyes shining with laughter, and his face slightly red from the unusual amount of sun they had been receiving.

"Kenny?" he heard echoing in his mind.

"Kenny?" it repeated.

"Kenny? Wake up!" He felt his body begin to convulse and shot his eyes open, glancing around wildly for his attacker. He came face to face with Butters, who was gawking at him in concern and shaking his shoulder.

"What? What happened?" He whispered.

"Ha ha, you were spaced out, Silly," he whispered back. He glanced up at their teacher, who was at his desk reading the paper. "You need to pay more attention."

Kenny nodded and noticed something strange. He felt an all-too-familiar tightening in his jeans. Oh god...

He bolted up and asked the teacher if he could use the restroom. The teacher nodded uninterestedly and waved him off. Kenny muttered a thank you and ran out the door towards the boys room.

He checked and made sure no one else was around, then threw open a stall door and undid his pants. Oh god...he was at half-mast. This couldn't be good. He redid his pants and stepped out of the stall, running his fingers through his hair in frustration.

Kyle just gave him a boner. That's just so fucked up! He always thought Kyle to be cute in his own way...but he'd never even seriously considered being involved with him like...that. It would just be too awkward! Oh God, what the hell was he going to do now?

He heard the ending bell ring and panicked slightly when he saw the door open.

"Kenny, I brought your bag," Butters voice echoed softly in the room.

"Oh, thanks."

"Not a problem. You okay?"

"No. No I'm not," Kenny panted.

"You get sick or something? I can go get the nurse."

"I think I'm going to be sick...but no, don't get that bitch."

"Well, gee Kenny, what on Earth's wrong with you? You look like you've just had every bit of your strength sucked out."

"I feel like it, Bud," he stated, resting his elbows on the counter and placing his face down into his hands.

"Well, tell me what's wrong and I'll try to help you out," Butters stated, placing a hand on his shoulder and smiling gently.

Kenny took a deep breath and rattled off 'Iwasthinkingofkyleandigotaboner."

Butters blinked at him. "Wait, what?"

Kenny sighed. "I was thinking of something from a while ago...and it involved Kyle...and I totally got a boner for him," he winced.

"Well, um," Butters laughed nervously. "Not too sure what I can do about that, Buddy. Do you have feelings for Kyle?"

"What part of 'I got a boner' didn't you understand?

"Well just because you got...one of them doesn't mean that you have actual feelings for him. It could just be your hormones. Your hormones are always acting up, Kenny. Maybe this is just a way of your body saying that it wants...you know...action?"

Kenny stared at him as though he'd just stepped off of a spaceship and offered to blow him. "My hormones," he began, "have always been crazy. But not once, NOT ONCE have I had dirty thoughts about him. Or Stan and Cartman for that matter."

"So, you sure you got it from him?"

"Positive. In my memory, I could see the other two in the background. But that was just it, they were the background. Then my attention went to Kyle...and he was like, shining. It was really fucked up. I've never looked at him that way before...I don't know what the hell to do!"

"Well, maybe you should tell him about it. I mean, it makes sense. You're always flirting with him..."

Kenny laughed, "I flirt, but in a joking kind of way. I've never actually flirted with anyone. I just have to wink and I have anyone I want on my lap. And I can-, and you too, cannot tell him about this. He'll probably freak out on me. I mean, he JUST found out that he's gay. I doubt he wants to jump into this full-throttle."

"Kyle's gay?" Butters repeated.

"Recently out the closet."

"Hm. Well, not to sound cruel or judgmental or nothin', but I always kind of figured he was."

"Was it the lack of any contact with the female species that gave it away?"

Butters grinned, "yea, a bit."

"Anyways...it'd just be awkward. Besides...I don't think Kyle would be interested in a relationship with someone like me. He's too damn...well, perfect."

"You got the look back, ya know."

"What look?"

"Your Kyle expression. I think that you should give it some time, but then take the chance. Worst case scenario, he says no but he still wants you as a friend. It's still a bit of a win there, right?"

Kenny smiled gently at him. "You know, Butters, for someone who's had almost no relationships, you're certainly one hell of a smart kid in the area."

"Aw, geez. Well, thank ya, Kenny. I gotta go to class, so I'll see ya tomorrow!"

"See ya, Butters," he grinned and waved him off. He looked down and sighed, luckily, his boner had dwindled to almost nothing, so maybe the blood could start rushing back to his head. He decided just to skip his last classes, he really wasn't in the mood. It's not like the teachers around here cared, as far as they were concerned, one less kid meant one less meal to hand out and an extra to put back for re-use.

Ah, the joys of South Park.

He walked out into the brisk air and sighed. Was he going to start having trouble controlling himself around Kyle? This could really cause a problem with their friendship...ha ha, he was starting to sound just like Kyle debating whether or not to tell Stan about his sexuality. There was a lot of that kid rubbing off on Kenny, and he found not one part of it a bad thing.

"Hey, shouldn't you be in class?" he heard behind him. He turned and saw the spirit from that morning staring at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm skipping. I'm glad you're here, I want to talk to you about your soul. I can get you to Heaven or Hell or wherever," Kenny rambled.

The ghost looked as though he were considering this before looking at him and asking, "why is that necessary?"

"Well, it's not like you can do anything down here. No one can hear or see you."

"Well, no. But why would I want to burn in Hell instead?"

"How do you know that you're going to Hell?"

"That's none of your business. Why would you want to 'help' me?"

"It's my job," Kenny replied dryly. "And Hell is actually pretty cool. Pretty little amount of torture and lots of drinking and heavy metal. Pretty fucking sweet."

"Oh, and just how would you know this?"

Kenny chuckled. "Where do you think I got these powers from?"

The boy stared at him uncertainly. "Why do you need to fix this though? Is this really that big of a deal?"

"Yes, actually. The unresting souls have caused Hell's system to back up and it's causing chaos. We need to get you to where you belong."

The spirit sighed. "Fine. This place is boring anyway. How do we start?"

"Well, let's start off properly," Kenny grinned. "I'm Kenny," he held out his hand to shake.

The ghost eyed him for a moment before reaching out his hand to grasp it back. "I'm Danny. Danny Ross.

__________________________________________________

_A/N: Sorry to cut it so short, but I needed to or else this chapter would have went on for forever XD_

_Danny's story is going to be pretty heartfelt too, I think that all of the ghosts Kenny encounters will be._

_Butters finally made it, and low and behold, he's not a psychopath =D_

_I'm going to make Butters Kenny's voice of reason when he can't talk to Kyle, so he's going to play a big part in this._

_And Kenny doesn't know if he really lusts for Kyle or if it's just some passing oddity. Who knows? All answers will be revealed eventually =)_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!!!!_

_(Oh, and the memory scene, my idea was a beach in California, just so you know. It was a trip for the four of them I guess...whatever. I needed Kyle in a smexy looking situation, so I chose the beach. DON'T JUDGE ME!!! .)_


	5. Danny

_A/N: Today is Danny's day. Hurray =)_

_His story's gonna be kinda weird. Maybe. I have no idea. Depends on perspective I suppose._

_Oh well, enjoy nontheless =)_

____________________________________________________

_He heard voices._

_Shouts._

_Screams of pain...they were echoing into the blackness. Anger and fear seemed to stifle the air. He heard something make an impact upon something else...again and again and again._

_Then they stopped. There was nothing but an eerie silence. He felt trapped; held up against the wall. He could hardly breathe...he didn't even know why he was so frightened, but it was truly horrific._

_Until suddenly, he could hear a crack. It seemed to echo for eternity. And light overcame the darkness once more._

"What the hell? Ken, Dude, you epileptic or something, kid?"

Kenny shot his eyes open and saw Danny staring back at him with a mild horrified expression. "What the fuck?" He whispered, rubbing his head in confusion.

"You just started shaking. I know I'm cold, but you shouldn't be trembling _that_ much."

Kenny stared at him a moment and shook his head. "I don't know, Dude. It was fucking weird."

"You okay?"

"Yea...yea I'm fine," he cleared his throat. "So, as I said, we need to find out just why you're stuck."

"Okay. And how do you propose going about doing that?"

"I have no idea. Anna was stuck because she didn't know how she died...Hell, she didn't even know that she was dead."

"Wow...poor kid," Danny whispered.

"Let's walk around the school or something," Kenny suggested. "Unlike you, I have a body temperature to regulate."

Danny chuckled and followed him as he started walking.

"So, do you know how you died, Danny?"

Danny frowned at Kenny, then looked away sadly. "I killed myself."

"Why?"

"I don't know. School, pressures of life, work. Everything I guess."

"You have any family?"

"Yeah. I had my mom, my dad, and I had two younger sisters, Alice and Marie. They were great," he smiled fondly. "But that was a long time ago, I'm sure that they've forgotten me by now."

"No one ever forgets a dead child, Danny," Kenny spoke softly. "Especially if they don't even understand why they're gone. Maybe you're stuck because you didn't really have a specific reason for dying...you just did it. Or maybe you regret just leaving your family alone to wonder what possible motive you could have had for this."

Danny sighed. "I don't know, Kenny. I honestly don't. I've just been walking around for twenty years. I'm pretty sick of this life, too. What if we can't find out why I'm stuck? What happens then?"

Kenny stared at him. He'd never even considered that possibility before. "I have no idea...I mean...I guess you'd just be stuck here...," he saw Danny's frown sink a little deeper, so he plastered a giant smile on his face. "Don't worry, Dude. We'll figure it out. I mean...it didn't take me too long to figure out Anna's case, and she had absolutely no idea what had been going on...you obviously have some clue, so we'll just see how it goes, okay?"

Danny smiled slightly and nodded at him. Kenny pulled out his notebook and chewed a bit on his pen cap.

_Danny Ross_

"Okay, what's your birthdate and the date of your death?"

"My birthdate was February 3rd, 1970. I'm not sure about my deathdate, though..."

Kenny nodded and wrote down what he could. "Alright," he declared. "Fair enough. We'll figure it out later. You went to Purdue I'm guessing? Where's that?"

"Indiana."

"Indiana?" Kenny repeated. "Then why are you here in South Park?"

"I don't want to hang around the same damn place all the time! I've been roaming the country for 15 of my 20 years!"

"What did you do for the first five?"

"I hung out around my old house, making sure that my sisters were okay. It was kinda sad though, my mom and pop started fighting after I died, and blamed each other for me committing suicide. I really wanted to jump out and tell them that it wasn't their fault, ya know?"

"I'm so sorry," Kenny whispered.

"Don't be, Kenny. It wasn't your fault. They made up later, though tensions were still a bit thick once I decided to leave. My sisters looked as though they were holding up okay, so I just decided to pack it up and hit the road. Indiana's almost as boring as this place," he gestured towards the vast field of snow surrounding them.

"Then why are you here?"

"I was on my way to see Denver...and I happened to pass you and Amy."

"Anna."

"Oh right, sorry. Anyways, I just had to know how the hell you were able to see her. I didn't know that you might be the one person that might be able to finally get me off this planet like I wanted to," he smiled sadly.

"If you don't mind my asking," Kenny began slowly. "How did you kill yourself?"

"Gun to the head. I know, a bit cliche...but it gets the job done."

Kenny gaped at him for a moment. He said that so cooly that it sent shivers up and down his spine. "I'm so sorry..."

"Don't be. I chose it. I dealt with the consequences. I learned from it...not like I can repeat the action...but none-the-less, I learned that it didn't really solve my problems."

"Well, that's good I suppose...hm. Did you die with any regrets? Maybe that's what's holding you back."

Danny looked thoughtful for a moment, then turned towards Kenny and shook his head. "I don't know. I mean, the only regret that I had when I killed myself was the fact that I was leaving Marie and Alice behind."

"Tell me about them."

Danny grinned. "They were twins. They were both six...and they were funny and cute...I don't know. I couldn't have asked for better sisters. They were always by each others side...they had this...bond, ya know? It was like even though at times they seemed completely opposite, you could never pry them apart. I guess that sounds kind of silly."

"Not at all," Kenny replied softly. He'd seen the same through Stan and Kyle...it was a great thing to witness, he'd have to agree with him on that.

"They made me wish that I had a twin brother...or just someone that I was that close to, you know. I guess I was jealous of six year olds," he laughed.

"Didn't you have any friends?"

"Well yea. I wasn't a complete loser...but I just never got very attached to any of them like that."

"How about a love life," Kenny persisted. "You have a girlfriend?"

"No," Danny said softly.

So far, Kenny hadn't really figured anything out. This interrogation was rather pointless. He might as well have asked him what his sign was and how he liked to spend time on a first date. He sighed heavily.

"How about you?" Danny suddenly asks.

"Whaddya mean?"

"You got family, friends, etc?"

"Yea. An alcoholic father, an insane mother, my brother and sister are both in prison."

"Man...sounds rough. What about your friends?"

"Well, there's Cartman. He's a total douchebag fatass."

"Sounds like your bond is strong," Danny joked.

Kenny laughed. "Yea, but we've been through a lot together, so we just stick it out. Despite the fact that he's a jackass."

"Was he the black haired dude you were walking with this morning?"

"No, Cartman wasn't with us today. That dude was Stan."

"Oh, what's he like?"

"He's pretty cool. He's the ultimate jock around here. He's really popular and shit, but he's always willing to help us out...unless his girlfriend calls. Then he's gone in the blink of an eye."

"Ha ha, sounds like he's fucking whipped."

"Like the cream. It's insane."

"How about the nerdy looking kid? He a pal of yours too?"

Kenny smiled gently, "That's Kyle."

"He a douchebag, too? Or is he unfaithful? I gotta tell ya, you sure know how to pick em, Kenny."

"Ha ha, no Kyle's different from those two. He's really introverted, but he's always there when I need him. He's really fucking smart, but really shy. He's pretty complicated."

"Sounds like you need to make him go around and party some more."

"He doesn't allow himself to 'partake in such degenerate activities,'" Kenny mocked.

Danny threw back his head and laughed. "This dude is a fucking dork, isn't he?"

"Yeah, but he's the best friend I've got. I'd probably either be in jail or constantly high and drunk off my ass were it not for him," Kenny sighed. "He's the only person who cares enough to keep me in line."

"He your boyfriend or something? Because you look fucking stupid right now," Danny smiled.

Kenny felt a blush working it's way up his neck. "N-no, he's not," he managed to stammer out.

"Uh huh, surreeee," Danny drawled out.

"Shut up, Dude," Kenny fumed as Danny let out another bout of laughter. They both turned their heads at the sound of the final bell. Kenny sighed and motioned for him to follow. "Come on, we'll talk later, I need to meet Stan and Kyle." Danny made kissy noises and Kenny punched him on the shoulder. They walked into the school and stood outside of the class that Kenny was supposed to have just left and waited for the others to meet them.

"Where the hell are they?" Danny asked as ten minutes had passed.

"I don't - oh, there's Kyle!" Kenny smiled towards him, but frowned when he noticed Kyle's dismayed expression, and a bandage over his left hand.

"Where is he?!" Kenny asked as soon as Kyle got close enough to him.

"Who? Stan?"

"No, Toby! What the fuck did he do to you!" Kenny shouted as he gently grabbed Kyle's wrist and examined the bandage. Kyle just rolled his eyes.

"Toby didn't do this, Stan did."

Kenny shot his head up and looked into his eyes. "Wait, what?!"

Kyle sighed. "We were using some hydrochloric acid today in chem. He was lifting it while I was still putting my gloves on. He spilt it on me."

Kenny winced. "Ouch. Why the hell was he so clumsy?"

Kyle looked down, then back at him, "Because I was fucking telling him like you told me to. I told myself that it was then or never, and I just happened to be talking to a guy with acid in his hands."

Kenny glanced over Kyle's shoulder and then settled his eyes back on him. "Well...how'd he take it?"

Kyle's eyes started to shine. "Do you see him with me?" He whispered bitterly.

Uh oh.

"Ky...I didn't think that he'd...where the fuck is he?"

"I don't fucking know. I went to the nurse, came back, and he was gone." He placed his face down into his good hand. "I knew I shouldn't have told him...this is a fucking disaster."

Kenny looked back towards Danny, who was staring at them with a confused expression. He shrugged and turned back to Kyle, placing his hands on his shoulders.

"Look, maybe Stan had to run off to Wendy or something. Who knows? I don't think that he's doing this purposely."

"Then why won't he answer his fucking cell phone? And why is his car gone already?" Kyle asked sadly. Kenny stared at him, bewildered.

He was going to fucking kill Stan.

"I don't know, kid," he whispered softly. "Come on, let's head home. We'll figure this out." Kyle nodded and leaned slightly into Kenny's frame as he threw his arms around his smaller form. Kenny noticed how perfectly Kyle fit into his own frame, and how warm and comfortable he felt with him right there beside him.

Today was not turning into a good day.

They allowed themselves a good twenty minutes of silence as they walked. It was comfortable, though, and Kyle was still securely wrapped under Kenny's arm. Danny walked behind them, silently observing this with quiet awe. At one point, Kenny had turned to look at him in question, and Danny just whispered "you're lucky." This simple statement had baffled Kenny, and he was racking his brain trying to figure out exactly what he meant by it.

"Will he ever talk to me again?" Kyle finally spoke up.

Kenny looked at him and gently pulled him closer towards him. "Look," he started softly. "Stan's probably just stuck in a 'what the fuck' moment right now. He's probably trying to figure out how he of all people didn't see this. He might feel like a horrible friend for seeming utterly blind when you know him inside and out. Maybe that's all."

"But...but he's not," Kyle's voice cracked. "I hate it when he won't talk to me. I feel so fucking helpless."

Kenny nodded at him. "_It can't be easy to lose your second half_," he thought to himself.

"Maybe I should just take it back. I can tell him I was joking," Kyle suggests. "That'll fix things."

Kenny stopped in his tracks and whipped Kyle around to face him, his hands planted firmly on his shoulders. "Look. If there's one thing that you're not doing, it's that. This is who you are, he needs to accept it or get the fuck away."

"I don't want him to get the fuck away...I need to fix this!" Kyle pleaded.

"There's nothing to fix, Kyle. You need to stop overanalyzing everything for solutions. Not all problems can be worked out like that, and you know it." Kyle started to grow red and threw his head down, observing the tracks that they'd made so far. Kenny gently grasped his chin and turned him up towards his face, almost gasping.

Kyle's eyes were shining with sadness, but they'd never looked so beautiful. His dark green iris' were sparkling. They looked like they were hand carved from the finest selection of jade, each light around them reflecting as though they were stars.

"Kyle...," he started slowly. "It'll be alright. I'll talk to Stan, okay? Why don't we get you home and make you relax, alright?"

"I don't want to relax," Kyle protested. "I want my best friend."

Kenny sighed. "I know, Dude, I know. But standing around crying about it isn't going to fix anything. Let's get you home." He turned Kyle back around and placed his arm over his shoulders once more, and started walking.

"You two are so gay." They heard from behind them. They whipped around and saw Cartman, who was about 100 feet behind them with a dark look on his face. He walked up and passed right by Danny.

"Cartman?" He asked Kenny. Kenny briefly nodded at him then returned his attention back to the approaching lardass.

"Fuck off, Cartman," Kyle muttered half-heartedly.

"What? No Fatass comment? You slipping or something, Jewfag?" Kyle just shook his head and sighed, dropping his head in exhaustion.

"I'm not in the mood, Cartman."

Cartman raised his eyebrow and cupped Kyle's chin, forcing him to look up at him. "Not in the mood to bitch? Man, something must really be fucking wrong with you," He quickly whipped his hand away from Kyle, brushing hard against his throat against the bruises. Kenny could see Kyle wince in pain.

"Leave him alone, Cartman. He's fucking tired, alright? He doesn't have the time to deal with your Neo-Nazi bullshit."

Cartman ignored him and continued staring at Kyle. "What? Stan dump you or something? Is little Kahl gonna cry without his Stanny to hold him and suck his balls? Hm?"

Kenny could see Kyle's face growing redder and redder. "Cartman, shut the fuck up," Kenny stated through gritted teeth

Cartman just kept grinning maliciously at Kyle, who was shaking with rage...at least, that's what Kenny thought it was. He couldn't really tell. Kyle's face looked distorted with anger, sadness, and embarrassment.

"Come on, Kyle," Cartman growled. "Cry. You know you want to, you fag."

Kenny's eyes widened as Kyle jumped away from his arm and tackled Cartman. He just stood and watched as Kyle pinned him down, breathing heavily.

"Don't. Call. Me. A. Fag. GOT IT?!" He screeched.

"Get off of me, you fucking Jew!" Cartman yelled as he took Kyle's shoulders and pressed him forward. Kyle was able to hold his ground for a few seconds before Cartman's weight finally won, and Cartman was able to push Kyle down onto his back and heavily press down on his shoulders.

Kyle cried out softly in pain as Cartman crushed him down. Kenny tried to push Cartman off of him, but Cartman merely pushed him away and he landed on the sidewalk with a loud thud.

Kenny sat up and watched as Cartman leaned in towards Kyle. "It's not like it's not true, Jew. I know from a firsthand source that you are officially on the Fag train."

"Who the fuck would tell you that, Cartman?" Kyle yelled, struggling to move out of Cartman's grip. He yelped as Cartman increased the pressure on his arms.

Cartman chuckled softly. "Well, our dear friend Butters. He's oh so happy for you, just so you know."

Kenny stood and looked towards Kyle's face, which was dropping in shock. "B-Butters?!" He stammered. "H-how the hell would Bu-" he stopped. He leaned his head up and stared at Kenny. "Kenny...what did you do?" He whispered.

Kenny just moved his mouth, fumbling for words, but unable to form a comprehensive statement. Kyle gazed at him, his eyes shining once more, as Cartman burst into laughter. "I always knew you were a fag, Kahl." Kyle moved his head down so he was looking towards Cartman.

"Get off of me," he whispered defeatedly. Kenny's jaw dropped. Kyle had never given in to fights with Cartman that easily...he had seriously fucked things up.

"Hm. I dunno. Beg for it and I may consider."

"Just get off of him, Cartman," Kenny mumbled.

"He has to beg first," Cartman said, turning his head to look at Kenny. "It'll be awesome: Kyle in his weakest moment. Wish I had my camera." He turned back down and grinned at Kyle, who was just lying still underneath the fatass, apparently realizing that he couldn't overthrow the weight. "Come on, Kahl," he growled. "Beg for it," he increased the pressure on the smaller boy's arms.

"Please get off of me," Kyle stated in monotone, looking up towards the sky.

"Look me in the eyes, Kyle."

Kyle moved his eyes and stared into Cartman's sadistic gaze. "Please get off of me," he repeated in the same tone.

"Oh come on now, Jew. You can do better than that," Cartman taunted. Kenny felt his blood rush and went to tackle Cartman off of him, only to once again be pushed over by the larger boy's freakishly strong arm. "Come on, Kyle," he moved an arm to go across Kyle's chest and pushed, making Kyle cough and gasp for air.

"Please, Cartman, I'm begging you to get off," he rambled pathetically.

"Gladly," Cartman smirked as he pushed himself off of Kyle. Kyle just lied there, panting for air for a moment before pushing himself up to a sitting position. He looked miserably at Cartman and Kenny before standing himself up.

"I'm going home," he whispered. Kenny went to walk with him, but Kyle put his hand up and stopped him. "No, Kenny. I'm going by myself. I'll see you later," he muttered as he staggered away from them.

Kenny watched him as he went, and every step that took Kyle farther away was like a dagger in his heart. He whipped around furiously and faced Cartman, who was looking after Kyle with a confused, yet smug expression. Kenny took his arms and pushed Cartman as hard as he could, which only shoved him back about a foot before Cartman grabbed his arms.

"What's your problem, Poor Boy?"

"How could you fucking do that to Kyle?" He demanded. "He's done nothing to you, you fat fuck!"

"That Jew has annoyed me to the ends of the Earth since I first met him, Kenneh. He's constantly ruined all of my plans, has always insulted me, and not once has he ever done as I'm told him to like a Jew should."

"You fucking bigot."

"You're just now realizing this?" Cartman asked with a raised eyebrow. "I honestly couldn't care less that Kahl is gay. I always fucking knew it...it's not a shock."

"If you don't care," Kenny whispered, trying to pry his arms out of Cartman's grip, "then why did you pull that stupid stunt?"

"What, you mean not let him beat the shit out of me?"

"No, I mean the begging thing. You know he only did that so that there would be a chance that you wouldn't tell anyone about him being gay."

Cartman suddenly released his grip and Kenny rubbed his arms in frustration. He glanced up and saw Cartman's grin. "I," Cartman started, "never threatened to tell anyone. In fact, I made it up. Even the Butters thing," he grinned even wider.

"You...you're not....oh my god. No," Kenny muttered.

"Yeah, I didn't think that'd I'd accomplish so much with one statement," Cartman beamed. "I managed to humiliate the Jew, have him fully out of the closet, get to hurt him, make him beg," he paused. "and completely destroy his trust in you. I gotta say, that was pretty fucking sweet."

Kenny just stood there, wanting so badly to punch him, but knowing that he'd lose anyway. He shook with rage, trying to destroy Cartman with his glare. Cartman just smirked and turned to start walking away.

"I think I've done enough damage for the day. It's been the best day I've had in quite some time, I must say," he said over his shoulder.

"You're such a fucking jackass," Kenny growled.

"What can I say?" He stopped and turned back towards Kenny with a demonic grin. "I love seeing Kyle in pain." He turned back and continued walking, not uttering another word.

Danny came up behind Kenny and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I see what you meant about him being a douchebag. I would've killed him for that." Kenny just stared after Cartman, secretly wishing that he could do just that.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I'm not sure where to start on your case, to be honest, Danny," Kenny admitted as they walked towards his house.

"Well, we can figure it out. In the meantime, you might wanna work on your own little situation."

"That's not fair to you."

"I'm not gonna lie, Kenny. I'm curious as to how this is going to work out. Even I'm wondering why Stan just left, and I don't even know the guy," Danny grinned.

Kenny sighed. "Then let's hit Stan's house. Not like it matters...Kyle doesn't want to speak to me."

Danny briefly patted his shoulder. "I'm sure it was just the douchebag's fault. He's probably just wanting some time to think. You did say he was introverted...maybe this is how he copes when he's upset."

"No...he goes to Stan or me...," Kenny whispered as they approached Stan's house. He knocked on the door, seconds later having it open to Mrs. Marsh, who looked rather upset.

"Hey Mrs. M...you okay?" He asked.

"It's Stanley. He's upstairs moping about something and I don't know what it is," she explained. "He came home early...muttering about Kyle and acid...Is Kyle doing drugs?"

"What? No! Kyle doesn't do things like that! You know that, Mrs. Marsh!"

She sighed with relief. "Well, I didn't think so, but I had to make sure. Stan's in his room, go ahead," she motioned for him to come in. He nodded his thanks and then he and Danny headed upstairs.

He sighed softly before knocking on his door.

"Mom, I told you, go away!" he heard from behind the door.

"It's me, Dude," Kenny said softly. He heard Stan get off of his bed and come open the door.

"Hey," he smiled tiredly. Kenny however, did not return his smile. He walked into the room with Danny close behind him as Stan shut the door and sat on his bed. Kenny glanced around his room, trying to find the most delicate way to approach the situation.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He blurted. So much for delicate.

Stan's face drooped and he slammed it into his palm, dragging it down hard along his profile before letting it fall off. "I don't know. I just had no idea what to do."

"He thinks that he fucking messed up! He thinks that you'll never want to speak to him again!" Kenny shouted.

Stan winced. "I...I don't know what to do, Kenny! I mean, I can't believe that I never figured it out! And then I fucking scalded his skin...," he trailed off.

"You need to talk to him about it, Dude."

"What the hell am I supposed to say, Kenny?!"

"Um, that you don't care that he's gay and you're still best friends?"

"W-well, that's true...but I don't know, I feel like I don't even know the guy! I mean, this is probably the biggest secret he's ever had...and I didn't fucking know! What kind of best friend doesn't even know that their best friend is gay?! I mean, how fucking oblivious am I?!"

"You're forgetting who your best friend is. Kyle doesn't like to share everything with everybody. You probably know everything else about him, but even I just figured it out a few nights ago."

"So...you knew before me?" He asked. He stood and started to scowl. "He fucking told you before he told me!?" He hissed.

"No. He didn't tell me straight off, I realized it and got him to come out and say it. Besides, wouldn't it be easier if you were gay to tell that to your bi friend?"

"No, I would have went straight to him and told him," Stan stated.

Kenny rolled his eyes. "No, you wouldn't have. You would have went emo again, which is where Kyle's fucking heading. He didn't tell you because he was fucking terrified of your reaction."

"Why the hell would he be scared of me?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe he thought that you would just run off and leave him to wallow in his misery or something like that," Kenny spit out sarcastically.

"It's not like I had much of a choice."

"You had plenty of choice Stan. You've made him miserable and turned me into a douchebag because I promised him that you'd be totally cool with this!"

"I **am** cool with it! I don't give a flying fuck if he's gay or whatever! He's still my best friend, okay? I don't look at him any differently!"

"Then why did you run off?" Kenny asked quietly.

"I told you...I didn't know what to do," Stan calmed down. "I just...I just felt like I'd failed him as a friend or something, ya know? Especially since I poured acid on him," he pinched the bridge of his nose. "What do I do, Kenny?"

Kenny walked over to him, lightly grasped his shoulder, and pushed him down to sit beside him on the bed. "Look," he starts, glancing quickly in Danny's direction, who just stood there against the doorway with a concerned expression. "Kyle...needs you. Okay? He needs you now more than ever. It's not fun coming out, trust me. You need to talk to him and tell him why you ran off...otherwise this is just going to destroy the kid."

Stan looked up into his eyes and smiled slightly. "You're right, Ken. You're absolutely right. Can you give me a second?"

Kenny nodded and stared as Stan whipped his cellphone out of his pocket and frantically dialed a number. There was a few moments of silence before Kenny heard someone pick up on the other line.

"Hey Wends," Stan started. Not exactly who Kenny was expecting him to call...

"Yea, yea. Me too. Hey, um, would it severely piss you off if I...cancelled our date for tonight," he winced as Wendy started lecturing him through the phone. Kenny just stared at him.

"Wendy, listen, I love you, babe, but something important came up. Yes. Yea, it's about Kyle...what do you mean again?! Wendy, I blow him off all the time! Not you! I've never blown you off! No, no...Wends, for God's sake I have to talk to him about something important. Well, I'm sorry you think I don't have my priorities straight. No...yea. Sorry, Wendy, but saving my friendship is a bit more important than taking you to see a chick flick. Fine. Yeah, go ahead. I'm sure you'll be asking to see me again in a few days."

Kenny just stared. "Psh," Stan snorted. "You say that every fucking time, Wendy. No, no I don't care about empowering female characters. I care about my best friend. You fucking know he's more important to me than some dumb movie. Whatever. Yea. I'm sure you'll crawl back." And with that he hung up the phone and sighed in aggravation.

Kenny continued to stare. It was about time Kyle came before Wendy. Stan obviously saw how damn important of a situation this was.

"She's such a bitch. I don't know why I keep saying yes to her," Stan looked at him gently.

"I guess you have pretty strong feelings for her. I mean, I'd personally be terrified of her because of her infinite temper. But something about her makes you keep opening up to her. Maybe she gives really good head," he smiled.

Stan chuckled slightly. "Nah, she totally sucks in that department...no pun intended." Kenny stood up and laughed.

"You going to Kyle's house?"

"Yeah, I'll head over later after I've calmed my mother down. I've got to talk to him as soon as I can. I don't wanna make things worse."

"Any chance...you could tell him that I said I'm sorry?" Kenny asked.

"Um...for what? What'd you do?"

Kenny sighed and looked into Stan's eyes. "I....I kinda told Butters...and now he thinks that Cartman knows because I told him...even though Cartman figured it out on his own."

"Oh god...what happened? Tell me now because Kyle would skim details." Kenny related the events from that afternoon to the best of his ability as Stan stood there, taking in every word.

"I'll fucking kill him," Stan muttered after Kenny finished the story. "There's no way I'm letting Cartman get away with that."

"Listen, just let that go for a bit, okay? I think that what matters right now is what Kyle wants done. Just go talk to him and work things out...we'll see what goes on from there."

Stan looked at him before sighing. "You're right. Oh, one question though," he raised an eyebrow. "Why did you tell Butters?"

Kenny could feel his face heating up. There was no way in hell he could tell Stan that he got a stiffy from Kyle. That would not go over well. "It slipped out," he lied. "We were just talking in Psych...and it just slipped out."

"Nice going."

"I know, I know...tell him I'm sorry?"

Stan placed his hand on his shoulder and started leading him towards the door. "Yeah, yea, I will. Oh, and Kenny?"

Kenny looked up at him and Stan smiled sheepishly. "Thanks, Dude. Who knows what might have happened had you not been here."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Danny? You asleep?" Kenny asked softly. He stared at the figure lounged out on his floor and laughed softly. Who said the spirits never rest?

Kenny switched on his computer and sighed as he stared at it. He remembered when he got it: his 15th birthday. The guys had combined all of their money and gotten him a cheap laptop since he couldn't afford one. Compared to the rest of the presents he got, it was the best fucking thing ever.

He waited for the internet to pop up and hit a search engine. He typed up _Danny Ross Purdue Suicide_ and waited for results. The first result was the official police report. He pulled it up and scanned through it, reading:

_Danny Ross, 19, was found dead in his dorm room by a friend on May 7th, 1989 and was rushed to the hospital at 3:14 AM where he was officially proclaimed dead. The autopsy report show that Ross had been shot through the jaw and brain, killing him almost instantly with a 9mm semi-automatic pistol. Death ruled suicide by lack of evidence claiming otherwise._

Kenny sat there and scratched his chin. This wasn't really any new information, though he did now know the deathdate. He pulled out his notebook and jotted it down. He backed up his browser and scoured for more links on his death. His eyes settled on what looked to be a newspaper article. He clicked on it and read through.

_Local college student, Danny Ross, was found dead in his Purdue University dorm room on Sunday. His death was ruled a suicide by the Lafayette County Police, later to be confirmed by Allen County Police. He is mourned by his mother, Susan and his father, Robert. Also mourning are his sisters, Alice and Marie. Services will be held at the Klaehn Fahl & Melton Funeral Home on Thursday. The family of the deceased can be reached at 574-356-9759._

A number? Just crazy enough to work. Kenny reached over and grabbed his phone, but paused as he started to dial. Danny had been dead for twenty years...could they still be living there? He had to try. He dialed the number and quietly walked out of the room so as not to wake Danny. He stepped outside and breathed in the fresh air as he listened to the phone ring.

"Hello?" He heard on the other line. He held his breath, it was an old woman's voice.

"Hello, I know this might sound a little strange, but I was wondering if the Ross family still lived at this number."

"Yes, I'm Susan Ross. Who is this?" Kenny breathed a sigh of relief before speaking.

"My name is Kenny McCormick, you don't know me, I live in Colorado. I actually called to ask you some questions about Danny...if it's not too painful," he added.

There was silence on the line for what seemed like hours before he heard her sigh deeply. "I suppose I can. Why do you need to know though?"

"I'm doing a Psychology project on...well...," he hesitated.

"Suicide?" she guessed.

"Yea...I'm sorry if I'm upsetting you, Ma'am. I really don't mean to."

She chuckled softly. "You're not upsetting me. No one has brought up Danny in this house for ten years. It feels good to be able to say his name."

"Why did you stop talking about him?"

"It's very painful to discuss, Kenny. It's not easy to remember that something you raised out of your sweat and blood is gone. It's a delicate topic, and we've chosen to almost ignore it entirely."

"So...you've just, forgotten about him?" Kenny asked, his mouth hanging open in disbelief.

"Oh, heavens no! We've left his room the same. I often go in there and just...think. If I'm upset or angry, I think of him, and how much joy he brought to us. I feel a bit better. Sometimes, I can almost feel him with me in the room. I know it might sound a bit silly to you, Dear."

"Not at all," he replied, remembering that Danny was in fact in his room.

"We just...don't talk about it. We miss him so much...and it's hard to accept the way that he went more than anything. We can't help but feel that it's our fault in a way."

"I doubt it was," he said softly. "Did he ever say why he was so upset?"

"No, he didn't say it directly. He didn't leave a note or anything...he was great in school, he had friends, and his job paid well and he seemed happy. But apparently he wasn't," she paused. "I personally think it was because of Lucy, myself."

Kenny glanced in front of him in confusion and sat on his front step. "Lucy?"

"His girlfriend." Strange...Danny said he didn't have a girlfriend.

"Why do you think it's her fault?"

"Well, I don't think that it was directly her fault...she just disappeared one day. Nobody knows what happened...I don't think Danny ever got over it."

Even stranger. Why hadn't Danny mentioned Lucy when Kenny had asked about it?

"So he loved her?"

"Very much so. He was going to ask her to marry him pretty soon after she disappeared. He was heartbroken."

Kenny was starting to think that he had his answers. "Well...I guess that could have led him to doing what he did. And I am very sorry to interrupt your day to bring up such a topic."

"No, no, it's fine. I actually feel a bit better," he could hear a small smile in her voice. "I've been wanting to tell someone for years what I thought caused it...but no one was willing to let me speak of such tragedy."

"I am very sorry for your loss. I'm sure that Danny loves you and is watching over you and your family, Mrs. Ross."

"Thank you very much, Kenny. That means more to me than you could ever imagine. Is this all you needed for your project?"

"I'm pretty sure. Thank you."

"Not at all," and she hung up. Kenny hung up and sighed. So, Danny was hiding something...now he just had to figure out what it was.

Just as he was about to walk back into the house, his cell started ringing.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Kenny...Kenny, it's Stan," he said frantically.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Kenny, it's Kyle. Get to Hell's Pass NOW."

"What?! Stan, what happened?!" Kenny panicked.

"I'll explain when you get here. Just get here as soon as you can!"

Kenny tried to speak again, but the line was already dead.

_________________________________________________________

_A/N: Ooh, cliffhanger. I'm evil, hehe._

_So, next time, find out Danny's issue with Lucy._

_Find out what happened to Kyle_

_And be immensely confused as I write a bunch of nonsense down and try to pass it off as a story XD_

_Btw, I appreciate all of the reviews that involve my quick updating. Well, don't expect it for long. I start my new job tomorrow and school starts back on Wednesday...so I'm not going to have eight hours at a time to just sit and write. WHICH TOTALLY SUCKS!_

_Thanks for R&R-ing =)_


	6. Whom You Least Expect

_A/N: I love you guys. Seriously. Your guesses on what happened to Kyle are great. And everyone hates me because I left it on the edge XD_

_What's gonna happen? Hell if I know. I didn't even have a plan for this. Let's just see, shall we?_

____________________________________________________________

He ran. He ran faster than he ever had in his life. Through town, jumping over and evading anyone or anything that happened to cross his path. Close behind him were the footsteps of his shadow. The boy he was supposed to be helping, the one that no one else could save, was now trailing him in a desperate attempt to get to him.

_Kyle._

Kenny's head was swarming with thought, every possible outcome resulting in his breathing being hitched and his eyes welling up with tears.

"Kenny," Danny shouted from behind him, "how long does it take to get to the hospital?"

"We'll be there soon," Kenny panted. "Can't you fly us there or something?"

"Unfortunately, I think that that's just an urban myth. I've never seen another spirit fly."

Great. Just great.

They continued to run, both panting like wild dogs upon reaching their destination. But that didn't stop them. They burst through the doors of the hospital, looking left and right for any sign of Stan or the Broflovskis.

"Miss?!" Kenny half-shouted at the receptionist. "I need to see Kyle Broflovski."

"Broflovski?" She slowly repeated, leisurely looking through the files next to her.

"Come on, I'm in a hurry! That's my best fucking friend in there!" He glared as she rolled her eyes and slowed her pace even more.

"Kenny!" He whipped around and saw Ike waving at him. Kenny flipped off the receptionist and ran to meet him.

"Ike, what happened? Where's your parents? And Stan?" Kenny mumbled in panic.

"My parents are out at some dinner party, we can't get a hold of them. Stan's in the room with Kyle."

"What room, Ike?" Kenny shook his shoulders vigorously.

"Geez, they're in room 125. Go!" Kenny nodded his thanks and dashed down the hallway, Danny close on his heels. After nearly tripping over every sickly person he came near, Kenny finally made it to Kyle's room.

He opened it slowly and saw Stan sitting next to the bed, his eyes red and puffy. He walked further into the room to put his hand on Stan's shoulder in comfort. Stan merely looked at him and shook his head. Taking a deep breath, Kenny shifted his gaze and nearly fainted at what he saw.

Kyle was lying there, hooked up to every machine around, looking like some freak of cyborg nature. His wrists, however, were what terrified Kenny the most. There were deep cuts in them. Each arm spelling out a word. His left arm displayed the word "_Faggot_" and his right "_Useless_."

"It's worse than it looks," Stan muttered. "Look under the blanket."

Kenny lifted it and gasped softly. Kyle's hospital gown had been soaked through with blood from his side, his legs had multiple bandages all around them. Kenny dropped the blanket back down and turned away, slamming a hand over his mouth in a desperate attempt to ward off his imminent vomiting. Danny stared at Kyle in shock, then tried to place a reassuring hand on Kenny's shoulder. Kenny shrugged it away, though. There wasn't anything on Earth that could reassure him now.

"What happened?" Kenny asked after he swallowed down his nausea.

"I...I don't know," Stan whispered. "I was over at his house, t-trying to apologize. Then I walked into his room and there he was. He was just...just lying on the floor with a knife in his hand!" Stan started to sob into his hands. "I-I called the ambulance and they got him...they say that he'll be out of it for awhile...This is my fucking fault!"

Kenny partially agreed with him, he couldn't help it. He also blamed himself, Cartman, and Toby. What else could he do but point fingers? But nonetheless, he shook Stan's shoulders and repeated "No, it's not," until he calmed down.

"How could I have fucking done this?! I fucking led my best friend to completely mutilate himself!" He stared up at Kenny with glistening tears. "How the fuck could I have let this happen, Kenny?"

Kenny sighed and looked towards the broken boy, and back towards the heart-broken counterpart."Look. Kyle...Kyle's obviously going through a lot right now..."

"NO FUCKING DUH, KENNY!" Stan screeched. Kenny glared at him for a moment before once again softening his expression towards the crying kid.

"It's not your fault. We all know that Kyle hides a lot...he seemed fairly happy...but it's the ones that seem happy that are often the worst off."

Stan stared at him for a moment, then reached into his pocket and produced a neatly folded piece of paper. "I found this beside him," he mumbled. Kenny took it and unfolded it to a clean, typed print.

_Today is April 4th of 2009. I am only seventeen and I have seen the world for what it truly is. The world is a useless disgusting planet filled with people of the same nature. The only people whom I thought may have differed from this lifestyle turned out to be one and the same with those surrounding them. _

_My parents, after learning of my being a homosexual for only twenty minutes, left the house. They informed me that when they returned, I was to be gone. I guess I gave them what they asked for._ _The pure short sighted-ness of the two people who claimed to be raising me correctly astounds me. I feel trapped. And I need out of their lives just as they need me out of theirs._

_Kenny, a wonderful and true friend to me always, betrayed my trust. I still would do anything for him, despite the fact that he deeply hurt me. In all fairness, I never told him to not tell anybody...but still, I figured that this large of a secret would be obvious to him. I suppose I had him pegged incorrectly. He's just as loudmouthed and corrupted as the rest of the world._

_Stan. There's so much but yet so little to say about Stan. The boy who always stuck by my side. The only person I ever felt that I could trust. The only person I could ever turn to in my time of need...is gone. I told him my disgusting secret and he left. He...he just left. I always knew that something like this would happen if I ever informed him about what a truly repulsive person I am. _

_The loss of both Stan and Kenny as my pillars against the undying wind of life's torments has torn me asunder. I need to cry, but what's the point? Why should I just further the fact that I'm a disgusting faggot? I know that I've before claimed those who kill themselves to be unworthy of the air that they wasted up until their time of death. However...I can now see their point. Life is not worth living if you don't have the most important elements by your side. You feel weak and helpless, trapped against the wall with no one to help you. It's a sickening feeling, but one that I've been cornered in for years. The recent events in my life have led me to this point. There's no turning back now._

_My name is Kyle Broflovski. I am a scrawny ginger Jew who hasn't made anything truly worthy of himself. I want to leave this world of pain behind, I don't mind that I'll burn in Hell. At least there will be people there who will understand. _

_I love you Mom, Dad, and Ike. You may have hated me for being me, but I will always love you despite what you seem to think._

_And Stan and Kenny, I love you both as well. Take good care of each other. And don't be upset. I think that we'll all be much happier this way._

_Love 'till the end and beyond,_

_Kyle_

Kenny just stood there. The tears streamed from his face, but he did not utter a sound.

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_A/N: A very short chapter, indeed._

_But it's that which makes it so powerful. Kyle's note is actually taken from one I wrote back when I was suicidal...it's about as realistic as it gets, folks. Just a few words changed._

_But don't worry, Kyle's story isn't over yet. Hopefully I'll be able to update soon with school starting tomorrow._

_I know a bunch of you were like, "NO SUICIDE!!!" But hey, things happen. But as I said, his story ain't over yet, so don't freak out on me ;)_

_You ain't seen nothin' yet!_


	7. Like a Drug

_A/N: I feel I have a need to address the situation of last chapter's A/n. Okay, you all know that that letter I had from Kyle was originally one of mine. Well, I got a slew of messages asking me to be strong. While I appreciate the support like no other, I have to assure all of you that I am just fine. The suicidal phase lasted from 6th to 10th grade with me. I'm a senior now. It's all gone. But you guys are so awesome for being so concerned with someone you don't even know. So I thank you for that =)_

_Now then. Onto why you're really looking at this page ;)_

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He couldn't take his eyes off of him. Were it not for the marks and equipment attached to him, he would have looked like any other boy, just sleeping a quiet slumber.

Kenny continued to stare at the boy. It'd taken him three hours but he finally convinced Stan to go get some food in him. Only with the promise that if Kyle woke up, he'd be instantly contacted. The Broflovski's had came and went already. Ike stood by his side and bawled, only to be yanked away by his parents and dragged back to the car. They muttered about his going to Hell had just been sped, it really didn't concern them too much.

This broke Kenny and Stan's hearts.

Even Kenny, who'd always been fronted with insults and violence since his childhood, could not even come close to comprehending what must have been going on their heads. What was going to happen if...no, _when_ Kyle woke up? Where would he go? What would happen to him? Kenny tried his best to come up with his own answers, but to no avail.

"You okay, kid?"

Kenny turned away from Kyle and muttered, "better than him, I guess." Danny sighed and sat in the other chair next to Kenny and stared at the boy as well.

"How'd you get permits to stay the whole night, Dude?"

Kenny sighed. "I flirted with one of the nurses. Not hard. She's a fucking skank."

"Oh, well, at least it worked."

"Yea...," Kenny drifted off. His mind was still going a mile a minute. He just had to know what had happened. How did such a prodigy take a dive? Why is his life surrounded by death since he broke his curse? Was it destined to be as such?

"How does it happen, Danny?"

"How does what happen?"

"How does someone so...so happy, so full of life and potential...just want to give it all away? Why?! I mean...K-Kyle's always been so strong! He's always been the one to...to sort out the trouble and find the solution! He's always been the first person anyone goes to when they were upset! He was just so fucking strong, and everyone loved him for it! This just doesn't make any sense!" Kenny threw his face into his hands and let out a sob.

He felt a hand gently grasp his shoulder and he tensed under it. "Maybe," Danny said thoughtfully, "he felt there were things that he would just never be able to finish. Maybe...maybe he just didn't see the point in going on when what was so important to him just...."

"Vanished," Kenny finished in a whisper. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Danny nodding slowly.

"Danny?" Kenny asked while removing his hands from his face and sitting up straight.

"What?" Kenny turned and looked into his dark eyes.

"Tell me about Lucy."

Danny's mouth dropped and his pupils shrunk violently. "I-I have no idea who you're t-talking about," he stammered.

"Bullshit. You know exactly who I'm talking about."

"How...how the hell did you-"

"I called your mother," Kenny interrupted. "I needed some answers and she was able to give them to me."

"My mom...she's still...still..."

"Yes, they're all alive to my knowledge," Kenny stated. "They don't like to bring up your death, but they still think of you all the time. She would want you to know that."

Danny swallowed and nodded, tears brimming the edges of his eyes. "Now," Kenny continued. "Tell me about Lucy. It's my job to get you to your eternal rest, so damn it, you're going to have to give me all of the details that you can."

"Lucy...," Danny whispered. "My god...I haven't said her name in...twenty years."

"What happened to Lucy?"

"She...she ran off. I don't know to where...but I woke up one day and she was gone. At first, I thought she'd just left with some friends or something...then days passed. And weeks. And months. Finally, it just got to the point where I figured that she'd run off with some dude who was banging her behind my back...but I didn't want to believe it!"

"So you put yourself into denial?" Kenny asked. He nodded in return.

"I suppose now that I think about it, that's exactly what I did. But you can only deny so long until reality slaps you in the face."

"When did that happen to you?"

He sighed. "I had ordered the ring. For that day...her birthday. It arrived on my doorstep, along with the 50 roses I'd ordered...I...I just couldn't stand it. It just drove me over the edge."

They sat in silence, the only sound being Kyle's assisted breathing. Kenny blinked back tears and looked towards Danny once more.

"Do you know why she disappeared?"

He did not meet his gaze. He merely stared at Kyle and whispered, "No."

"I think we know why you're stuck then. We need to see just why she left you...otherwise I don't think you'll ever get to Heaven or Hell..."

"Can the formalities, Kenny. I'm going to Hell," Danny snapped. Kenny jumped back slightly at his tone. Danny let out an aggravated sigh. "Look, I'd rather spend eternity in Hell than eternity on Earth. I...I loved Lucy. We wanted to travel cross-country. See all that we could, ya know? Being stuck here...it's like reliving the fact constantly that I'll never see her again and we can't follow through with our plans."

"Is that why you travel around?"

Danny nodded. "I've always wondered if I'd see her again. Maybe see her smile. I'd do anything for just one little look at that smile of hers again. I swear...it could light up the world if she wanted it to," he shook his head and let out a little chuckle. "Don't know why I'm telling you," he glanced up at Kenny. "You've never lost a loved one, have you? It's just been you that constantly died."

Kenny looked at him for a moment, then silently turned his head back towards the bed. Danny followed his gaze and sighed. "I...I guess that's not true," he turned back towards Kenny and gave him a crooked smile. "Ya really care about him, don't ya?"

Kenny returned with a small smile. "I guess I do. Otherwise I wouldn't be here."

"Exactly."

"Huh?"

"If one feels like there's no one to love...no one to care for...and no one to return that feeling, you feel helpless. And you need out. Kyle didn't think anyone loved him, that's why he drove himself that far."

"But what about you? You had your parents...and Alice and Marie."

Danny shook his head. "It's different. If you feel like your soul has been torn out...if you've pretty much lost the only other person or people who make you _you_...then what's the point? I loved my parents and they loved me. But they weren't Lucy. Lucy made me whole, she was basically my Stan or Kenny," he smiled.

"But...you thought she was gone for good...," Kenny started.

"And so I did what I felt to be right. No one wants to live on an unloving Earth. Just a plain rock hurtling around a ball of gas? No! Everyone wants to have that...that feeling, you know? You feel like you could rule the world with your fingertips as long as their with you. You could...fly! I mean, the feelings like a drug...once you're in it too deep, if you get yanked out, you're going to have some issues on your hands."

Kenny nodded, though he really had little idea of what he was talking about. Kenny's relationships had always been unconventional.

"But once they're gone," Danny continued, "it's like everything just blows apart. It's like someone's smothering you in this dark and terrible feeling. You're dead inside and no amount of pills or alcohol can get you back on your feet... And you'd do anything to get things back to the way they were. It's...it's a horrible feeling. One that I hope you never have to experience, Kenny.

"I think I have...," Kenny whispered, looking at him through glistening eyes. "I...I don't know what to do, Danny. I don't know what to do if we lose him!"

Danny stared at him sympathetically. "Look," he started. "I've only known you for a day, but that doesn't matter. You're strong, Ken. If he pulls through this, you'll lead him back to where he's supposed to be."

"But if he doesn't...," Kenny responded. "I'm going to have to help him leave me forever."

This thought sinks in to both of them and they both fight back tears. It's never an easy situation to think in terms of a friend or just someone you're watching go through your experience.

"Do you regret what you did?"

"A bit," Danny replied. "I mean...it's not like it changed anything about me and Lucy...but if I fully die...who knows? Maybe I'll be better."

"I doubt it, Dude. You'll be the same as you are now, you'll just be someplace else."

"Right, I won't be surrounded by her wherever I go. It's so...suffocating sometimes, you know? It's one thing to be surrounded when it's such a clear feeling...but now, now it's just muggy and horrible..."

"I bet."

"How does Kyle make you feel?" Danny asked suddenly.

"Wait, what?"

"How do you feel when you're talking to him?"

Kenny blinked. Then again. "I...I feel..." Oh how could he describe it? "I dunno, comfortable. Like, like if anything in the world was wrong with me, I could just talk to him and all my problems would just go away. He's always been someone to lean on...and I always wanted to be someone that could return the favor."

"But he never let you, did he?"

"No...he...he really didn't until he came out. He usually went to Stan. If anyone." Kenny looked back at the boy. "I really wish that he had come to me...or Stan, I don't really care which. I just wish that he wouldn't have done this to himself...it's just so..."

"Uncharacteristic?" Danny guessed.

"Yeah."

"Well, you know what they say, it's the quiet ones you have to look out for. Kyle will make it...I'm sure. And you'll be there to guide him."

"Same situation if he doesn't make it...I don't like that. I...I need to focus. I need to worry about Kyle, but right now my largest concern is you. I have a promise to uphold, and if I keep fretting over Kyle I'm going to wind up in one of these beds myself. So, you say that Lucy just disappeared?"

"Yeah, it was strange, I just woke up and she wasn't beside me."

"Hm...well, mayb-" He stopped as he heard the door opening.

"Anything new?" Stan asked.

Kenny sighed. "No...no, he's still like this."

"Jesus Christ," Stan whispered. "I can't stand to see him like this, Kenny. It just isn't right."

"Of course it isn't, but as his friends, we have to stick by him."

"But that's what caused this in the first place! He thought that we _weren't_ going to stick by him! Didn't you read the letter?!"

"Only fifty times...," Kenny whispered. "And it hurts more each time I read it. We weren't good friends, Stan. I betrayed his trust and you walked out on him. Imagine what would happen if he woke up in the hospital with no one beside him! He'd be even more of a wreck! We have to wait on him and help him get better."

"What if he doesn't make it, Kenny?! I don't like having to watch my best friend slowly fading away in pain!"

"You're such a fucking pessimist!" Kenny shouted, standing abruptly from his seat with Danny following suit. "He WILL make it, got it?! And we are going to stay here until then!"

"What, did you think I was leaving or something? If it were up to me, I never would have gotten that damn food, it's not like I was able to keep it down anyhow...," he muttered.

Kenny sighed heavily and walked up to stand face-to-face with him. "Look, Stan," he started. "We messed up. We fucking messed up hardcore, alright? All that we can do is be here for him and...pray."

"Pray? Kenny, since when do you pray?"

"Since the boy who happens to also be my best friend wound up on a hospital bed. I'm going for a walk. Call my cell if anything happens."

"Fine," Stan sighed and took his seat beside Kyle. Kenny took one last look at them and made his way out the door. Then he ran. He ran as fast as he could towards the exit...he HAD to get out of there.

Once he finally busted through the hospital doors, he was greeted with a silent, gentle snowfall. Not an unusual occurrence in South Park...but this one seemed different. Every snowflake that fell was like an extra weight on his heart. Billions of little snowflakes, lost. Caught in the whirlwind of time. And he had to save them all. He had to make sure that each one of them touched down just right. It was daunting to see them all, and to know that those he found were only a fraction of the total...but it didn't matter. Each one he could find was his responsibility, and he was ready to help them. No matter how cold it made him

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Danny and Kenny walked silently side-by-side in the snow, matching syncing each other in steps and in breathing. It was a little unnerving in a way, to be so at one with death...

Kenny let his mind drift for awhile and slid his hand into his pocket. He could feel his wallet and he pulled it out just for the sake of having something to read. He opened it upside down and shook it, trying to find something, when to his surprise, a folded up paper flew out onto the sidewalk. He put the wallet back and bent down to pick it up. When he opened it, he found himself on the verge of tears once more. He'd found a picture from two summers ago of himself and the guys when they went to Maui.

"Come on, Stan!" Kyle shouted. "Set up the goddamn camera, already!"

"Just give me a minute, alright? It's a bit more complicated than it looks!" he retorted, fumbling with the device. Kyle rolled his eyes and walked over, swiping it from Stan's hands. With a few buttons, he set it on the tripod and smirked.

"Ready when you are, El Capitan."

"Shut up, Kyle," Kenny and Cartman laughed as Stan stomped over to where they were getting ready for their snapshot.

"Everyone ready?"

"Yes, now hurry up, you stupid Jew!"

"Fuck off, Fatty," Kyle muttered as he hit the button and walked over towards them. "We got twenty seconds...so what should we do? We all know that we can't do things traditionally."

Kenny grinned. "How about we all jump on Cartman?" Cartman shot him a dirty look.

Kyle shook his head. "Nah, we'd bounce off the blubber."

Kenny and Stan laughed as Cartman stared daggers at Kyle.

"Ha ha, very funny Jewboy. Now, let's see you joke about this!" Cartman grabbed his towel from behind him and flung it around Kyle in a tight wrap.

"What the fu-" Kyle was cut off as he was swung forward towards Stan's lips just as the camera went off.

After the flash went, Cartman loosened his grip on Kyle's binding, allowing him to push back from Stan and wipe his mouth in disgust. Cartman and Kenny rolled around laughing as they both tried to regain their dignity.

"Best fucking Kodak moment ever!" Kenny snickered.

"Yeah, it'd be great for some porn site for creepy old men," Cartman added.

"What the fuck are you talking about, Cartman?" Kyle asked, his face getting flushed from his anger and embarrassment.

"Think about it, Kyle. You have four 15 year olds. One of them is tied up and kissing another as the other two stand and watch. What pervert _wouldn't_ like that?" Cartman deliberately looked towards Kenny as he finished his statement.

"Cartman, you're fucking sick!" Stan gagged.

"Whatever, Dude. You're the one making out with guys," Cartman smirked.

"I fucking hate you so much, Fatass," Kyle stepped up towards him.

"Feeling's mutual, Jew."

"Guys, don't start," Kenny warned.

"Back off, Kenny, you know how they get," Stan interjected.

"All you fucking do is make other people miserable!"

"And all you do is talk about doing what's right and spreading your Jewish cheer everywhere!"

"Fatass!"

"Jew!"

"Retard!"

"Daywalker!"

"Son of a whore!"

Kenny and Stan watched as Kyle went falling backwards onto the ground.

"What's wrong, Cartman?" Kyle asked as he stood up and rubbed his back. "Did I strike a nerve?"

"Don't try me, Kyle. I'd love nothing more than to punch your nose in."

"Why?" Kyle gave him a little push backwards. "Just because I'm stating that your mother's job is in fact being the town slut?"

"Well your mom's a fat Jewish bitch!"

"Yeah, and?"

Kenny and Stan dropped their faces down into their hands and shook their heads. Would this bickering ever stop?

"What, so now you don't care if I call her a bitch?"

"Well, considering that you're a total bitch, too and you seem to be utterly in love with yourself, I suppose that it could be taken as a compliment. Besides, my mom can change her attitude. Your's can't change her reputation."

"Kyle...I swear to God..."

"What, Tubby? You think I'm fucking afraid of you?" Cartman's scowl just grew deeper. Kyle smirked in triumph. "You fat bastard."

With that, Cartman sent his fist flying straight into Kyle's nose. He went flying back towards the ground again, this time with his head coming into contact with the pavement.

"FUCK!" He cried out through his hands as he grabbed his nose. When he moved them, a steady stream of blood was running down his face.

"Oh, God," Stan muttered as he helped him stand up.

Kenny grabbed Cartman in a full nelson and displayed him for Kyle. "You wanna get a few good punches in, Ky?" He asked as he struggled to hold the larger boy in place. "Go ahead."

Kyle raised his fist and let it shake in the air with anger before dropping it with a defeated sigh. "Oh, forget it. I'm just gonna go before I do something I fucking regret."

Kenny, Stan, and Cartman just watched as he slowly walked away towards the bathroom.

"Hm...that's right," Kenny thought. "That's the first time we ever saw him give up against Cartman." Suddenly, something struck him as odd. Violence...and regret? "Worth a shot," he thought.

"Hey, Danny?"

"Yea?"

"What were you like in college?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, like, were you straight A's, a frat dude, what?"

"Oh," he replied. "Um, I was an average student, but I loved to party every now and then. We had fucking awesome keggers."

"Sounds tight. What type of drunk are you?"

Danny laughed. "What's with all the random questions?"

"I'm trying to take my mind off of Kyle," Kenny mumbled pathetically.

"Ah. In that case, I'm happy to oblige useless questionnaires. Now then, I don't really remember much from my partying. I'd usually go home and crash, then wake up and wonder how the hell I got there," he chuckled. "I was a fucking wreck when I was wasted."

Now we're getting somewhere.

"Did you...ever hurt anyone when you were drunk?" Kenny pressed.

Danny ducked his head down. "Once or twice, yes. I...I never mean to...I just lost my temper really easily."

"I do that, too when I get trashed. Once I broke a kids finger in the door because he pissed me off so much."

"Geez, what'd he do to you?"

"If I remember correctly, he gave me a Mountain Dew instead of a Dr. Pepper."

Danny laughed softly and ran his fingers through his dark hair and took a deep breath. "Lucy used to hate when I partied."

"Really?"

"Yeah. She was concerned for my health, I guess. Can't blame her, I was on the one way train to a dead liver. Now I'm just a dead everything. If I could actually eat and drink, I'd probably be drinking as much as possible. I guess some things never change, do they Kenny?" He looked over and smiled softly at the younger boy.

"Did you ever hurt Lucy do you think?" Danny's smile instantly dropped.

"I'm pretty sure that I would have known if I'd done that."

"But, you said you don't remember much from the drinking...you'd be confused as hell in the morning."

"Well...well, yes. B-but I'd never hurt Lucy...I loved her...," Danny stammered out.

"Danny?"

"W-what?"

"Your aura's wavering."

"What, is that how you say your fly's down in this time period?"

"What? No!" Kenny responded. "I'm guessing you can't see auras?"

"Only on other dead people...I didn't know that I had one. I thought that I was a fluke or something."

"Nope, your as green as envy...though it's starting to fade."

"What, why?"

"Because, I think we know why you were stuck. You didn't know why Lucy left, I threw out a suggestion, and all of a sudden your aura starts to leave?" Kenny points out. "I don't think that this is coincidence, my friend."

"But...but I loved her! I-I NEVER would have hurt her!"

"Do you know who's finger I broke when they pissed me off?" Kenny asked suddenly.

"Um...who's?"

Kenny stared at him with his deep blue eyes and simply stated, "Kyle's."

Danny stared at him. "Y-you're serious? You broke his finger?! How the fuck could you do that?!"

"I was drunk off my ass, Danny. He took me home to take care of me and I ended up hurting him. Think. How did you feel when you woke up and found that Lucy was gone?"

"My head was...off. I dunno...it hurt."

"Hangover?"

"Y-yea. And I had weird ass scratches on me."

Kenny raised his eyebrow. "Scratches?"

"Fingernails...I thought that...that maybe I fought someone at the party," he bit his bottom lip.

"I...don't think so, Danny. And I think you've finally figured out what happened. You're turning pink."

"What?"

"You've discovered why you were stuck...you're going where you belong."

"B-but I didn't mean to!" Danny covered up his face and let out a short sob. Kenny walked up and placed a gentle hand on his glowing shoulder.

"Hey, I know you didn't. And who knows? Maybe you'll see her in the afterlife."

"I don't want her to go to Hell! I'd never want that!"

"Yeah, but unless she's Mormon or under ten, she's probably going. Most of us do," he shrugged.

Danny grabbed him and gave him a quick embrace. "Thanks, I guess Kenny. I owe you a lot. Now, go take care of Kyle."

Kenny nodded and waved as he slowly disappeared. He sighed and took his notebook out of his parka once more.

_Danny Ross February 3rd, 1970May 7th, 1989Unknown fate of love_

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"Kenny?"

"What?"

"You want me to keep watch for a while?" Stan whispered.

"Nah, keep sleeping. I've got him."

Stan sighed. "Alright. But wa-"

"I know, Stan. Go to sleep." The ebon teen nodded and leaned back into his chair. Kenny looked from him back to the pasty boy in front of him. So far, he'd been only declared as 'under surveillance.' Not 'stable' or anything reassuring.

"_You're lucky"_

Danny's words from earlier that day continued to ring in his ears. "Lucky for what?" Kenny thought furiously. "Lucky that Kyle was alive then? Lucky that I'm an arrogant asshole and he'll never want to talk to me again?! Lucky that I had a chance to be with him...and hold him...and be his closest confident for just once in our lifetime?" Kenny could feel the tears welling once more as these thoughts tackled him.

Danny was right. Even if this would only last a little while longer, it didn't matter. He had been privileged to know Kyle Broflovski. He'd seen what little humanity had to offer through those bright green eyes of his. He'd seen the hope of many in his bright, perfect smile. And he'd seen a chance of he himself making it as Kyle struggled through his own obstacles while assisting others along the way. This last event was nothing to note in Kyle's life. Even if it caused his end. His achievements were far too outstanding, his accomplishments too many for them to be smothered in this unfortunate case. Him himself too amazing to be out-shined by matter of his demise.

Kenny smiled slightly and reached his hand up onto the bed. He placed it on top of Kyle's chilled, delicate palm and intertwined their fingers. It looked so funny. His relatively golden skin against such a bleached tone. His strong fingers in-between those of the finest china dolls. He smiled more as he closed his hand on Kyle's and lied his head down on the bed, resting atop his other arm. He gave a gentle squeeze and said a small prayer for Kyle. He felt his eyelids grow heavy, until he found himself staring at the smiling face of a pale, redheaded Jew.

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_A/N: And Danny is done. AUGH! I had SO much trouble getting his story to intertwine with Kenny and Kyle's. I was like, throwing my laptop across the room in a frenzy XD_

_And you STILL don't know what's gonna happen with Kyle. I'm sure you all hate me right now, but that's okay. I only liked you as a friend anyway =p_

_Stay tuned for chapter eight, coming fairly soon, I'm sure =)_


	8. Giving Time

_A/N: This is going to be out much sooner than I thought it'd be, haha. I was told that I had work tonight, but I drove all the way over and they told me I was scheduled for next week. FML._

_On the bright side, I can write. Yays =D_

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"_Why'd you do it, Kyle?"_

"_Do what, Kenny?"_

"_Don't be stupid, Kyle. Why would you hurt yourself like this? Don't you realize that there are people here who love you?"_

"_Like who?" Kyle asked with an innocent gaze in his emerald eyes._

"_Like Stan....and me."_

"_Oh, please. Kenny, love is too broad of a term. Cartman loves his iPod, Stan loves Wendy, I love to win. Tell me, what exactly do you mean by love, Kenny?"_

"_I...I mean love! We care about you! Stan...Stan cares about you more than anything!"_

"_Hm, Then maybe he shouldn't have always blown me off. After all, Wendy comes first."_

"_N-no! Stan dumped Wendy...well, she dumped him, but whatever. They broke up because he had to get to you!"_

"_Why does it only seem to matter when our friendship is visibly on the line? Why couldn't he ditch her every now and again before this? Hm?"_

"_I can't answer that. Only he knows....but I care about you more than anything."_

"_Then why do you always leave me, too?"_

_Kenny shot his head up. "What do you mean?"_

_Kyle gazed at him with a small stream of tears trailing down his face. "I mean, why is it there's never a day where I'm with you? You always just leave!"_

"_K-Kyle, I died! I couldn't help it!"_

"_I'm sure you could have! We all control our own destiny to some extent, Kenny. Even our deaths!"_

"_Now, that's not true! I'd never just leave you like that! I don't fucking play that way, Broflovski!"_

_Kyle rolled his eyes. "Not true, hm? Well look at me."_

"_Y-you...God, Kyle...why?"_

"_I already told you."_

"_Well, your reasoning is really shitty, Ky. I love you!"_

"_Like a dog loves his bone, right?"_

_Kenny grabbed him and shook his shoulders. "No! I mean I LOVE love you! Goddammit, Kyle are you really that dense?!"_

"_I'm still not seeing it, Kenny. I'm sorry."_

_Kenny stared as those words passed through his soft, pink lips as his golden aura all of sudden turned into a lime green and Kyle started to fade away from him._

"_Kyle!" He shouted. "You can't leave! I need you! I fucking need you with me!"_

"_I'm sorry," he heard echoing into the darkness that had shrouded him._

"Kenny? Kenny, wake up."

"mhmmmmumbleme"

"Oh for Pete's sake, Kenny, you're drooling all over the bed. Get up!" Kenny felt for a moment as though he were flying...only to come crashing down in a heap on the cold hospital tile.

He groaned in pain and opened his eyes to Stan, who was looking down at him with a tired scowl. He shot up off the ground and looked at Kyle, who looked just as he had the night before, still glowing his soft yellow glow. Kenny brushed some of his fiery hair away from his eyes and sighed. He turned towards Stan.

"Any news?"

Stan shook his head. "He's apparently making progress, but he's still not stable. They said we just need to keep an eye on him."

"Said and done," Kenny muttered.

"I...I just feel horrible about this, Kenny. We could have prevented it..."

"Yea...yea we could have. But let's face it, Stan, we're fucking stupid. We took him for granted."

"Just like the rest of the world."

"He's just too damn good for them...but still, we need him here," Kenny sighed.

"I just can't believe it, though. I mean, _him_ of all people. I mean, I've had my emo phase, you die too many times to do it yourself, and I can totally imagine Cartman...maybe even Butters! But...but not Ky," they stared at each other with tears in their eyes before clasping each other in a tightly locked embrace and silently sobbing.

"Geez, you'd think he was already dead."

They broke apart and darted their eyes towards the door. They saw Cartman and Butters standing right inside of it with tired expressions.

"Why are you here, Cartman?" Kenny spit out.

"Because. I want to see him as soon as he wakes up. I told him that I would be the one to kill him and I'll be damned if I'm going to let him have all the fun."

"Goddammit, Cartman, that's not fucking appropriate right now!" Stan shouted. Cartman just shrugged and made his way over towards Kyle with Butters. He glanced at the damage and swallowed hard.

"Man...he...he really had some issues, didn't he?"

Butters just stared at him, trembling. "I...I just can't believe this. Why would he do something like this? It's just not like him at all."

Kenny sighed. "We've been saying that for the past day, Dude. Catch up."

"Where's his Jew family?"

Kenny and Stan glanced at each other and shook their heads.

"They...," Stan started. "They weren't happy with the fact that he's...well, you know..."

"Gay, Stan. The word is gay," Kenny interjected.

"Yea. Anyways, they came, but they...well, here, read this," Stan reached over and picked up Kyle's letter and handed it to Cartman. He read it silently with Butters glancing over his shoulder.

As they finished, Butters broke down into tears and Kenny walked over and hugged him for support, ending up crying with him. Cartman just stood there with the letter in his hand. Not moving. Not making a sound.

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"So, how are you doing, Butters?"

"Oh...well, well fine I suppose. I mean, my heart's breaking but I'm okay. What about you, Kenny? Are you gonna be okay?"

Kenny stared at him for a moment, not quite sure of how to respond. He pushed around a meatball on his plate of spaghetti mindlessly for a bit. He let out a heavy sigh. "I'll feel a lot better once we know if Ky's gonna make it or not...God....what have I done?"

"Now, now you ain't done nothing, Kenny. K-Kyle's just going through some tough times what with his family an-and Toby and them is all. He'll be just fine, I'm sure."

"Butters, have you ever felt like that?"

"Well, like what, Kenny?"

"Lost? Just so lost that you don't want to stick around?"

"Well, I think we've all felt like that at one time or another. After all, we are teenagers, Kenny."

"Yeah...but this could be the first time th-that....that..."

"That what?" Butters asked gently.

"That someone from South Park died like this."

Butters let out a sad sigh and pushed his plate away, putting his elbows on the table to rest his head in his hands. "Kyle...he won't die. He's too strong, right?"

"God I hope so, Butters. I...I can't lose him."

"You still got them feelings for him?"

"No...I've got some other feeling. I...I don't know what it is."

"Tell me about it," Butters urged.

"Well, I had this dream again. And...in it I...I told him that I loved him."

"Well, I told him that earlier."

Kenny shook his head. "No, no, Butters, you don't get it. I mean...I said I _loved_ him."

Butters sat up straight. "You mean like, love love?"

Kenny nodded slowly. "I can't say for sure...but I've never felt like this before, Butters. I feel so...scared. It's like every time I look at him and remind myself that we don't know if he'll make it, a part of my soul is torn out, you know?"

Butters raised his eyebrow as Kenny continued, "I feel like if I lose him, I lose everything. I've had friends die before, and I've watched people die...but it's never been this painful."

"Well, I think that you might be developing some stronger feelings for him, Kenny."

"But I don't want feelings for him!"

"Kenny, you know as well as I do that love is not something that you and I decide upon. It just happens. Besides, what's wrong with loving Kyle?"

"T-there's nothing really wrong with it...but I just think that it'd be detrimental to our friendship if I told him."

Butters shrugged, "who knows? Maybe it'll strengthen your bond."

"No, it'll make him a psycho-nut job because he thinks that I don't love him...or even like him for that matter. Ugh, Butters, I don't know how to feel!" He threw his face into his palms.

"Feel however your heart tells you to feel. Love is the language of the heart, Kenny. If it tells you that you love someone, you shouldn't push it away. The more you bottle it up, the more damage you could end up causing in the end."

"B-but I'm...I'm so...pathetic. I've made absolutely nothing of myself. But look at Kyle. Straight A's, already accepted into most colleges, almost a perfect SAT...damn it. I just don't deserve someone like him."

"Now, Kenny, don't do that," Butters warned. "If you go getting yourself all down like that, you'll never take the chance and then you'll just spend the rest of your days wondering 'what if'." Kenny stared at him for a moment and sighed. He knew that he was right, but damn it...just the thought of what could happen if Kyle didn't return the feeling...

"I can't do that to him," Kenny whispered, standing from his seat.

"Why not, Kenny?"

"Because, if he didn't feel the same way, we'd never get back to where we were. Love is often one-sided...you know that, Butters." Butters sighed softly and looked at him with sad, aquamarine eyes.

"Then give him time."

Kenny just shook his head. "I don't think he has time, Butters," he muttered as he walked away.

He walked down the hallways and found his way to the front door and pushed it open, receiving a chilled gust in his face. He stared around blankly at the white surroundings. It was depressing, to think of all that happiness and green hidden under a suffocating blanket of white. It was almost like Kyle...

He shook his head to fling away his gathering tears and started walking towards nothing. He had no idea where he was going, but he felt as though he had to get there. He found himself walking deep into the woods, feeling each tree gazing at him with immense suspicion. He couldn't place it, but he felt as though he'd been there before...

Suddenly, he came into a little clearing surrounded by oak trees. It seemed so familiar...he walked around it time after time until he tripped over what seemed to be a tree root. When he cleared the snow from the object, he gasped softly. What lied there was a little stone tablet with the word Pancake. He had completely forgotten all about it...

"This is so lame, you guys," he could hear Cartman saying. He closed his eyes and lost himself.

"Shut up, Fatass," Kyle growled. "Go ahead, Stan."

"Today, we lay to rest Pancake. He was a wonderful gerbil," Stan started.

"Guinea pig, Stan," Kyle muttered.

"Sorry. A wonderful guinea pig indeed. He was soft...and fluffy...and um, lovable."

Kenny sniffed and Kyle threw Stan a soft dirty look. "I'll do it, Dude. You have no idea what you're talking about."

Stan threw up his arms in exasperation. "Fine, if you want to do a rodent eulogy, be my guest." He crossed his arms and looked down at the shoebox in front of them.

"Pancake," Kyle began. "Was, as Stan said, a wonderful guinea pig. He was Kenny's first real pet, a constant friend to him. Someone that anyone would owe a debt of gratitude towards. For the short five years, three months, and seven days that he was with him, Pancake was always Kenny's best friend. To that, I say, thank you Pancake for making Kenny's life just a little bit brighter each day in ways that I only wish that I could have. As we lay him to rest, would anyone else like to add anything?"

"You're such a fag, Kyle," Cartman snickered. He soon yelped in pain as a small stone collided with his forehead.

Kyle soon turned his attention back to Kenny. "You want to say anything, Ken?"

Kenny took a deep breath. "Thanks for everything, pal. I'll...I'll miss ya a lot." Kyle nodded towards Stan, who knelt down and lowered the shoebox into the small hole that they'd dug. He then covered it with fresh dirt and then they all proceeded to bow their heads in a silent prayer.

Soon after, Stan ran off to football practice and Cartman went home, claiming to be bored to death, just like Pancake. Which resulted in an even bigger rock hitting his massive head.

Kenny had gone home on his own to mourn, but was pleasantly surprised when Kyle showed up at his house about a half hour later and told him that he was going to make him feel better. Kyle took Kenny back to his house and fixed him a huge meal with all of Kenny's favorites, even ones that went against his Jewish principles. He made him ribs, nachos, pizza, wings, fries and his special ice cream a la mode to finish it all off. Never before had anyone treated Kenny like his feelings really mattered. To complete the surprise, Kyle had rented all of the slasher films he could find, Kenny's favorite genre.

It was on that day that Kenny really started bonding closer to Kyle and wishing that he could do more for him. When he told him about this, Kyle just laughed and claimed that he didn't need to do anything special for him, because him being around was all that really mattered to him.

Kenny's heart melted as he recalled that day, brushing Pancake's headstone lightly with his fingertips. "I miss you, Buddy," he whispered. "I...I know that you probably aren't listening, but I don't care. I need you to look after Kyle...you're the only other being that I completely trust...and I don't know where else to turn. Please help him," he begged.

"Talking to dead rodents McCormick? Really?"

Kenny turned and saw Damien standing by him with a gentle, teasing expression over his face. "Why are you here?" He asked softly.

"To be honest, I came to see how your last case went."

"It was fine...Danny's where he belongs now, I guess," he sighed. Damien kept gazing at him, his face softening each moment.

"How ya holding up, Kid?"

"I'm guessing you know about Kyle?" Damien nodded. "Well, to be honest, I'm heartbroken and just...fucked up. Everything's going wrong, Dam. Is there any way that I can fix this?"

"I...I don't know, Ken."

"Can I see your father?"

"What?"

"Your father. I demand to see him," Kenny said sternly.

"Oh, so let me great this straight. You're _demanding_ that I, the son of the anti-christ, do something for you?" Kenny nodded softly and Damien chuckled. "Sure. Why not?" He grabbed Kenny's arm and transported them back into Satan's office.

"Well, Kenny! Hey there," Satan greeted from his desk. "Two cases down, not too bad for a newbie."

"Thanks, Satan. Look, I need to know about Kyle."

"What about him, Son?"

"Like how long he's going to live. I need to know, Man." Satan's face drooped slightly as he looked from Kenny to Damien.

Damien just shrugged. "I don't know, Pops, maybe you should tell him."

"No, I'm not telling you when he's going to die, Kenny," he stated finally. Kenny found himself shaking with anger and slammed his fist hard on the chair in front of him.

"Then tell me how to save him, damn it! Because I'm not taking another case until he's all right!"

Satan stared at him for a moment before motioning for him to sit down. He obliged, though very grudgingly. "Kenny," he began slowly. "you can't exactly trade for him...your soul already belongs to us."

"There must be something that I can do!" He pleaded, his tears welling up once more. "I can't lose him!"

"What would you say to a partner, Kenny?" Satan questioned.

"Partner? Why the fuck should I care about a partner?! I want Kyle!"

"That's what I meant," Satan smiled gently.

"Wait, I thought this was a one-of-a-kind type of power, Dad." Damien inputted.

"Well, yes. But I am the devil. If the deal is made, I can make it come true."

"I...I don't know if I want to subject Kyle to this, Satan."

"Look, I'm not going to lie to you, Kenny. If you don't make this deal, Kyle will most likely not be leaving that hospital," Satan warned.

"B-but...I-I don't know what to do," Kenny whined. "What would the deal be?"

Satan leaned back in his chair and sighed. "Life, Kenny."

"I thought you said partner. How can he be my partner if I'm dead?!"

"No, no, no. I mean you'd be given life. As well as he." Kenny and Damien stared at him for a moment.

"What the hell are you talking about, Dad?"

"Kenny, let's say you took this deal. You would need to inform Kyle of this power of yours, because he would be seeing it as well. However, you would both become immortal. Which may sound glamorous and all..."

"But we'd spend eternity working on these cases...," Kenny whispered. Satan nodded.

"Yours and his mental state could break down in little time, Kenny. It could take quite a toll on both of you. You've only had two cases and you've had trouble coping." Kenny nodded, he knew that this was the truth...the destruction of humanity in his eyes was growing, it would be hard to place Kyle in that situation.

"And I'm not done," Satan added. Kenny stared at him expectantly. "You'd be amazed how much a body can go through without dying...Kyle would, once a year, be placed on the brink of death for a total of three weeks. And he would be expected to continue with his tasks as given to him. You need to think about this Kenny. Would you rather he die and rest here, or have him slowly suffer for the rest of eternity just so you can be with him?"

Kenny gaped at him. How could he ask him to make such a choice?!

Satan leaned forward and stared into his blue eyes. "Kenny. This isn't an on-the-spot decision. I'll give you twenty-four hours to think about it. Don't worry, I assure you that Kyle will last at least that long. But you need to take his feelings into consideration as well, do not only think for yourself, because your lives depend on it."

Kenny blinked, then opened his eyes back to the hospital hallway. What the hell? That's it? So...he had to choose between his pain and Kyle's...it should have been such an easy decision...but to lose Kyle just seemed like too much. He sighed and started to walk down the hallway when he heard Butters shouting for him.

"Butters, what the hell is wrong with you?" Kenny asked.

"I-It's Kyle! He's waking up!"

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_A/N: Psh, you really thought I'd have Kyle just slowly die in the bed? Please, I had to throw something totally complicated and non-senseicle in there. Actually, I'm getting kinda hyped myself for how this story's gonna turn. We'll just have to see =)_

_What will Kenny decide? And what will Kyle have to say? Find out next time!_


	9. Never in Hell

_A/N: Geez, everyone's yelling at me for the cliffhanger XD_

_Ohs wells, I forgives you all anyways =) Enjoy. _

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Kenny, Stan, Cartman, and Butters had gathered around the bed with bated breath, waiting for Kyle to stop stirring.

"Geez, he's taking forever," Cartman muttered softly.

"Well, he's probably in some pain, and confused," Kenny replied. "We just have to be patient."

"He wouldn't be."

"I think he would if he were in this situation, Cartman," Stan whispered. "This is a bit more serious than just waking up from a nap."

They continued to stare at the softly moving body under the sheet, flinching at each moan of pain that passed through his tender lips.

"Come on, Ky," Stan whispered. "Ya gotta wake up."

They heard him whisper something inaudible and lowered their heads closer to the boy.

"S-s-tann?" He whispered shakily.

Stan's eyes lit up and gently grasped his hand. "Yea, Ky. It's me. Come on, Buddy. You have to get up, please!"

Three of his onlookers broke into giant grins as Emerald iris' slowly became visible towards the white surrounding. The fourth, however, just stared at him with a saddened and angry expression.

"W-what happened?" Kyle groaned, trying to sit himself up.

Kenny gently pushed down on his shoulder to keep him down. "You're in the hospital, Kyle. Don't sit up, you'll open the stitches."

"Stitches?" The pale boy blinked in confusion. "What happened?" The four others glanced around at each other, not sure of how to delicately approach the situation.

"Y-you, um...you were in an accident, Ky," Kenny stammered out.

"Psh, accident nothing," Cartman glared at Kenny and turned his attention to the confused child. "You went fucking insane and mutilated yourself. You're lucky Stan found you, otherwise we'd be at your fucking funeral right now, Jew boy."

Kyle's eyes widened significantly. "I...I...," he stuttered. He looked down towards his arms and saw his damage, his breathing dramatically increasing with his heart monitor. He looked from Butters to Cartman to Stan...and finally to Kenny. When his green eyes met his blue, the tears couldn't be held back. Kyle lifted his hands to cover his face and sobbed.

They all stepped back and stared at him in confusion. "Maybe we should give him some time, fellas," Butters whispered. They nodded and started to walk away.

"Wait!" Kyle cried out in-between his sobs. They turned back and looked at him. "K-Kenny...I need you...," he asked in desperation. Kenny eyed the other three and nodded, and they took their leave. Stan looked back towards Kyle and sighed softly before following Cartman and Butters out. Kenny walked over and sat to Kyle's side on the bed, gently wrapping his arms around his weak frame and slowly rocking him back and forth.

They stayed like that for who knows how long, but to them, it was not a measure of time. Only a moment in which they could relish in the solace of the other's body heat, and find comfort in knowing that the other was still there.

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"He alright?" Stan asked as Kenny finally stepped out of the room and quietly shut the door behind him.

Kenny nodded. "Yea, he's sleeping again."

"Did he say anything?"

"No...he couldn't stop crying."

Stan put his face in his hands in sighed. "Great."

"Hey, at least we know he's gonna make it," Butters chipped in.

"We don't know that, Butters," Cartman growled in annoyance. "People can wake up and still be in danger. And if he does make it out, who's to say he won't try this again?"

Stan and Kenny stiffened. He was right. Kyle's waking was indeed a happy occasion, but the feeling couldn't last very long.

Kenny sniffed quietly and looked around at the walls surrounding them. He needed to make a decision about Kyle...and soon. His life and Kyle's depended on it. On one hand, to have Kyle beside him for eternity seemed too good to be true. On the other...Kyle may not want that. And he couldn't in all good conscious put Kyle through the physical and emotional trauma that would have to be endured to do the job. He needed to talk to Kyle...but Kyle was suicidal...he'd want nothing more than to just be left alone to die, right? But he had told Kenny that he needed him...that he needed him there to comfort him...

Kenny didn't need the twenty-four hours. He'd made up his mind.

"He won't try this again," Kenny whispered.

"Why not, Kenny? Are you his conscious?" Cartman asked. Stan and Butters just stared at him in confusion.

"No. He did this because he felt that no body loved him...I'm going to prove to him that he is loved...no matter what it takes."

"Kenny, I think that it'll take more than pretty words to make Ky feel better," Stan responded.

"Actions speak louder than words, Stan. I'm going to show him, not tell him, that he's cared about."

"What? How?" Butters asked.

Kenny just smiled. "If I told you," he stated softly, "it'd kill us all."

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Hours passed with the four of them staying outside Kyle's room. None of them brave enough to go back in, none of them sure quite what to say to the others. They watched as the nurse periodically went in and out of his room to check on him since they wouldn't do it.

"Why can't we stay in there with him anymore?" Stan whispered.

"We're pussies, that's why," Cartman muttered. "We don't really know how to tell the Jew that he needs help. I swear, he's so fucking retarded."

"He's sick, asshole!" Stan shouted.

"No, Stan, someone with a cold is sick. Kyle's just weak. His Jewish nature promotes the idea that if one doesn't succeed at everything, you've failed, so 'thou must kill thyself'."

Stan's mouth slightly dropped before his teeth finally clenched together and he lunged at Cartman. "Don't fucking call Kyle weak, fucktard," he hissed, grasping Cartman's collar.

"Get off of me, Stan," Cartman growled. Stan instead forced his fist into Cartman's eye, sending him stumbling backwards.

"The fuck, Stan!" Cartman yelled, massaging his eye. "I'll fucking kill you, Jock-boy!"

"Guys, cool it," Kenny shouted. He glanced at the two of them before dropping his head and massaging his temples. "I swear, you'd think it was just a fucking ordinary day." He shot his head back up and looked them in the eyes. "This isn't the fucking time or place. Stan, Kyle wouldn't want you to punch Cartman for such a dumbass comment, you know he'd rather do it himself. Cartman, stop with the fucking jokes, this isn't just some fun little outing. He's your friend, too."

"Psh, Jew-boy is not my friend, Kenneh."

"Then why are you here, Cartman?" Stan glowered.

"I told you. I'm going to tell the fucker off. Besides, Kahl is in an incredible amount of pain. It's too good to be true! You really think I'd miss this?"

Kenny stood up, forgetting his lecture from earlier and started to advance on Cartman with Stan.

"Stan?" A voice asked softly. The boys stopped and whipped around to see the source of the voice. They saw Wendy and Bebe staring at them with sad eyes.

"What are you doing here, Wendy?" Stan asked.

"Well...you weren't at school, so I thought maybe this was something serious," she stated.

"Oh, does the fact that I told you it was serious not mean anything?"

"Well, it didn't seem like it was this bad of a situation...I went to your house and your mom said that you were here...what happened?"

"Why don't you go see for yourself, hippie-bitch?" Cartman muttered, gesturing towards Kyle's door. Wendy gave him a glare, but quickly lost it as Bebe yanked her arm to go inside.

The boys stood outside and waited as they went to see Kyle.

"I really really don't want her here right now," Stan muttered.

"Then tell her, Stan. I'm sure she'd understand," Butters said.

Stan raised his eyebrow. "You are aware that we're talking about Wendy, right?" Butters nodded and dropped the subject. Even he was fully aware that Wendy Testaburger was not someone who liked to be told to stay out of it.

Wendy and Bebe walked out of the room and shut the door, their mascara running down their faces.

"Oh...Stan," Wendy's voice cracked. She ran and flung herself into his arms, sobbing loudly. He at first wasn't sure what to do, he just stood there with a dumbfounded expression on his face. Slowly, though, he started to return the gesture, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, gently swaying her back and forth.

Butters, on the other hand, had gone to comfort Bebe, who was desperately trying to hold back a scream and clawing at his jacket. Kenny and Cartman looked at each other, lost in this moment of horrid feeling.

"Why?" Wendy asked. "Why would he do that?" She whipped around and glared furiously at Cartman.

"What the fuck did you do to him, you fat fuck?!" She screeched.

"I didn't do shit to him, hippie!" He sneered. "I only wish that I could cause the Jew that much pain!"

Kenny punched his arm hard. "You fucking liar! It's your fault that he was pretty much forced out of the closet to his parents! It was either he tell them or you, he knows how your fucking sadistic head works!"

"Don't lecture me, Poor-boy! You're the one who told Butters and broke his trust!" Cartman glanced at Stan. "And it's _your_ fault because you left him! He didn't even mention me in his stupid ass letter!"

"Letter?" Bebe asked between sobs. The boy's faces dropped.

"I-I don't think that you should...," Stan started.

"Bullshit, let us see!" Bebe insisted. Stan sighed deeply and took out the letter, handing it off to Wendy. The girls read it in silence, only to find themselves crying even harder than before. Wendy ran back up to Stan and started pounding on his chest.

"Why...how could you do that to him?!" She sobbed. He just stood there, taking her assault without so much as a blink. "Yo-You should have been with him, Stan!"

"I know," he whispered sadly. "I know."

They all stood in silence as it dawned upon them that had someone been with him...this never would have happened.

The nurse walked out of Kyle's room and looked around at the group. "Who are Stan and Kenny?" she asked softly.

They jerked their heads towards her and responded "we are."

"Kyle's asking for you. But he's having some trouble talking, the anesthesia we used to calm him down is affecting him a bit, still. It's wearing off fairly quickly, but still be patient when he's talking, all right?"

Stan and Kenny quickly nodded and left the group behind. The nurse closed the door behind them and they headed up towards the boy, who looked as though he were still asleep. As they approached him however, they were relieved to find his eyes flutter open and him turn towards them. They took their seats at his side and smiled slightly. Kyle, however, did not smile back.

"Why did you do it, Stan?" He asked softly, barely able to choke out a whisper.

Stan gazed at him guiltily. "Do what, Ky? Leave you?"

Kyle shook his head slowly. "W-why would you try and save m-me?" Kenny and Stan stared at him with terrified eyes. "Isn't it o-obvious that isn't what I-I wanted?"

"B-but....but...," Stan stuttered.

"Kyle, we need you!" Kenny cried out. "Y-you can't just leave!"

Kyle turned his head and looked straight ahead. "No one needs me," he muttered.

"We do!" Stan protested. "I-I've never been so scared, Kyle!"

"But it's okay for you to just leave me?!" Kyle tried to sit up. Kenny reached over and adjusted his bed so he could be upright. After he was propped up, Kyle looked at Stan with glistening eyes, awaiting a response.

"I....I didn't know what to say to you," Stan whispered. "I don't look at you any differently...I just felt so fucking stupid."

"What? Why the hell would you feel stupid? Kenny's Bi and even he didn't know until my birthday."

"But I'm not your Super Best Friend," Kenny mumbled sadly. He could feel Stan gazing at him with confusion, but turned his eyes towards Kyle to avoid looking back. "Kyle...," Kenny began. "You don't know what you're doing. I....I know life sucks, Dude. We've all been down some bad paths. But you can't do this to yourself! Look at you!"

Kyle looked towards his wounds and sighed. "I know. I know it was stupid...but damn it, you don't know what it's like to feel so alone, Kenny."

"I'm pretty sure I do," he retorted.

"What? Since when are you lonely, Kenny?" Stan asked.

Kenny smiled sadly between the two of them. "Look, I'm not saying that I'm completely alone, but I'm further along than you usually are. I mean, just look at you two. You're always beside each other, laughing, having fun, just being there when you need someone, ya know?" Kyle and Stan looked at each other with saddened expressions. "I've never had a best friend," Kenny continued. "I always wanted one, I wanted to be just like you two...but it never happened. Chances are it never will. I'll never have Cartman as a best friend, and Butters is awesome, but not that close to me."

"Kenny...," Kyle started, his voice cracking. Kenny held up his hand.

"Just let me finish, Ky. And I promise, I'll let you blab about how wrong I am to your hearts content," Kenny smiled at him. "Anyways, I've never held a steady relationship, as you both know, I just fuck whatever rolls my way. I've lived with alcoholic and abusive parents all my life. Let's face it, I'm about as lonely as it gets," he chuckled softly. "But Kyle, you're the only person I've ever trusted. You're the only one I could ever turn to with a problem...or rely on when I was fucking up. You're the only person who's ever cared about me. Damn it, Kyle, I don't want to lose that! And I don't want Stan to lose that either because I know he feels the same way about you!" Stan nodded in agreement. "Kyle, we know we messed up. But...we need you here. I...We love you."

Kyle just stared at him, his eyes shining. "Stan?" He whispered softly.

"Yea?"

"Could you give me and Kenny just a second?" Stan looked at him confusedly, but nodded and stood. He gave Kenny a small smile before leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

Kenny and Kyle just stared at each other. It was a deathly silence, until Kyle spoke up again. "You meant that?" he whispered.

Kenny nodded. "Of course. Every word."

Kyle sighed and leaned back into his pillow. "Ken...do you know the real reason I did this?" Kenny shook his head. "Well, it wasn't just because of my parents or Stan...though they did play some part in it."

"It was Cartman and Toby, wasn't it?" Kenny growled. "I swear, I'll kill them both if it makes you happy."

Kyle chuckled softly. "As much as I'd love the fatasses dead, that's not why." He turned back and stared at Kenny. "It was because of you, Kenny."

"I...I know I upset you, Kyle! I didn't mean to tell Butters! It just slip-" Kyle held up his hand with a soft smile.

"That's not what I meant. I'm sure that you didn't mean to. And I'd rather you tell him than me to be perfectly honest."

"Then why are you saying you did it because of me?!" Kenny asked.

"K-Kenny....if I tell you this...you can leave. I won't...well, I also can't...but I won't try to stop you. You can just jump out of that chair and run out the door and we'll never speak again." Kenny's anticipation was on the brink of exploding.

"No matter what you say, that won't happen, but what?!"

Kyle's eyes softened. "I wanted to be with you," he whispered.

Kenny's jaw hung slightly. "What?"

Kyle sighed and leaned back. "I...I like you Kenny. I really really do. And I don't mean the way I like Stan. If you're grossed out, just go. I won't hate you or anything."

"I....I....umm....What do you mean you wanted to be with me?" Kenny asked, his excitement slowly rising.

"Well, it's just...you always die...and I thought that if I did, too...I'd see you all the time. And that just made me feel really...happy."

Kenny just stared. Was he serious? Was it just the anesthesia talking? Was this really happening?! He broke into a wide grin. "You....you're serious?"

Kyle blushed a deep red. "Y-yea. I'm sorry. That wasn't cool of me...I...shouldn't have said that. I'm such a fucking assh-"

His words were cut off by Kenny gently grabbing his chin and yanking him around to meet his lips. Kyle's eyes were at first wide with surprise, but he found them drooping down, lost in a feeling of bliss. Kenny brought his other hand up and slowly ran his fingers through Kyle's soft curls. Kyle carefully raised his arm and placed his hand gently on Kenny's chin, caressing it with his fingertips. They eventually, if not upsettingly, broke it off and licked their lips.

"So...you're not freaked out?" Kyle asked shyly.

"Are you fucking kidding me?! This is so amazing! I...I really like you, too, Ky," Kenny grinned. Kyle blushed again and averted his eyes towards the floor with a sheepish smile.

"But I was such a fucking jerk to you! I blamed you for Cartman finding out!" Kyle mumbled.

"Hey, I would have blamed me too, Kid. But Cartman's an expert at finding out secrets and exposing them, you know that."

"True," Kyle mused softly. Kenny softly grabbed his hand.

"Look, I care about you so much, Kyle. I really do...I...I don't want you to leave me."

"Then I won't," Kyle smiled softly. "I'll always be right here. But, what'll stop you from leaving me?"

Kenny bit his lip. "I don't know," he lied. "I'll find a way."

Kyle laughed softly and intertwined their fingers. He sighed and looked up at Kenny. "I...I'm sorry I hurt you, Kenny," he choked out.

"Don't be. I'm just glad that you're alright." He sat of the edge of Kyle's bed and slowly leaned him in towards his frame. Kyle breathed in contentedly and closed his eyes. Kenny did the same, enjoying this moment of peace with Kyle. It was almost too good to be true.

"Kenny?"

"Hm?"

"Who's Danny?"

Kenny's eyes snapped open and he looked at Kyle with his jaw hanging. "H-he's a kid from school."

"Really? I couldn't even hear him talking. He must of been really quiet."

"Y-yea," Kenny laughed nervously.

"Something wrong, Dude?"

"What? No, ha ha, nothing at all. I'm...I'm just so happy right now I guess," Kenny smiled, wrapping his arm around Kyle's shoulders.

Kyle sighed softly. "Me, too. I was so afraid you'd hate me or something..."

"Never in Hell, my dear."

"Ha ha....what the hell do we tell the guys?"

Kenny rested his head atop Kyle's and thought for a few seconds. "Simple. We tell them that you and me, as soon as your better of course, will be knocking boots."

"Kenny...," Kyle growled with some annoyance.

"Ha ha, just kidding. We can just tell them that we're together now...if you're comfortable with that."

"I'm more afraid of Stan."

"He said he was cool with you being gay, you heard him," Kenny argued.

"No, no, no. I just mean that he'd probably throw up everywhere at the idea of me and you together."

Kenny burst out laughing. "True. He's a bit of a wimp, isn't he?"

"Hey, that's my best friend you're talking about," Kyle gave his ribs a playful poke.

"_Super_ best friend," Kenny corrected with a gentle smile. Kyle looked up at him and smiled back. He seemed so much calmer...everything just felt so perfect. It was as if the last 24 hours hadn't even happened.

But something was still bothering Kenny...that damn yellow surrounding the boy...it just wouldn't go away. It was scary. He'd been so sure of what he was going to do for Kyle...but now it seems that he didn't want to die...this just threw everything back into the air.

"What's wrong?" Kyle gazed up at him with shining eyes.

"I...I don't really know, I'm just spacing I guess..."

"Oh," Kyle replied, snuggling deeper into Kenny's side. Kenny had to smile, Kyle was just so damn cute like this. He'd always pegged him as the affectionate type, but never thought that he'd be on the receiving end of it all. Life was good.

"Don't you need to get some new clothes or something to do, Kenny?"

"What?"

"You were wearing these when I last saw you...and I'm sure that you're bored out of your mind."

Kenny squeezed him gently. "Not anymore, I feel a hell of a lot better. Besides, I don't have anything."

Kyle gazed at him before embracing him as tight as he could without opening his stitches. "You have me, now." Kenny turned and kissed the top of his head lightly.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me."

They turned and saw Stan staring at them with his jaw dropped. "Kenny, I leave you alone with him for five minutes and you're already molesting him?"

"Hey, it's not molestation if they want it," Kenny smirked. Stan stepped up to the bed and looked over at the now blushing Kyle.

"Kyle? Is he serious?"

Kyle nodded softly before looking into his best friend's eyes again. Stan looked confused...and sick.

"Hey, don't puke, Stan, it's not nice to the hospital," Kenny raised an eyebrow at him. "They have enough of that to deal with." Stan gave him a half-hearted glare before sighing and shaking his head.

"I just can't believe it. You two of all people."

"Hey, I think we're well suited for each other," Kenny declared.

"Kenny, take this from my perspective. Kyle is...well, not a whore. You are. Kyle doesn't like to party, that's all you do. See the difference here?"

Kyle giggled softly before letting out a moan of pain. Kenny turned towards him. "Where does it hurt, Ky?"

He took a few deep, quick breaths to calm himself down. "Everywhere," he winced.

"Okay, we'll get the doctor. You...you stay here and sleep some more," Stan said.

"But I didn't say thanks to everyone for coming," Kyle gasped out.

"We'll tell em for you, lay down," Kenny commanded. He helped him lay back gently and gave him a tender kiss on the lips. Stan groaned slightly and turned away. Kenny pulled away and brushed Kyle's bangs out of his eyes. "Get better, Kid."

Kyle smiled. "I already am."

Kenny and Stan turned and walked out of the room.

"So...," Stan started after they had exited.

"So...?"

"What the fuck are you doing?"

"What do you mean?"

The other four had gathered around them by now.

"What'd Kenny do, Stan?" Wendy asked.

"He's making out with my best friend," Stan growled.

"Hey, I'll have you know that he said he liked me before I ever mentioned anything," Kenny defended.

"He did?!" Bebe and Wendy squealed.

"Kenny, isn't that wonderful?" Butters grinned. "You got whatcha wanted! What did I tell ya?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Cartman waved his hands in front of him. "You're telling me that the Jewrat and Poor-Boy are like, fucking?"

They all glared at him. "No, Cartman. We're together. We're not fucking," Kenny growled.

"Kenny, how do you know that it isn't just his medicine talking?" Stan asked.

"That's what I thought at first too...but then I remembered something."

"What?" Bebe asked.

"Remember finals last year? Kyle had that...what's it called...endoscopy and he was hopped up on that sedative?"

"Yeah..." Stan nodded.

"Well, who still got the highest fucking score in school?! Seriously, I don't think that any drug can fuck up that kid's brain. Besides, this could be good for him."

"How? How can ass-fucking be good for his health, Kenneh?" Cartman asked.

"No, dumbshit. I mean that it makes him feel loved...and he promised that he'd stay here for me."

"That look is back," Butters winked.

"Good," Kenny stated. "I love him, I can't fucking deny that, and he has feelings for me too. I think that this could be great for him!"

"And for you," Wendy added.

"Wendy!" Stan asked in a shocked tone.

"What? Who better to straighten up Kenny than Kyle? No one else can keep him in line. And as Kenny said, it'll make Kyle feel better."

"Unless they break up," Cartman muttered.

"Why do you say that, Eric? They just got together," Butters inputted.

"Yeah, let's say they last two months. Which is like, way longer than I'd expect. Anyways, let's say they get in a fight about Kyle's stupid Jewish ways and break up. Kyle will be right back at square one."

"No he won't," Kenny retorted.

"Oh, so you plan on staying with him forever and ever?" Cartman asked in a girly voice.

Kenny smiled. "While that may definitely be on my mind, I know we'll fight. But if we do," he walked up to Stan and gently slapped his shoulder. "Ole Super Best Friend here will do anything to make him feel better, right?"

Stan glared at him. "I still think it's the medicine talking."

Kenny shrugged. "Believe what you want, but nonetheless, you need to be there for him with me."

Stan sighed. "I always have been...I guess that this will just take some getting used to."

"Oh my god, you two do make a cute couple, you would look soooooo adorable holding hands out on dates and stuff" Bebe gushed.

"One thing at a time, Bebe," Wendy halted her. "Kyle still isn't out of the hospital yet. The doctor told us it'd just be about two more days before he could leave, he's under heavy surveillance right now. So let's just focus on the here and now."

"Hippie-bitch is right, I really don't need to think about you two fags skipping along and picking wildflowers, alright?" Cartman said.

"No more calling him a fag, Cartman," Stan growled.

"What? Why?!"

"Did you not see his arm, you retard?" Kenny hissed.

"Well he's obviously comfortable with it now, dickheads! He's admitting his flowery glory by agreeing to be Kenny's butt-buddy!"

"Boyfriend," Kenny muttered.

"Psh, please. Every girl or boy you ever touch is just something for you to toy around with. You've never had a significant other."

"This time it's different," Butters chirped. "Kenny actually has real feelings for Kyle!"

Kenny nodded. "I'm not going to force Kyle to do anything. It'll all be his pace. I'm just lucky enough to go along for the ride."

Stan blinked at him curiously and then broke into a small smile. "Well, I guess I can't be angry at you if you're thinking like that. As long as you don't hurt him, I won't kill you."

"Like it'd make a difference," Bebe giggled. They all broke into small laughter, except for Kenny, who was staring out the window, watching someone bouncing along the sidewalk.

"Hey," he stated quietly. "I'm gonna head outside for a minute, okay? I'll be back."

"I'll come with ya, Kenny," Butters offered.

"Nah, I just need some time to think. The best thing in my life just happened and I need to make sure I'm still actually breathing. I'll be back soon," he waved and headed towards the doors. The others watched him curiously, then shrugged it off and returned to their banter.

Kenny pushed the door open and was greeted by the bright sunlight. He blinked a few times and headed towards the side of the building.

He came upon the person he was watching. "Hey," he called out.

The figure stopped hopping and turned around towards him. "You can see me?" she asked.

"Yea, yea I can."

"Oh, well...um...what do you want?"

"Name's Kenny. I'm here to...well, to help you pass on."

"I already did that," she responded bluntly.

"No, I mean get to Heaven or Hell."

"Oh, um okay....I'm Christina...but people call me Nina."

"That's a cool name," he grinned. She gave him a small grin back as he walked up towards her.

"So...you willing to talk to me about why you died and all that?"

"Leukemia," she stated softly. "My system was too damn weak to fight it off with the Chemo."

"I'm...I'm so sorry."

"Everyone is. Doesn't really mean much in the end though. So, why are you here?"

"My boyfriend's in there."

"Oh, queer huh?"

He smirked. "Yeah, got a problem with that?"

She laughed softly. "Not likely, I'm on the same boat. Had a girlfriend for three years," she sighed. "I loved her like no other. So, why's your boy up in there?"

"He...he tried to kill himself," Kenny swallowed.

Nina frowned deeply. "I would apologize, but I have little sympathy for people who do that."

"I used to to...until I stepped into his shoes. If your girlfriend had done it, you'd understand."

"To an extent. But it's just not fair. I _wanted_ to live. I should have been allowed! Why should some suicidal freak, no offense, get to live?!"

"Just the way the world turns, I suppose," he muttered.

"Yeah, and it keeps colliding with terrible things."

"Geez, you're like an emo, aren't you?"

"No, just a very angst-filled child. Like most other teens."

"How old are you?"

"Fifteen. You?"

"Seventeen. Eighteen next month."

"Lucky you."

"If I were lucky, I wouldn't be doing this job," Kenny smirked.

"True. So, why -"

"Kenny!" Bebe came into view waving her arms wildly.

"Oh my god, what happened to Kyle?!" Kenny thought. He turned towards Nina. "I can't talk to you around them. Just hang with me and we'll talk in private." She nodded and followed him running up towards the bouncing blonde.

"What's wrong, Bebe?" He gasped.

"The doctor wants to see you about something, he says it's urgent. It's about Kyle's parents."

_________________________________________________________________

_A/N: And we have FINALLY gotten to love! I wasn't sure if I should have Kyle go ahead and profess, but hey, I liked the way it turned out, how about you?!_

_Next time, Nina! And what about Kyle's parents? Ohs noes, are they hurt too?!_

_Hehe, don't you just hate me XD_

_I can forsee more yelling at me in the reviews, lol_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!!!!!!!!!!!_


	10. His Story

_A/N: Hello all =)_

_Not much to say at this point, so just enjoy!_

_____________________________________________________________________

"Ah, Mr. McCormick, I presume?"

"Um, call me Kenny. What's wrong with Kyle's parents, Doc?"

The doctor smiled gently at him. "There's nothing particularly wrong with them...other than the fact that they left their suicidal son alone in the hospital. Other than that, I can't say anything's the matter."

Kenny stared at him blankly. "Then why did you send Bebe saying it was urgent?"

"Ha ha, I have a teenage son, Kenny. I know that unless you make something sound like a pressing matter, it'll take them weeks to get on it," he grinned.

"Okay, then why did you need me?"

The doctor's grin faded slightly. "The Broflovski's left some things of Kyle's....and said to give them to you. Here, they left you a letter."

Kenny raised his eyebrow and took the letter.

_Dear Kenny,_

_If Kyle does not make it through, do not continue to read this letter._

_As you know, we do not accept Kyle's decision to live his life like this. We find it inappropriate and disrespectful towards our beliefs. However, we do still realize that we hold responsibility of him, though we'd like it to be as little as possible._

_Along with his clothes and other wares, we have left him him $1500. We were planning on saving this money for his college fund, but now we feel that that is no longer any concern of ours. Tell him to find an apartment and send us the address and only the address. We'll continue to pay for the apartment and send some food and necessity money. But other than that, we have no intention of keeping in contact with him._

_If you do tell him anything about us, tell him that Ike misses him and hopes he gets better soon. Myself and Gerald you can leave out of the message. I hope that you understand why we feel the need to do this, Kenny. We've always been a straight-laced household following the Jewish principles that we were meant to follow. Kyle has completely broken from these traditions with this proclamation. _

_If you could, I would like for you to try to convert him. I do not want him to leave wreckage to our beliefs just because he doesn't know what he wants in life. I don't care what you do, just keep him out of our synagogue._

_Take care of him. He's fairly independent, though. He'll make it if you leave him be, I'm sure._

_Sheila and Gerald Broflovski _

Kenny held the letter, shaking with rage. If he left him alone?! What?! _Do they not see what the fuck happened when we left him alone?!_

The doctor and Nina were eyeing him with concern as his blood started dripping from his bottom lip.

"Kenny? Kenny, what's the matter?" the doctor asked.

"They're just fucking leaving him," he whispered, more to himself than the doctor. "I...I don't believe it....they're just leaving," he looked up at the doctor. "Where's his stuff?" He asked. The doctor gestured to a dark green suitcase in the corner of his office and Kenny walked over and grabbed it.

"I better get back to everyone," he muttered.

"I'm very sorry, Kenny. I don't know the situation, but there's no way in Hell it gives them an excuse to do this to him," the doctor patted his shoulder sympathetically. Kenny nodded in agreement and walked out of the office, Nina following him closely.

"What happened?" She asked.

"They're abandoning him just because he's gay," Kenny replied with gritted teeth. Nina stared at him with wide eyes and then shook her head.

"Unbelievable how cruel people are nowadays."

"You're telling me, Kid," he mumbled. He approached Kyle's door and was met with five pairs of confused eyes.

"Kyle's parents left his stuff. We need to find him an apartment," Kenny stated simply, placing the suitcase next to him on the floor. Stan leaped out of his chair.

"They can't fucking do that!" Stan shouted. "I'll fucking talk to them! I'll **make** them accept him for being him! This is complete bullshit!"

Kenny nodded. "Yea, it is...but what the hell could you ever say to make Sheila change her fucking mind?"

"I...I don't know."

Wendy and Bebe gave each other worried glances as Butters and Cartman stared at Kyle's case.

"Who's gonna tell him?" Cartman breathed out quietly.

"I'll do it," Kenny sighed. "I don't want to...but maybe it'll make things a little easier for him."

"Maybe," Butters mused.

"Yeah, fuck him and tell him, great method there, Poor-boy."

"Cartman, shut the fuck up. I'm not fucking him, alright?"

"Yet. Soon as he can walk again, I'm sure you'll make it so he can't sit again."

Kenny glared at the fatass. "Cartman, stop it," Stan breathed out in aggravation. "Kenny said he won't try anything funny."

"And you trust him?"

"More than I trust you, you fat sack of shit."

"Alright, alright," Wendy interrupted, holding up her hands in defense. "Look, Kenny, just tell him. Eric, stop being an asshole."

"Ay! Don't call me an asshole, you hippie-bitch!"

"Don't call her a bitch, fuckface!" Stan screamed back.

"Ooh, tough man, defending that scrawny know-it-all. Well, both scrawny know-it-all's now that I think about it. You sure know how to pick em, Jock-strap."

"Guys, cool it!" Kenny shouted, stepping in-between Cartman and Stan. "Look, we're not here to fucking argue, alright? We're here because Kyle needs us." Stan looked at the floor, crossed between anger and guilt. "If we just calm down a bit, we'll all be fine, and we'll be able to focus on the matter at hand, alright?"

Cartman glared at him and turned away scoffing, "whatever."

"Well, how are you gonna break it to him, Kenny?" Butters asked softly.

"I'm going to do it in the most undignified manner I can," Kenny grinned sheepishly. Stan raised his eyebrow with a tinge of suspicion. "I'm going to go find him an apartment and give him the forms to sign," Kenny finished.

"I think that'd be a bit of a strain on him, Kenny," Wendy said quietly.

"Oh, but the idea of him getting out of here and not having a home would be better? I'll find him a good one, don't you worry. I'll look at the complex they built last year."

"What, Mountain View?" Bebe asked.

"Yea, that's the one. That way he's really close by to all of us, but still a decent distance from his neglectful parents. I'll head out now, never know what kind of offers are here today and gone tomorrow," Kenny grinned gently.

"You want me to go with you?" Stan asked softly.

"Nope, I'm cool. It'll give me some time to think about which part of the apartment would be best to nail Ky in," Kenny stopped and smiled. "Just kidding, Stan. Stop freaking out."

"Uh huh. Go before I hurt you, Kenny."

"What do we tell Jew-boy if he asks where you are?"

"Tell him I went on a walk. A very long walk...Because I need to write him a sonnet."

"That's fucking stupid, Kenny," Bebe giggled.

Kenny grinned sheepishly. "Just tell him I went to grab us all some real food or something. Be creative." He bent over and grabbed Kyle's suitcase, opening it up and grabbing the $1500.

"What the hell? Are you taking Kyle's money, Kenny?" Stan asked with a somewhat shocked expression.

"Down payment, Stan. I'll bring the receipt and you can count the remains for yourself. Why would I steal from someone I love?"

"Aww," Bebe cooed.

"Fag," Cartman muttered under his breath. Stan stamped up to him and started yelling about using that word again, turning them into a sideshow.

Kenny rolled his eyes and was about to close the suitcase when something black and smooth caught his eye. It was Kyle's journal. He slipped it out and tucked it under his parka so no on would question him on it.

"I'm heading out," he called to the now three-way fight with Bebe and Butters just standing there staring after them.

Butters turned and waved gently before returning his attention to Stan and Cartman, who'd somehow ended up in a thumb-wrestling match. Kenny just shook his head and started to walk out of the hospital.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, can we talk now?" Nina asked softly.

"Yep, all clear. It'll take us a good while to get to the complex. So, tell me about yourself, Nina."

"What is this, a job interview?" She asked with a small chuckle.

"Wouldn't know. Never worked a day in my life," Kenny boasted. "Seriously though, family? Friends? Your girlfriend?"

"My family. Well, we were a basically average fam. Ya know, Mom, Dad, two teens and an elementary kid."

"What were they like?"

"Well, you've met my father."

Kenny stared at her blankly. "I have? What's your last name?"

She looked down at her shoes and sighed, "Richards."

"You mean like, Dr. Richards? Kyle's doctor?!"

"Yea," she turned and looked at him sadly.

"Whoa...I'm sorry that I made you go into the room with me," he winced.

"Don't be...though it was a bit upsetting...he didn't even look remotely sad."

"Well, he didn't know you were with me, so it's not like I reminded him of you...did I?"

She shook her head. "No, you didn't. But it's only been a few hours..."

"Wait, you mean, you_ just_ died?!"

"Yeah, haven't you ran into that before?"

"Well," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "You're only the third case I've had. The other two had been dead for forty-four and twenty years."

"Wow...," she stared at him. "Guess I got lucky...as lucky as this situation can get, I mean," she smiled.

"So, aside from your dad, tell me about the rest of your family."

"Mom was great, she was a total housewife hiding behind a CPA badge. She always did everything she could to hold us together. She'd keep the house clean, make us cookies when we were upset, made sure everything was always the best for us...I'm really gonna miss her."

"Wish I could relate to that," Kenny chuckled. "My mom's a nutcase."

"Ha, sometimes I called my mom that, too. But once you know that you can't see or talk to them again...it...it gets pretty hard."

"I bet."

"Anyways, my brothers. Well, there's the elementary kid, Will. He's just a spoiled little brat. I love him, but he bugged the living hell out of me. Then there's Noah, he's the teenager my dad was talking about. He was a year older than me, always looked out for me. Once beat up this guy who wouldn't stop staring at my boobs," she chuckled.

"Sounds like a great guy."

"Yea, we pretty much treated each other like dirt until push came to shove. Then you couldn't put us on opposite teams no matter what. It was pretty awesome."

"How about friends?"

"Oh, a few here and there. My best friend was my girlfriend, Jan. I loved her, still do. We'll have to both move on though, I guess," she mused sadly.

"So you were still with her when you passed away?"

"She was holding my hand," she said trembling.

"I'm really sorry, Nina."

"Don't be, I'm pretty glad that I died knowing she loved me."

"_So it's not regret stemming from her girlfriend...and her family seems pretty much in the clear...what could she be upset about?"_ Kenny thought.

"Any...regrets when you died?"

"Hm? Oh, um, other than I hadn't lived fully like I'd wished, none that I can think of."

Damn.

"So, what was your boyfriend's problem? Why was he so upset?" Nina asked.

"He...he wanted to be with me," Kenny answered. She raised an eyebrow at this.

"So...he wanted to be with you...by killing himself and separating you? How the hell does that kid even know how to tie his shoes?!"

"Hey, he's a 4.0 student, he's a lot smarter than you give him credit for. See, he doesn't know this yet, but I don't die like I used to anymore."

"...what?"

Kenny sighed. "I used to die every single day. Once a day, no breaks or anything, it was fucking horrible. But it was for the sole purpose of unleashing my powers, you see. Well, I spent more of my time dead than alive...it made Kyle upset. He loved me...he wanted to see me more. So he thought that that'd be the best solution."

"Didn't you tell him that you don't die like that anymore?"

Kenny shook his head. "Don't make deals with the devil, Nina. You'll end up with too many conditions to handle. If I slip, something can go pretty wrong."

"So...are you a Satanist or something?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"You work for the devil."

"Eh, I guess that's true. But no, I...I'm Catholic...sort of."

"How can you be sort of Catholic?"

"Well, I haven't really found much to support any religion...I am fully aware that God and Satan exist...I've met them both. But all of the religions are just so wrong, ya know?"

She laughed softly. "That's why I was an Atheist. It just worked best for me. Jan didn't like it too much, but she accepted and loved me despite her beliefs."

Kenny grinned. "Well then, I'm happy for you. It's rare to find that." She nodded in agreement.

"Yea, I guess we both lucked out. Your Kyle seems like an okay dude," she slapped him playfully on the back.

He gasped as he suddenly became cold and the world turned black.

_Shadows...more and more shadows....what the hell? They were rising around him...coming towards him. But...they had soft, glowing blue eyes...and as they neared him...he felt warm and comfortable. He squinted past them however and into the eyes of the demon shadow...no, two demon shadows! The comforting figures dissipated around him, prompting the demons to approach him. He raised his arms to shield himself, mentally preparing for their assault. But...they stopped halfway. They just turned away and dissipated along with the others._

"Oh your god!" He heard echoing in the background. "Kenny? Kenny?! How hard did I hit you?!"

He opened his eyes slowly, finding himself staring up at Nina, who was hovering over him worriedly. "W-what?" He stammered.

"You just freaking spaced, Dude!" She exclaimed. "You were fucking shivering! I think you were having a conniption or something!" He sat up and rubbed his head.

_What the hell?_ He thought. _That's like...the third time that's hap- ohhh. _"So that's one of my powers," he thought aloud, paying no mind to the snow that was soaking through his jeans. Nina just blinked at him.

"Having a seizure is a power? Well I must have been like one of the ultimate superheroes around because I had one every three days."

"No, Nina," he smiled softly. "I can see why your stuck when I touch you."

"Oh...okay...what'd you see?" She asked slowly, not quite sure of whether or not to believe him.

"There were three shadows," he explained. "They came up and were like, really comforting. Then there were two other shadows, who looked like they wanted to attack me, but they changed their minds and just left with the other three. Sound familiar?"

"I-I have no idea," she stuttered. "Sounds like a hell of a trip, though. Did this happen with your other two cases, too?"

"Yea...Anna's was a shadow with an upraised hand, but I didn't run from it...just like she didn't because the shadow was her mother beating her," he put together. "Then Danny was drunk and so he couldn't really see what was going on. The sounds I heard must have been him beating his girlfriend. Then the crack I heard at the end was him killing himself...how the fuck didn't I catch this earlier?!"

"Wow...that's a lot to take in, Kenny. I wouldn't be able to handle doing that kind of job," she stated as she helped him to his feet.

"Yea, I don't know if I could do this to Kyle either," he muttered.

"Wait, I thought Kyle didn't know about this."

"He doesn't, but I have to choose between letting him live and be my partner or letting him die...I don't know what to do!" He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, turning towards Nina as they continued walking. "What would you do, Nina? Would you subject Jan to being with you for eternity and enduring so much pain just so she could live?"

Nina looked back towards in front of them, considering this thought. Kenny soon followed her gaze and walked beside her in silence. A good ten minutes passed before she finally spoke again.

"I think I'd rather she be with me," she whispered. "And I think that's what she would have wanted, too. I know it sounds selfish, but your talking to a cancer patient, Kenny. All the chemo in the world didn't change my attitude. I loved Jan. Every minute I got to spend beside her was worth the pain." Kenny kept his attention ahead of him as he let this sink in. "However," she continued. "Jan is not Kyle. Kyle is suicidal, Kenny. I think this decision needs to be made together."

She was right. He glanced down at his watch and sighed. He only had a little while left before he had to come up with his decision. Just fucking great. He looked up to see the sign for the complex coming into view.

"You need a car, Kenny," Nina joked. "That took forever."

"Can't afford one. Not all of us had doctors and CPAs for parents ya know." She smiled softly before turning her attention back towards the apartments.

"Seems snazzy," she commented.

"Yeah, let's see if this will be enough for one. I plan on getting the most expensive place we can find. I want his parents to have to work for his living," he growled. She nodded in agreement as they entered the front of the complex.

"Well, hello and welcome to Mountain View!" A cheerful woman called out from behind a desk.

Kenny smiled and approached her. "Hey, we-ahem, I am looking for an apartment for my friend. Who might I speak to about this?"

"Oh, just one moment," she grabbed her phone and punched in some buttons. "Hey, we've got a customer out here," she stated. "Okay," she finished as she hung up the phone. "He'll be right out with yo-"

She was interrupted by a door swinging open and a smiling man in a dark, black suit stepping out. "Hello," he greeted Kenny. He nodded and waved back softly as the man approached him, holding out his hand. "I'm Joel Norton, and you are...?"

"Kenny. Kenny McCormick."

"Well, Mr. McCormick, I assure you that you have chosen no better complex in this area. Mountain View is perfect for living full time or for just kicking back on vacation."

Kenny held up his hand to stop him. "Look, Dude. Don't try this gimmicky stuff on me. Unless you show me a room that's infested with mice or asbestos, I'm getting one. I have $1500 in my pocket and my friend is in the hospital and he needs a place for when he gets out."

"Oh my," the woman gasped. "That's awful, what happened?"

"Now Sally...,"

"No, it's fine. He was suicidal and hurt himself pretty badly because his parents didn't accept him being gay and all. They're Jewish, so they took it as a slanderous attack towards their beliefs."

"Oh dear," Joel muttered. "Well, I'll show you the best damn apartments we have, Mr. McCormick."

Kenny smiled gratefully as he followed Joel's lead. "Thanks, Sally," he said behind his shoulder.

"Not at all, Hon. You tell your friend that he's welcome here and he's in my prayers." Kenny nodded and turned to follow Joel up the stairs.

"So, $1500?" Joel asked.

"Yeah, that's all his parents left him, they'll make the rest of the payments, but this is just a down payment."

"Well, our most expensive furnished apartment is a $2000 down payment, about $700 dollars a month...but I think that we could swing with $1500 if you like it," he winked.

"Really? Wow, thanks!"

"Hey, the kids gonna have enough troubles making hospital payments, I think that we can spare $500," he smiled. Kenny smiled back as they approached the door.

"Wow," Nina stated. "I didn't think that everyone had such sympathy towards suicidal people." Kenny gave her a small glare before following Joel into the room. His mouth dropped slowly, it was fucking sweet!

"This is the living or family room," Joel gestured around. Kenny looked around, taking in the maple wooden floor and the white walls. There was a black leather couch in the middle of the room, with a large screen plasma TV in front of it. There were matching reclining chairs on either side of the couch and a glass coffee table in front of them.

"Wow...," he murmured, going towards the archway into the next room.

"This is the kitchen," Joel started. "It's got a full fridge/freezer, a range-top stove, a microwave, coffee maker, and a toaster oven. The table and counters over here," he smacked his palm on the counter, "is genuine maple. Beautiful color and resilient towards stains and such."

"Maple seems to be the theme here, huh?"

"Very much so. We found a great supplier who gave it to us at a discount because he was overstocked."

"Lucky you," Kenny grinned. Joel nodded and began walking back into the living room towards a door. He opened it for Kenny and allowed him to step inside. "Oh wow," Kenny half-gasped.

"This would be your friend's bedroom," Joel stated. There was a king-sized bed in the middle of the room, with a TV sitting on the dresser across from it. There was a full walk-in closet and a bathroom beyond the hangers.

"This apartment's huge!" Kenny gaped.

"Yup, only the best for our customers."

"Dude, I'll take it! Kyle's gonna love it!"

Joel's smile faded slightly. "Kyle? As in Kyle Broflovski?" Kenny nodded. "You mean...Kyle's parents actually threw him out just because he was gay?!"

"You knew him?"

"He came over to my house a few times to help my daughter, Lindsey on her homework. Isn't Sheila the woman who's held all the protests for equal rights and such?"

"Yea," Kenny muttered. "She's a fucking hypocrite."

"I'll say. He's a nice kid. He wouldn't leave until he was sure that Lindsey understood her math problems," he chuckled. "He seems like a very dedicated person. I can't believe that he would hurt himself like that."

"Yeah, we couldn't either. But he's gonna make it...we're sure."

"Good. Do you wanna hurry with the paperwork so you can get back to him?" Kenny nodded. "Good. Follow me and we'll get you outta here."

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"Geez, Kyle seems popular," Nina commented as they waited for Joel to come back with the finalized paperwork. "I mean, you got the damn place for like, $1200! That's fucking impressive."

"Ky is popular," Kenny replied as he looked around Joel's office. "He always has been. And the sympathy card played into it, too."

"True."

Kenny unzipped his jacket, trying to adjust to the heated room and watched as two notebooks fell out. The one he put back was his case notebook. the other was Kyle's journal. He looked at Nina, who had her eyebrow raised towards it. He shrugged at her and leaned back, opening to the first page.

_April 3rd, 2008._

_Well, isn't this a fun little present. Mom insists that I write in it so I stop losing my temper so easily around Cartman. I don't know how that's supposed to work...considering this certainly won't change his attitude. In fact, it'll make it worse if he finds it. I'm so fucking sick of him, I wish Stan would stop hanging with him, it'd make life a hell of a lot easier. Oh well, a few more years and I'll get to stop watching the blubber bounce._

_This doesn't really feel that special. I'm just 16. Big whoop-di-fucking-doo. I had Stan and Fatass over as always. We just hung out and played video games. It might as well have been a normal day, were it not for the presents. Stan gave me this awesome computer game and an acoustic guitar! He heard me say one day like, seven months ago that I wish I could play, so he saved up all his money and got me one. I love having a Super Best Friend. Makes you feel important._

_Fatass gave me a copy of Mein Kampf...for which I promptly took the book and threw it at his huge fucking head. There's Jew jokes and then there's taking it just too far. He went way too far. Luckily, he did give me a real present, claiming he'd never seriously waste such a "wonderful novel" on me. He gave me the first season of some anime show. I don't know. I've never really been that into anime, but I appreciate his somewhat nice gesture nonetheless._

_The only real problem I have today is Kenny. I really wish he would have been here today. Seriously, I thought the whole 'blow out the candles' thing would work after three years of doing it, just wishing for the one thing I want. Is it so bad to crave your friend's company? Stan's great and I tolerate Cartman to an extent, but I just feel like I don't see Kenny at all. I'd love to be able to talk to him one-on-one for just once...especially about my problem. But he's either dead or we're surrounded by people, it never fails. Of course, knowing me, I'd talk to much and reveal way too much. I doubt he'd want to talk to me again if I told him that he's the one that turned me into this...he's far too interested in staring at breasts. Given he's told all of us on several occasions that he'll fuck whatever comes his way, I doubt this situation would be quite the same._

_Oh well, life goes on I suppose._

Kenny stared at the words with a giant grin over his face. Four years? Kyle had had these feelings for four years?! This made Kenny giddy with excitement.

"You look happy," Nina smirked, having just finished reading over his shoulder.

"I am, Dude. This is fucking exciting!" He flipped through the journal quickly, scanning the pages. On each one, he could see his name with a word like 'feeling' or 'like', once even 'love' surrounding it! It was brimming with compliments on his looks and personality, just as Kenny's head was filled with them for Kyle. He shut the book carefully and let out a gentle sigh. "This is so great...I think we're gonna be okay."

"Maybe...but then again, you don't know what you're going to do yet," Nina pointed out.

Kenny froze. She was right. He glanced at the clock, finding that he didn't have much more time. Kyle's life...and his happiness...maybe Kyle's happiness...all of it on the line. He put his face into his palm and forced himself to breath evenly.

Everything....and whom he considered his everyone...it was all laid out in front of him...and he was the only one who could do anything about it.

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_A/N: Can you say filler?_

_I loved seeing you guys wishing for the Broflovski's death, haha. It was freaking funny, because I never even really thought of doing that. It would do them justice though. I fucking cannot stand homophobes. They drive me fucking insane. Thank god for Yaoi XD_

_I just wanted Kyle's house to be there, haha. I didn't want some gigantic plot hole later on in the story. But Nina's story is slowly working it's way up towards the surface. It'll be hit hard, maybe finished by next chapter._

_Dunno. And we'll have to see Kenny's decision soon. Ohs noes!_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!!!!!!!!_


	11. He Lied

_A/N: apologies for this taking forever and a half. School and work have been killing me, so I haven't really had the time to just sit and type. I've been trying to figure out which direction I'm taking the story in, and I think I've came to a good decision. Some will like it, some will not, I'm sure. Oh wells. Enjoy Nina's story. (And maybe Kenny's choice)._

___________________________________________________________________

Kenny and Nina walked quietly back towards the hospital, the only sound being the snow crunching beneath their feet. Well, Kenny's anyway. Nina just let her feet slide through the ice, not leaving so much as a dent in the surface. He observed this with a quirked eyebrow. Nina felt so real to him...yet not even inanimate objects were able to grasp her presence...did that make him something else? Was he no longer human?

"I'm dead, Kenny. It's obvious that I'm not going to make any damage." Kenny shot his head up at her voice and blinked at her. They stopped in mid-stride and stared at each other.

After an agonizingly long time, Kenny finally shook his head and sighed. "I have no idea how to help you, Kid."

Nina smiled gently and placed a loving hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I have all the time in the world. You have your own issues to deal with," she gestured towards the hospital in the distance. He followed her motion and sighed once more, starting to lead forward. She followed, moving her hand from his shoulder and linking their arms together. Despite the coldness about her, Kenny felt a small amount of warmth from the friendly gesture.

Kenny took a deep breath and sighed heavily. Things were just not going as planned. He thought that this job of his would be tough, but he never thought for one second that it would take such a toll on his mental being. And with Kyle's ordeal being thrown into the mix...everything just seemed to be crashing down on top of him, and he was starting to run out of oxygen.

"Any idea what you're going to do, Kenny?" Nina asked softly. He continued to stare ahead of them and shook his head sadly.

"No, I don't. On one hand, Satan told me he might not make it out of the hospital...and I don't want to lose him. On the other, it's not really fair to put him through the stress of this job. No offense, Nina, but these cases are fucking hard to cope with."

She nodded, "I understand. I wouldn't be able to deal with other people's pain quite like that...however, I think Kyle would be good at this job." Kenny turned towards her with a raised eyebrow. "Well, think about it," she began. "He's pretty much in the same type of situation as a bunch of these lost souls, right? He'd probably be able to figure out their turmoils pretty easily. You did say he's a bright kid."

"True. But still, I don't think that someone who found the world to be bleak to the point of killing himself would be well suited to deal with all these other people's problems. That, and the fine print kind of sucks, too."

"What, you mean the three weeks of pain?"

"Yeah. I mean, I love him, Nina. I don't want to end up being the source of his agony...I've already done that to him once." She nodded softly as they came upon the glass doors of the hospital.

"Well, Kenny. I think you need to talk to him. Ask him in a hypothetical way which his choice would be."

"What if he's not honest because he thinks that it's not really happening? Then what do I do?"

"You just hope that he is telling the truth, I guess," she shrugged. "I think he would be honest. This isn't a 'would you choose red or blue' question. This is a deep and meaningful discussion for you two. It will be the epitome of your care for each other. He may recognize this and answer honestly. At least, I'm sure he'd try."

Kenny smiled gently and opened the door, allowing her to walk in ahead of him. One thing he was sure of: she was right. This was the epitome of it all. And he only had a few hours left.

"Kenny!" he heard shouting at him. He glanced up and saw Stan waving at him frantically. He ran up to get to the other teen.

"What's wrong?"

"Why wouldn't you answer your fucking cell phone? We've been trying to call you for the past two hours!" Kenny dug his phone at of his pocket and flipped it open, to find a black screen.

"Fuck, it died on me. Why did you need me?" Kenny watched with concern as Stan's face turned from a scowl into a sad and defeated pout.

"Kyle's getting worse...they don't think he's going to make it." Kenny and Nina's jaws dropped.

"B-but...he was fine! He woke up! He...he hugged me!" Kenny protested. Stan shook his head softly.

"They say that he's lost too much blood...I...I guess I didn't get to him fast enough," he bit his bottom lip.

"No," Kenny whispered, shaking his head disbelievingly. "I-I gotta see him!" He pushed past Stan and ran towards Kyle's room, hearing Stan following him closely. Nina ran by his side, gliding through whatever obstacles laid in her way. As he approached the room, he met three pairs of sobbing eyes, and another dark set looking at him tiredly.

"Hey, Poor-boy," the exhausted stare spoke softly. "I think he woke up...for a bit. You might as well go make out with him." Kenny stared at him and nodded. He guessed that that was the Cartman way of saying to enjoy his time with Kyle while he could. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door, making way to the weak figure in white.

The boy stared at him as he approached, an oxygen mask over his face and a defeated gleam in his eyes. His skin was even paler than before, his body laying still as though it were completely broken. Kenny looked at the nurse and Dr. Richards. "Could you give me and Kyle some time, Doc?" he asked softly.

The doctor looked at him and nodded. Before leaving however, he placed his hand on Kenny's shoulder and guided him away from the sick boy, leaning in closer to him to whisper to him. "He's...he's not got a lot of time, Kenny. Make it count." He sympathetically patted his shoulder before leaving and motioning for the nurse to join him. Kenny made his way back to the bed as they shut the door with Nina following them.

Now completely alone, Kenny felt the tears streaming down his face, though he wasn't even aware that he was crying. Kyle stared back at him, looking at his face with great interest. Kenny leaned down and gently kissed his forehead, placing his hand atop the soft pillow of curls on his frail head.

As Kenny pulled away and took a seat beside him, Kyle took a deep breath, closing his eyes. "So...it wasn't a dream," he whispered meekly. Kenny bit his lip.

"No...no it wasn't." Kyle slowly lifted his eyelids, a small smile visible behind his mask.

"I'm glad," he whispered. Kenny's eyes widened as he saw something strange: Kyle's aura was slowly fading from it's usual golden glow to a pale blue. He shook his head softly.

"You...you're leaving me. You promised you wouldn't," he choked out.

Kyle's smile faded slightly. "We can't always...fulfill our promises, Kenny. I'll see you when you die...right? We'll see each other every day...and we'll be happy, right?"

Kenny stared at him, unsure of just how to respond. Slowly, he shook his head. "No, Ky," he whispered, the tears streaming harder now. "I...I broke the curse...I'm not going to die every day anymore. I should have told you earlier."

Kyle's eyes widened. "H-how?"

"I...I can't tell you, Kyle. I can't. I promised," he sniffed.

"So...I won't see you anymore?" Kyle whispered, his eyes watering.

Kenny took a few rapid breaths before throwing his face into one of his palms and letting out a sob. He just cried, afraid to look Kyle in the face again. Afraid to face those beautiful, guilt-ridden eyes. He looked at his knee as Kyle slowly put his hand atop it.

"I'm not mad, Kenny...I'll have something to look forward to," Kyle stated. Kenny shot his head up and stared into what he feared. "I'm an idiot, Kenny. I should have just told you sooner."

"No, no, I'm the idiot. I didn't see how upset you were...and I just fucked everything up," Kenny sniffed.

Kyle just shook his head gently. "No, Kenny. You didn't do anything wrong. In fact, you did everything right. You were there when I needed you...you were the one person I could look at and find a purpose in my life...you were the only person to ever put me first. I...I can't thank you enough, Kenny."

"Kyle...I...thank you. Thank you for being you, Kyle. I never would have stayed out of trouble were it not for you. I would have wound up in jail years ago...I never would have gotten my act together...Kyle, my life would have been a complete waste of time were it not for you," he paused and bit his lip. "And I don't think that it'll mean anything if you're gone."

Kyle frowned at this. "I need you to stay alive for me, Kenny. I need to know that you're okay...and that Stan's okay. I need you to keep me alive in some way, Kenny. I...I regret this now. I was fucking stupid, and I'm dealing with my consequences." Kenny's mind flashed back to Danny before confronting the image playing out in front of him once more. "Please, Kenny...I need someone to take care of Ike...and to tell my parents that I love them, regardless of what they did to me. Kenny...will you do that for me?"

Kenny stared at him, his blue gaze blurring quickly. He couldn't find the words he so wanted to say...just three simple little words. Words that so easily tumbled off of his tongue while he was in the heat of the moment all those many times in the past. But now...now he couldn't force himself to speak them. For to say them aloud, would mean that he would have to listen, and his heart just couldn't take the truth as it was about to be stolen from him. The most important moment in his life, the loss of the one person he'd ever held dear...it was actually happening. And he couldn't say what he so needed to say. But was there any point in such a statement now? Though it had never been said before, they knew it was true. They had felt for each other for seventeen years, through all of their hardships and games of life. And now, these feelings had merely escalated to those above that of friendship, into something deeper and more connected. There was no need for words, the moment was enough.

"Kenny...I'm not going to last much longer. Will you do me a favor?" Kyle asked gently. Kenny looked at him and nodded.

"Anything, Kyle."

"Take this mask off of me...I want you to suffocate me." Kenny's eyes widened at this.

"I-I can't kill you, Kyle. I just c-can't."

Kyle chuckled softly. "It'd make me happy. I didn't mean I want you to slam a pillow over my face, Kenny."

Kenny bit his lip as he caught Kyle's meaning.

"You're sure?"

"Nothing would make me happier, Kenny."

Kenny swallowed and stood up from his seat. He gingerly removed the mask from Kyle's nose and face, slowly moving in towards him. He locked lips with him and tenderly massaged his frail mouth with his own. Kyle slightly parted his lips and Kenny moved his tongue in-between them, outlining their soft form. Kyle met his tongue with Kenny's, caressing it gently in-between shallow breaths, taking in every crevice and taste-bud. Kenny raised his arms and hugged Kyle gently as he continued to kiss him deeply. Kyle weakly returned the gesture, and pulled himself closer to Kenny's warm frame. Kenny could feel him growing weaker, could hear the heart monitor slowing, and yet he refused to let himself cry.

This was their moment. Nothing was going to get in their way. No tears, no breaths, no regrets.

Kenny felt Kyle slightly break apart and whisper 'bye' into his mouth as his heart monitor was reduced to a long, steady tone. Kenny broke his mouth apart from Kyle's, but refused to let go. He continued to hold onto him, sobbing gently into the boy's neck, allowing his tears to soak his skin and gown. After a few moments, he finally lowered the boy gently back onto the bed and stared at him. His curls were flowing gently around his face, his mouth was open ever-so slightly, his beautiful, emerald eyes concealed behind his pale eyelids and his thick lashes. Kenny began to shake violently, and he leaned in, brushing stray curls from the boy's forehead, and kissing it softly.

He fell to his knees at his side and cried. He cried for what felt like eternity. He was gone...He was too late.

The devil had lied.

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Kenny sat in Dr. Richard's office, blankly staring at the wall in front of him. Nina sat beside him, her hand on his knee in attempted comfort. Kenny found that he had a difficult time dealing with his grief. Every little thing he saw made him think of Kyle in some way.

The pale yellow on the walls reminded him of Kyle's pasty skin. The pencil on the desk in front of him made him think of Kyle writing in English. The soda can in his hand reminded him of when he broke Kyle's finger...every little thing. He felt compelled to cry again, but kept calm. He needed to speak to the doctor without having a breakdown...and he'd just cried too damn much in the past few hours.

Stan and the others had all left for a while. They'd gone to inform their families of the news, and to tell their families not to tell the Broflovski's just yet. That would be Kenny's job. Kenny wasn't looking forward to that particular task, he wanted nothing more than to scream at them and wave sharp utensils at them wildly...but he had to keep his promise to Kyle, so he was going to make himself behave when the time arose. The news would be all over the school by tomorrow, another thing to not look forward to. Now everyone would be spreading rumors about Kyle...his reputation was going to be completely tarnished. It was devastating to think about.

Kenny sighed, exhaling with a quivering breath. He looked around Dr. Richard's office, his eyes landing on a picture on the top of a file cabinet in the corner. He stood up and walked towards it, raising his eyebrow in confusion when he got to it. It was a picture of the Richards family...minus a certain someone.

"Nina, why aren't you in this picture?" Nina stood up and walked over towards him to see the image for herself.

"Oh. That was a church picnic the four of them went on. I didn't go since the church hated me."

"The church doesn't hate anyone, Nina."

"Except for gays, pro-choicers, free thinkers, non-Christians, those who don't donate, Atheists...,"

"Okay, okay, I get it. They can be a bit...judgmental. It's just the way that they are, like all other religions."

"Exactly. That's why I wouldn't associate myself to one of them. I didn't want to feel like a heartless bastard who could only really care for those who had interests similar to mine."

"Now that is bullshit. Kyle is...," he winced, "was Jewish. I'm the sorta Catholic. We had differences on opinions within our religions but we still cared for each other. Just because a certain group didn't accept you doesn't mean that the whole genre in its entirety doesn't."

"I know, but still. It was a pretty large group."

"What matters are the people closest to you. Did they accept you?"

"...Not everyone," she whispered. "Dad and Noah...they...they were pretty pissed that I wasn't a Christian. Even more angry by claiming myself as an Atheist. They're about as devout as it gets."

"That would create some problems," Kenny mused thoughtfully. "You said that Jan accepted you...how about your mom and Will?"

"Well, Will was too young to really have that big of an opinion on religion, my mom was cool with it. Though she called it just a 'passing rebellious phase' and it pissed me off, but other than that she was totally cool with it. As long as I wasn't sacrificing goats and staining the carpet, she was happy with whatever choice I made."

"I have a feeling that this is somehow related to the reason you're stuck," Kenny stated thoughtfully, his mind drifting back to his vision of shadows.

"Why?"

"You wanted acceptance, maybe?" Kenny guessed. Nina just shrugged at him and he sighed. They shot their heads towards the door to the office as it creaked open and Dr. Richards stepped in.

"Hello, Kenny," he greeted softly.

"Hey."

"You holding up alright?"

Kenny sighed. "About as well as expected."

The doctor nodded in understanding as he walked towards Kenny. "I see you found my picture," he smiled.

"Is this your family?"

"Yup, we're all there...aside from my daughter, that is."

"Why isn't she there?"

The doctors smile dropped. "She didn't partake in church activities. She called herself an Atheist."

"What do you mean she 'called herself' one?" Kenny asked, his eyebrow slightly raised.

"I think she just said that to defy her mother and I. She was raised as a Christian, and she died as one, regardless of what she might have believed," he snapped.

Kenny's eyes flickered towards Nina, who looked as though she was desperately trying to hold back tears. "So...she died?"

The doctor's face fell further. "Yes...she had leukemia. She...she died earlier today," he trailed off.

"Why the hell are you here if your daughter just died, Doctor?!" Kenny half-shouted.

Dr. Richards looked unaffected by his outburst, merely taking slow blinks. "I have work to do, Kenny. Kyle was my priority. Besides, I don't think that I could see her," he sat down and massaged his temple with his right hand.

"Why not?" Kenny asked with a quieter tone, sitting across his desk from him with Nina behind him, looking at her father distraughtly.

"Kenny, you have your own issues. You don't need to know mine."

"I'm curious, so sue me. Besides, I'd rather not talk about Kyle right now."

"You think that I want to talk about Nina, though?"

"Nina? I like that name. What was she like?" Kenny stared at him expectantly. He used to think that his required theatre class was a conspiracy to destroy the heterosexual population of South Park, but he couldn't be more thankful for it right then.

"She was...different. She was a good kid...she was just so damn stubborn."

"Bet it runs in the family," Kenny smirked, prompting a soft chuckle out of Nina.

The doctor returned a small smile. "I suppose it does. Noah, her older brother, was just like her...aside from the religion issue, that is. He's studying to be a minister, so it was quite...interesting to hear him discuss his studies and listen to Nina's retorts."

"I'm guessing that you always took Noah's side?"

"Well, no. I took my God's side. I loved Nina as a daughter, but I can't place a mortal above my God. Noah just happened to be on the same side."

"Well...that's a bit harsh. I mean, she was your flesh and blood, Dude."

"As is my God," he stated robotically. No wonder Kenny stopped going to church after he turned 13. He obviously had not been there when God actually came forward in front of the residents of South Park. Nothing about him was created from that furry cretin.

"Well...what'd you say to her?"

He shrugged. "I told her that she was condemning herself to the fiery pits of damnation and that she needed to repent her sins. She didn't listen and now she's probably learning her lesson." Kenny's jaw dropped. How fucking cruel! Regardless of the fact that his 'facts' were completely wrong, he still felt so fucking angry for that comment. He didn't turn to see, but he could hear Nina walking away towards the opposite side of the room, sobbing.

"How dare you," he whispered bitterly.

"I beg your pardon?"

Kenny gazed into his eyes, his blue iris' aflame with determination and fury. "You dare to call yourself a man of the peaceful rites? She was your daughter! I bet you didn't even visit her before she died! You promote your ideals of a loving and caring God, while simultaneously bashing down anyone who doesn't meet your specific description?! That's disgusting! It's no wonder Nina was an Atheist! I would have been, too, living with all that hypocritical hype spewing out of your bread-eating mouth! I can't believe that someone like you is a doctor! Tell me, did you tell the same things to Kyle because he was Jewish?!"

Richards stared at him for a moment before furrowing his brow. "I don't bring religion into medicine's world, Kenny. I pray for my patients, but I don't tell them what they should do."

"Maybe you should have done that with Nina, too," Kenny spit out, still raging.

The doctor bit his bottom lip and sighed heavily. "I...I know. I should have been there. I should have helped her through instead of telling her that she was doomed for her choices."

"You should tell her," Kenny spoke softly.

"What?"

"You heard me. You believe in spirits, right? Well, go talk to her. I'll leave you alone for a bit. Tell her how you feel."

"I...I don't pray in my office, Kenny. There's a place for that."

"Why? Isn't God omnipotent? Shouldn't he be listening no matter where you are? What difference does it make if you pray in Notre Dame or behind the dumpster at Shakey's? Now do it," he stood up and walked towards the door, winking at Nina as he passed her. She stared at him confused and tried to follow him out, but Kenny subtly motioned for her to stay put. He walked out of the room, shutting the door, but then cracking it open once more and placing his ear close to the opening.

"Nina...," Dr. Richards started. "I-I don't know if you're here right now. Maybe. I wouldn't know. I hope that you are though, because I have something to tell you. I...I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I couldn't save you. And...and I don't mean save you from Hell. I'm sorry that you inherited my horrible immune system...had you gotten your mothers, you might have made it. Nina, we loved...no. We love you. I as well as the rest of the family. We had our arguments...just as any family does. But I took it too far...," he paused. "Nina, you were a beautiful young lady. I'm sorry that I told you that you would be going to Hell. My God is a forgiving God, though. I'm sure that despite your beliefs, He will still grant you access to Heaven. You meant the world to me, Nina. To us. Noah even had a stroke of admiration for you, even though he was the target of many of your disputes. You were smart and you were going to take the world by storm. You made my life brighter, even though we had those stupid arguments. But given the circumstances, I'd gladly face them again if it meant getting to hear your brilliant retorts once more. Thank you, Nina. You made our family whole, and hopefully, we'll once again be whole sometime in the afterlife. I love you, Nina. Amen."

Kenny peered in towards Nina and smiled, gazing at her glow slowly changing into a familiar and comforting pink hue, with tears rolling down her face. "Come back in, Kenny," she whispered. He stood from his crouching position and wandered back towards his chair, staring at the doctor's face. He looked up towards the young blonde and smiled.

"That was a brilliant idea, Kenny. Thank you." Nina, starting to fade away, leaned atop his desk and kissed her father gently on his cheek. He shivered slightly, though took little note of the event. Nina turned and smiled brightly at Kenny.

"Thank you, Kenny. I won't pray for you, but I'll tell Kyle that you love him," she winked.

He nodded softly. "Thank you," he mouthed as she faded from sight. "_So she just wanted to know that she was loved by her father...," _he thought to himself.

"Kenny? You still awake there?"

He shook his head briefly, trying to thrash away his thoughts. "Yea."

"Good. We need to discuss Kyle now." Kenny bit his lip.

"What happened, Doc? He woke up, didn't he? I mean, he seemed okay!"

The doctor leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in contemplation. "You see, that's where I get stumped, too. Usually, once they wake up and have that much of a reaction, like being able to move or talk, people are able to make their recovery. However, Kyle just...I guess for lack of a better term fell. He seemed to be okay. His vital signs were all jumping up back to normal, his blood level was still low, but plenty to keep him alive. To be completely honest, I have no idea what happened," he leaned his forearms onto his desk. "Did you say something to upset him the first time you visited him alone, Kenny?"

"What? Why?"

"Well, it's possible that he just lost hope and he refused to allow his body to fight it off anymore...it has happened."

"No. In fact, he promised me that he wouldn't leave me...he fucking promised," Kenny repeated, choking slightly on the words.

"Then...I have no idea what happened. We'll continue to look into it...his body will be kept overnight before the autopsy...," he faded out in thought. Kenny looked down at his hands, curled up in tight fists atop his lap. They were shaking with confusion and fear. He screwed his eyes shut tight and bit his lip.

What'd happened? How? Why the hell did it have to be Kyle?!

Suddenly, his eyes opened once more. He shot up from his seat, Dr. Richards gazing at him in confusion.

"Kenny, are you alright?" He asked softly, but Kenny didn't hear him. His mind was too filled with thought, too desperate for an explanation. Suddenly, it struck him.

_That son of a bitch..._

Kenny looked towards Richards and nodded curtly. "I'm fine. I have to go. I'll be back sometime soon," and he turned to jolt out of the door.

He dashed past the rooms, past the receptionists, and finally out the door. He ran to his little clearing with Pancake's grave and fell to his knees, out of breath. Gasping repeatedly, trying to calm himself down, he finally stood back up and looked towards the grey sky, little snowflakes twirling down from the heavens to meet him. He took a deep breath and screamed.

"DAMIEN!"

He finished with a quavering tone, and fell to his knees once more as the ebon haired lad showed up beside him.

"Geez, Ken, you don't have to scream. I can hear you if you call me with your mind ya know," the demon boy complained.

Kenny stared at him with a hateful glaze. He stumbled out of his kneeling position, grabbing a fistful of Damien's shirt. "Take me to your father," he commanded in a low growl. "NOW." He insisted when Damien didn't respond. Damien pushed him off of himself and dusted his shirt.

"Why should I?"

"Because, I can't fucking get there myself and if your daddy wants this job of his done, he's going to have to fucking talk to me." Damien's eyes narrowed.

"Don't forget that you are under contract, McCormick. You can't refuse your responsibilities."

"Oh yes I can. My condition was you'd take what was dearest to me. Guess what, Demon-Boy? You fucking did. Your dad fucking took Kyle away from me. He couldn't have done anything that would have been worse. Now take me to see him!"

Damien glowered at him before finally shaking his head softly. "Fine. Grab on," he extended his arm towards Kenny, who took hold of it forcefully.

"Ah, hello, Kenny." He heard, opening his eyes. "You did well with Nina, though you didn't get her birthdate, but we can check on that later. You did excellent. Getting him to pray to her? Brilliant." Satan grinned at him.

Kenny didn't return the grin. "Where's Kyle?" He demanded.

"He's resting in my room," Damien grumbled. "It takes a lot out of you to die."

"Yeah, especially when you die by ways of Satan fucking cheating you," Kenny growled.

"Oh? And why do you say that, Kenny?" Satan inquired.

"Twenty-four hours. You told me I had twenty-four hours. You lied."

"Well, you weren't going to come to a decision in that time frame anyway, Kenny. And you know it."

"That's not the point!" Kenny screamed. "You didn't give me the time I wanted with him!"

"You could have had all the time in the world, but you chose to let him slowly die."

"He was getting better until you cheated!"

"Listen to me, Kenny. I did what was best for both of you. Kyle was suicidal. You have a job to do. It'd just make your life easier."

Kenny slammed his palm down onto the desktop in front of him. "No, it'd make yours easier, you fucking liar! Because you just didn't want Kyle to distract me from my cases! That's it, isn't it?!"

Satan shook his head. "That was not my intention, Kenny. You and I both know that Kyle wouldn't have handled that job well. It's best that you didn't take the deal."

Kenny bit his lip and eyed up his demon adversary before breaking into an evil grin. "You're right, Satan. It's best I didn't take that deal. Because I'm making one of my own...with an offer you can't possibly refuse."

_____________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Baha, Godfather reference XD...(Even though I totally didn't realize it until just now, haha)_

_And ANOTHER cliffhanger. I'm a total bitch, I know._

_Oh my god, I killed Kyle! I'm such a fucking bastard. (Lame, I know, but I don't care. I just got done going from school to work and doing nonstop crap for 13 hours, so get off my back.)_

_Don't worry, this story is far from over =)_

_Oh, and Nina! Nina was like, me. An Atheist trapped in a theist's world. It sucks to be me, and I deal with the same crap that Nina went through before she died. It's horribly depressing. Oh well, I'll survive._

_And I am aware that Atheist is supposed to be spelled with an undercase 'A', but I don't do that. If Christian is capitalized, then so is Atheist. I get counted down on all of my school papers for leaving it capitalized, but damn it, it's the principle of the thing._

_Thanks for reviewing! I really appreciate it and I hope you liked the death scene...as much as one could. I liked the way I had Kyle go out, did you? _


	12. Two For One

_A/N: And this is what one could call the climax. The turning point. What will happen?!_

_Who knows =)_

_Enjoy, kids._

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Satan broke into a grin to match Kenny's. "Oh? You think that you are pulling the strings in this, Kenny?" He asked, leaning back into his plush chair.

Kenny smirked. "Yea. I do. After all, I'm helping your system. I'm dedicating my life to helping you. I'd say that you owe me. wouldn't you?"

"I've gotten along thousands of years without you, Kenneth."

"And how have they been going?"

The devil paused, glancing towards his son and back to Kenny. "You're right. You're making my life a bit less stressful. Alright, I'll hear you out. What do you have in mind?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a small voice saying, "Kenny?"

He turned and met eyes with that of a small girl in a satin dress.

"Anna! What are you doing here?!" He smiled brightly at her. She returned the grin and ran towards him, clasping her small arms around his waist.

"I founded him!" She cried out towards the door, tightening her grip on him. "Kenny! I missed you a whole bunch! I met my daddy and my mommy! They're really good friends now!"

"Oh really?" He asked, returning her gesture gently.

Satan smiled. "Indeed. They put aside their differences pretty easily. It only took them about twenty years."

"But didn't her dad...um," Kenny tried to find the words that wouldn't hurt Anna.

"No, it wasn't him. This was the 60's, Kenny. Forensics weren't too popular back then," he chuckled. "It was some douchebag who wanted some money. Nothing special. They were fighting earlier because Anna's dad couldn't afford a baby when Anna was born, he was humiliated and he left."

She nodded briefly before breaking apart from his frame. "We're all getting along really well now though! I didn't think that it'd be so nice in...," she glanced around quickly, standing on her tiptoes and cupping her mouth to whisper "Hell."

He laughed at this. "You live here, Anna. I think that it's okay to say the name, alright?"

"I just don't wanna get in trouble. Daddy talked to me and said not to say what the other people here say because they're bad!" Kenny just smiled at her. Her grin suddenly went away and she turned back towards the door. "I said I founded him!" She yelled.

He quirked his eyebrow and watched the entrance. He saw the door open wider, a pale faced boy entering from behind.

"Kenny?" The boy asked disbelieving.

Kenny stared with his jaw dropped. "K-Kyle!" Kyle's dumbfounded expression faded into a wide grin as he broke into a sprint towards the blonde, throwing his arms around him. Kenny quickly returned the gesture, clasping him tightly and swaying him back and forth. Relishing in the familiar feeling of his body pressed against his own.

Kyle leaned back, his arms still wrapped around Kenny's waist and looked up into his dancing eyes. "I thought you said you weren't going to die anymore."

Kenny nodded, "I'm not dead. I'm...visiting. How'd you find Anna?"

"After I got here, I passed her and her family, and she mentioned your name. We started talking, and Nina told us that you would probably be coming down here."

"So...you know everything now?"

"Kenny, I have no fucking idea what's going on. Myself and Nina only spoke briefly, she went off somewhere to wander around. Anna's been rambling about you helping her. How can you help someone that's half a century older than you, dude?"

"You meet Danny?" Kenny asked softly.

Kyle blinked. "Danny? I thought you said he was a kid from school."

Kenny bit his lip. He was cornered. He'd have to tell him what was going on. "Kyle...I don't think that I should...," he glanced towards Satan, who was leaning on his desk and smiling slightly.

Kyle continued to look at him, his face drooping into a small pout. "Don't you trust me, Kenny?"

"Of course I do," Kenny smiled gently. "It's _him_ I don't trust," he gestured back towards the devil.

"Um, maybe I should take the kid out," Damien inputted quietly. "Come on, Anna. Let's let them talk." He gently took her hand and started to lead her out.

"Bye Kenny! Bye Kyle!" She waved. They broke apart and waved back, watching as the door closed once more.

Kyle turned back and faced Kenny again. "Why are you down here, Kenny? No one just stops by Hell for a visit."

"I...I....um...I came to talk to Satan about something."

"Yes. He was just about to tell me what it was," the demon stated. "Kenny. Maybe you should take advantage of the fact that he's dead."

"How can I take advantage of that, you asshole?!"

"Condition number two, Kenny," he whispered.

_Condition two? What the...oh._

"Condition?" Kyle repeated, before meaning finally sunk in. "Kenny," he gasped. "You made a deal with the devil?! How could you do that?"

Kenny turned towards him, wrapping his arms around his scrawny form and pulling him close. He rested his head atop the vibrant curls and sighed. "It was either that or keep dying everyday, Ky. I needed out of that, I wanted to live a normal life...too bad that my life is so far from normal now it teeters on fucking impossible."

Kyle breathed slowly into his chest. "What do you mean? What's going on, Ken?"

"Do you believe in ghosts, Kyle?"

"What?"

"Ghosts. Spirits. Do you believe in them?"

Kyle paused for a moment. "I...I don't know. I never really thought about it...," he whispered.

"Well, let me tell you. They're real. They're one hundred percent real. It's...it's true. Anna...and Nina...and Danny. They're all spirits I met up on Earth." Kyle remained silent, just continuing to inhale Kenny's scent. "I...I have a job, Ky. I can see spirits...I can touch them and hear them and talk to them. I have to help them...pass on, ya know what I mean?"

"You mean, help them find their way in the afterlife?" He asked quietly.

"Y-yea. I know it sounds really weird." Kyle pulled back and smirked at him.

"No duh, but this whole situation is fucked up. Are you down here to ask him to get rid of your powers?" Kenny smiled and shook his head. He leaned in and gently kissed his forehead, pulling back to admire the slight color that had plagued Kyle's cheekbones.

"Far from it." He turned and released Kyle, walking up towards Satan's desk and leaning on his arms on top of it. "I told you that I have an offer. I think that it's in both of our best interests."

"Go on and tell me then. The suspense is just killing me," he grinned.

"I will trade you my life for Kyle's," he gestured towards the red-headed boy.

Kyle gasped, "Kenny, no!"

Kenny looked towards him and smiled. "Just hold on, Ky. I'm not done." He turned back to Satan, who was leaning towards him with great interest. "You bring Kyle back to life, no repercussions, no conditions, no nothing," he continued, "you can give me immortality and I'll work these cases for you for the rest of time. I'll work my fucking ass off to fix your system, despite my hatred for it. Just give me back Kyle, that's all I ask."

Satan leaned back, contemplating this bargain. "You do realize that if I do grant you this," he began slowly. "You will be not only dooming your mental health, but Kyle's as well. You've told him your secret, Kenny. He''ll be sharing your abilities if I bring him back to life."

Kenny nodded. "My mental health is already fucking dead to me. And Kyle's strong. Besides, he doesn't have to do this job, right? It was meant to be my sole responsibility and I plan to keep it as such. But now he'll know why I'll be gone for long stretches of time...and I trust him. He wouldn't tell anyone."

Satan looked past him towards Kyle, and observed the boy who was biting his lip in concern, but he also could see a twang of happiness gleaming in his eyes. He turned his attention back to Kenny and chuckled softly. "Kyle, come here," he waved him towards the desk, watching Kenny's eyes narrow.

Kyle came up and stood beside Kenny. Kenny slid his arm around the boy's waist protectively, daring Satan to try anything funny. Satan smiled widely. "Good. That's just what I was hoping for."

The boys blinked at him in confusion. "Kenny," he began. "Kyle means a lot to you, doesn't he?"

"More than you could ever imagine, Dude."

"Would you say that you value his life above anyone else's? Including your own?" Kenny nodded slowly, but with determination. "Alright then. Kyle, this is a question for you. Would you say that you value Kenny above all others? Does his life outweigh your own?"

"Isn't that obvious?" Kyle whispered, gazing down at his exposed arms. Kenny followed his eyes and gulped. The wounds were healed, but the words were still clearly visible.

Satan nodded. "I suppose it is," he stood from his chair and began to slowly pace the room. "You two obviously mean a lot to each other...," he stroked his chin. "Kyle, let's say I gave Kenny this deal. What would you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"He means will you sleep with me," Kenny smirked. Kyle softly punched his arm, prompting Kenny to squeeze him tighter.

Satan chuckled. "I have no interest in your sex life, trust me. I don't need to envision you naked, McCormick."

"Hey, I have a fucking hot body, right Ky? And it's just aching for some Jewish lovin'."

Kyle blushed deeply and squeezed the bridge of his nose. A habit he no doubt picked up from Stan over the years.

"Anyways, Kyle," Satan half-growled. "Would you help Kenny with his cases?"

"What, help spirits pass on? Of course I would!"

"Ky, I don't want you to do that, trust me."

"Why? Do you think I'd be suicidal again? Trust me, Kenny, I have no intention of doing that anymore."

"Why not?" Satan inquired.

Kyle grinned back and squeezed Kenny in a brief embrace. "I have Kenny now. Why would I want to leave him?" Kenny's smile could light up the world right then.

Satan smirked. "Good. Then how would you feel about joining his immortality?"

Kenny's eyes widened with Kyle's. "That wasn't part of the deal, Dude!" he spluttered.

"I'm the devil, Kenny. I have the final say. Besides, I'm sure you two want to be together forever. It may ease the job up on you. Kyle's very bright, I'm sure that with him by your side, you won't have very many problems as you work."

This was true on so many levels, but Kenny didn't want to admit to it. "But I don't want him to suffer...," he whispered, mostly to himself.

Kyle looked at him with sad eyes. He cupped his chin and turned him to face himself. "Kenny," he began, "I wouldn't suffer. I'd be with you all the time, we'd be together. I've wanted this...for years, Kenny. Maybe not this particular situation, but something close to it. So many people promise to be there for forever, but most of the time, they can only get up to about 90 years. We'll actually be there for forever. I want that. Don't you?"

Kenny stared at him for a moment, letting this idea sink in. He took his hand and grasped the one holding his chin gently. "I'd love nothing more than that, Kyle." He turned to Satan once more. "I'm no fool, Satan. You have a condition behind this."

"Oh, Kenny you have been learning," he grinned. "The condition will play off of one of your first ones. The third one to be exact."

Kenny ran the events from that first night through his head. "Um...remind me again?"

Satan rolled his eyes. "You even mentioned it earlier to Damien. It has to deal with your most prized possession."

"You...you don't seriously mean...," Kenny stuttered.

Satan nodded. "You fail to fulfill your obligations, Kyle belongs to me and you never see him again. You have a strong love for him, Kenny, and that may prove to be your downfall."

Kenny bit his lip, but relaxed as he felt Kyle's hand closing softly around his own. He met eyes with the small Jew, who smiled softly in return. He smiled back and turned towards Satan. "You're right. But I won't lose him again."

"Be careful, Kenny. Those who try to predict the future often end up falling in the end," Satan warned.

"Yea, yea, yea," he waved dismissively. "Just send us home, Dude...and thanks."

"No. Thank you two. Our little system may finally be on the up and running again with you two going at it."

"Oh we'll be going at it all right, and Ky's little system will be up in no time. We'll go at it on the bed, on the couch, on the floor..."

"Goddammit, Kenny, grow up," Kyle growled, yanking his hand from Kenny's and crossing his arms. Kenny laughed and slung his arm over the small boy's shoulder.

"Oh, and Satan dude?"

"Yes, Kenny?"

"About that deal from earlier...will Ky still..."

"No. That contract is null and void. This is fresh, and none of those conditions carried over unless we discussed them." Kenny breathed a sigh of relief.

"Um...can I request something?" Kyle asked softly.

"Go ahead," Satan nodded.

"Is there...um...any chance that you could bring me back without these?" he held out his arms, displaying his agressive messages.

Satan considered this for a moment. "I suppose so. It wouldn't be right to make you wear those for all eternity," he smiled. Kyle smiled back, relief dancing in his eyes. "Well then, I suppose that it's time for you two to be on your way," Satan commented. He walked over and placed one hand on each of the boy's shoulders. "Be careful. Not all of your cases will be Annas and Ninas, alright?" They nodded, and he smiled maliciously. "Good luck, you're gonna need it."

___________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Cutting it short because next chapters gonna be a filler XD_

_There was no way I was letting Kyle stay dead for long, haha. Now Ken has his partner! In more ways than one..._

_This idea has been plaguing me for a while now. I literally sat in school and wrote a list of seven possibilities for how to take this story. I came up with:_

_Ky lives, Kenny just lives out remaining time with him_

_Ky nears death, Kenny makes deal on own accord_

_Ken asks Ky his opinion, Ky opts for immortality_

_Ken lets secret slip, Ky's condition worsens, Kenny makes decision for imm._

_Ken lets secret slip, Ky dies. Ken helps him find way in afterlife._

" " _Ken makes deal with Satan_

_Route I chose_

_I personally think I made the right choice, haha. As I've said, this story is far from over. This is going to contain deep psychological analysis' from both of the boys and those around them._

_And smexiness. It just ain't fanfiction without the smexiness. And I assure you, that will be coming sometime soon, haha._

_Thanks for all of you who have stuck it out so far! I totally appreciate it! And those reviews freaking make my day =)_


	13. Back Again

_A/N: Filler time =)_

_Last chapter, I made a deal fly out of no where and now Kenny and Kyle are both immortal...yea. Oh the wonders of Fanfiction._

_Enjoy._

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"Ughhhh," he groaned as he tried to push himself up. Kenny found himself facedown on the tiled floor of the hospital.

"Oh my God, it's a miracle!" he heard in the background. He blinked slowly, trying to regain his senses, before long trying to place a face to the voice he'd heard. He recognized it now as Dr. Richards. He bit his lip and gathered his strength, pushing himself up onto his knees. He ran his fingers messily through his disheveled hair and looked around confusedly.

"Kenny!" he heard the doctor shout. He looked towards the direction of the voice and tried to adjust his eyes to the bright lights surrounding the figure.

"Doctor?" He whispered, still squinting.

"Yes, Kenny. Get up, you won't believe it, Son!" the doctor grabbed his arm and helped him onto his feet.

"What happened?" Kenny asked, disoriented still.

"Well, you ran in here to see Kyle...and I suppose you passed out, I'm not entirely sure. Anyways, we heard you hit the ground and came in to see what all the noise was about and...well, look for yourself," he grinned as he lead Kenny towards the bed. He was greeted by the steady sound of a heartbeat monitor, and a pair of joyous green iris'.

"Kenny?" He asked tiredly.

"KYLE! It worked!" He smiled wickedly and wrapped his arms around the scrawny form, snuggling into the warmth emitting from his fragile body.

"Worked?" The doctor repeated. "What worked?"

"Uh, uh," Kenny looked towards Kyle with desperation, trying to come up with a statement.

"Kenny prayed for me, Doctor," Kyle replied simply. "He prayed, I heard it, and I decided to come back."

"Praise the good Lord!" The doctor smiled with tears in his eyes.

Kenny raised his eyebrow. "So much for not mixing medicine and religion, Doc."

The doctor gave him a smirk. "Okay, fine. So I do mix them a bit. But this is nothing short of a miracle, Kenny. His vital stats are better than when he first got here, there doesn't seem to be any damage despite the fact that he was dead for hours, and even better," he strode over to beside Kyle's bed and grasped one of his arms, "look!" Kenny gazed down and low and behold, his etchings were completely gone.

Good ole Satan.

Kenny looked into Kyle's eyes and couldn't hold back a sniffle. "I'm so happy right now, Ky...I don't even know where to begin."

Kyle reached up and put a finger to Kenny's lips. "Then don't," he smiled. "This moment doesn't need words, just us." Kenny smiled back and leaned in, gently brushing Kyle's lips with his own.

"Fair enough," he whispered. He looked up towards the doctor, who was watching them with a gentle smile. "So," he started. "Can Kyle leave yet? I mean, you said he was doing great."

The doctor's smile fell. "Well...I guess considering his condition as of now, I can let him go. But I think that this miracle needs some research, don't you?"

"Research and miracle," Kyle snorted. "Those two words don't exactly go hand-in-hand, Doc."

"Hey, now don't trash the science of religion."

"Dude, I'm Jewish, okay? But even I know that those two should never cross paths. It could be dangerous for the human mind."

"True," the doctor mused. "Some things just aren't meant to be understood."

"Like this," Kenny gestured towards Kyle. "Just let him go, alright? The kid needs some rest...what time is it anyways?"

The doctor checked his watch. "About 7 am," he replied.

"Holy shit, Dude!" Kenny choked, turning to Kyle. "Dude, you were dead for like, seven hours!"

"About. Never before in medical science have we seen that. I think the highest number before was about an hour and a half. So congrats, Kyle," the doctor chuckled. "You're going in the record books."

Kyle groaned. "Dude, I don't want people to know about why I was here," he leaned back into his pillow and sighed.

"Right. So we need to get you out of here and back in the open before things start spreading," Kenny stated. Kyle nodded and began to swing his legs out of the hospital bed.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the doctor grabbed his shoulder. "You need to run through a final test before you go leaping over buildings, Kid."

"Dude, you said I was fine! I feel fine! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get the hell out of here," Kyle replied bitterly.

Dr. Richards shook his head and sighed. "You need to be tested, please? Just one blood test, a blood pressure test, and some reflex actions. Not hard," he glanced up. "Kenny, go get his stuff while I do the tests and you two can get out of here." Kenny nodded and shot Kyle a smile before strolling out of the room, noticing that he had a bounce in his step that he'd never had before.

He smiled to himself as he pushed out the door and walked towards Richards' office. No wonder he was bouncing. He had Kyle back, he wasn't going to die, and most importantly, Kyle and him were finally together. He sighed contentedly. Maybe things would finally start going right. But first thing's first, they needed to drop off Kyle's things and get to the others. Who knows what might already be circulating the air at South Park High? He grabbed the case and walked back towards Kyle's room, pushing the door open.

Kyle looked up at him with a small smile as a nurse placed a needle into his arm and began drawing blood. Kenny shivered. He fucking hated needles, they were just too fucking creepy. Who would want a piece of metal in their skin?! He noticed Kyle smirking and quirked his eyebrow.

"What's so funny?"

"You. Are you afraid of needles, Dude?"

"What? No, they're just fucking weird! I mean...it's a fucking stick and you put it in your skin!"

Kyle laughed softly. "Get used to it, Dude, I have to do it twice a day."

"You and your damn blood sugar."

Kyle shrugged. "It happens. You just get used to it," he finished as the nurse pulled the needle out.

"Alrighty, Hon," she stated. "You're good to go. I take it Dr. Richards had you fill out all of the forms?"

Kenny nodded. "We took care of em a few days ago."

"Good, then you're set. Get some clothes on and head home," she exited the room. Kyle's face fell.

"I...I didn't even fucking think about that," he mumbled.

"Think about what?"

He looked towards Kenny with glistening eyes. "I don't have a home, Dude. Where the fuck am I supposed to go?!"

"Oh, you have a home, Dear," he threw a clean change of clothes at Kyle. "I took the liberty of renting you an apartment, compliments of your family's bank account."

Kyle caught the clothes and blinked. "They...they still don't want me back, do they?"

Kenny bit his lip and looked into his eyes before Kyle sighed heavily. "I suppose I can't be surprised. I mean, they are _my_ parents. At least their funding it instead of just throwing me a knapsack and a can of beans."

"And a pocketful of dreams," Kenny smirked. Kyle smiled back and began pulling a pair of boxers up under his gown. The wounds on his legs were still clearly visible, but at least those would be easy to make up a story about.

Kenny looked him up and down, noticing just how small Kyle really was. The gown made him look boxy, but it was mostly air. Kyle's pasty skin was glowing in the fluorescent lights surrounding them, giving it a soft, yellow glow. His hair was resting against his scalp, the curls bouncing as he moved, glinting in the glow. Kenny smiled. He was so lucky.

"Dude, stop molesting me with your eyes," Kyle joked. Kenny laughed softly.

"I can't help it. You're fucking hot." Kyle began to blush and looked towards the floor. "Let me help you," Kenny purred, walking up towards Kyle. He cupped the boys chin and gently met lips with him. He began to untie the strings securing his gown from the back, and stepped back to let it land on the floor with a soft thud. Kyle, realizing that he was almost completely naked, began to blush harder, taking his jeans and trying to get them on.

Kenny chuckled as he observed Kyle hopping around, trying to slide his pants back on. "Kyle, are you really that desperate to hide your boner?" Kyle stopped and looked at him, his face growing redder and redder. Kenny burst out laughing again and walked over to help him easily slide the pants on, buttoning and zipping them for him.

"Uh, thanks," Kyle muttered, looking away from him.

Kenny rolled his eyes good-humoredly, but settled them on Kyle's torso. "You need to put that shirt on, Dude," he commented.

"Um, I was planning on it, but why?"

Kenny walked behind him, clasping his waist and murmuring into his neck, "Because if you keep it off any longer and I'm going to have to take those pants of yours back off." He smiled at the feeling of Kyle's temperature rising.

"V-very funny Kenny," Kyle stammered.

"Aw, Kyle, are you blushing for me?" Kenny cooed, gently kissing the boy's neck.

"K-Kenny, stop. Seriously, we need to g-get out of here."

Kenny released him grudgingly. "Fine," he crossed his arms and pouted. Kyle smirked as he threw his t-shirt on over his head. He walked over, leaned up, and kissed Kenny on the nose.

"Come on, Dude, let's get out of here."

Kenny smiled slightly and took Kyle's hand in his own, grabbing his suitcase in the other. "Shall we?" he gestured towards the door.

Kyle smiled back. "We shall."

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Kenny and Kyle walked together away from the apartment complex, nearing their neighborhood hand in hand.

"So, who to first?" Kenny asked.

Kyle looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Did you really just ask me that?"

Kenny chuckled. "Well, the answer was obvious, but at least it broke the goddamn silence."

"Sometimes silence is a good thing, Kenny," Kyle muttered.

"And sometimes it's not. Like if someone's hurting and won't talk about it," Kenny frowned. He stopped and put his hand on Kyle's shoulder. "Promise me that if something's bothering you, no matter what it is, you'll tell me or Stan or someone about it?"

Kyle gazed back at him. "Kenny, it's not like I can kill myself again."

"True, but this isn't just about you hurting physically. We may be immortal, but we still have emotions. I don't want you to end up so depressed again. It...it really hurt to see you like that Ky...and...and the letter," Kenny choked, tears welling in his eyes.

Kyle clasped his waist. "Kenny, I learned my lesson. I was fucking stupid, alright? Forget the letter, forget what happened. This is now. This is our fresh start, memories only get in the way. Sometimes, it's best to forget and move on into our new lives. I think that we'll be stronger for it."

Kenny shook his head. "I can't ever forget this, Kyle." He returned the boys embrace tightly. "I lost you, Kyle. I learned just how much I care about you, and I finally got the chance to be together with you. If I forget this happened, then what? I just, lose all memories of what finally brought us to this point? Kyle, you're right, this is our fresh start, but we can't forget what led us to this point. It just doesn't work like that."

Kyle stared at him for a moment before biting his lip and snuggling his face into Kenny's broad chest. "You're right. I'd rather forget the exact details, but they brought me more happiness than I thought possible. Thank you, Kenny."

Kenny smiled and took his hand once more. "Come on, let's get to Stan's." Kyle nodded and followed his lead.

As they trekked through to the Marsh household, they remained quiet, just enjoying the moment of being together. Kenny kept looking over towards Kyle, who would do the same, always blushing and averting his eyes quickly towards the ground. Kenny kept a sheepish smile on his face throughout the journey.

_He's actually here. He's alive...and he's mine. He's my Kyle. This couldn't get much better._

As they approached the Marsh's door, Kenny had a thought: he'd never told Kyle of the conditions.

"Ky," he stopped Kyle's hand from knocking on the door by gently clasping it.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Listen, you cannot tell Stan about the deal, alright?"

Kyle frowned. "Well, duh, Kenny. Do you think I'm stupid or something?"

"No, I think you're the smartest fucking kid in the world, but I'm just letting you know. If you do tell him...his lifespan will be drastically cut." He watched as Kyle's eyes widened.

"Holy...no fucking way! That's so fucking cruel!" Kyle exclaimed,

Kenny shrugged. "He's the devil, dude. He isn't exactly the nicest guy around...though I owe him everything right now," he leaned in and brushed Kyle's lips. Kyle smiled shyly.

"Alright. No telling him. No problem." He reached up and knocked on the door. They waited momentarily before knocking harder.

"Try the doorbell, Moron," Kenny cracked.

"Stan's doorbell has been broken for six months, Kenny. His dad never got around to fixing it," Kyle murmured. "His cars here, so he's not at school. Okay, plan B." He reached up to the mailbox hanging next to the door and swung it upward, revealing a small inlet in the siding with a key inside.

"Dude, what don't you know about Stan's life?"

Kyle smirked. "Hey, he's my best friend. You learn stuff like this after 17 years," he put the key in the lock and turned the knob, stepping inside. Kenny followed and closed the door behind them.

"Stan?" Kyle called out.

"Yo, Marsh!" Kenny cried out.

"What the fuck?" Kyle wondered quietly. "Let's go check his room," he started for the stairs. Kenny followed closely behind. As they approached the top, they could hear music coming from Stan's room.

Kyle stopped and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh for the love of...please tell me that isn't Nevermore. Please, Kenny. Tell me that isn't what I hear."

"Okay, I won't. But I'd be lying if I said it wasn't."

"Oh Jesus Christ," Kyle unpinched his nose and quickly descended the stairs, throwing Stan's door open.

"Dude, you promised me that if something bad happened you wouldn't do this again!" Kyle shrieked. Kenny peered into the dark room, his eyes coming across Stan, sitting on his bed, eyes wide with disbelief.

"K-Kyle?" he whispered. "No fucking way. I'm fucking hallucinating again!" He sobbed, throwing his head back to take a swig of a beer bottle.

Kenny cringed as Kyle shouted, "STAN! What the fuck are you doing?!" He sprinted forward and grabbed the bottle out of Stan's hand. "Goddammit, Stan! How many have you had?!" Kenny looked around, seeing countless disregarded bottles scattering the floor.

"Dammit, Stan! It's me!" Kyle cried out, shaking his shoulders. Kenny walked over and switched off Stan's stereo, leaning back against the doorframe and watching Kyle shake the living hell out of him.

"Kyle? Are you...how the fuck..." Stan stared at him dumbfounded before leaping up and grabbing Kyle in a crushing embrace. "I...I thought we fucking lost you," he sobbed into Kyle's shoulder. Kyle smiled gently and returned the gesture.

"I'm okay now. Okay? Now what the fuck do you think you're doing, Stan?"

Stan broke apart from him and bit his lip. "I needed something...I needed something to make the pain go away. All I fucking did was get a migraine, but I was hoping that it'd block out the hurt eventually. I...I just felt so lost, ya know?"

"I think I do know," Kyle smiled sadly. "Just don't do what I did, okay?" When Stan didn't respond, Kyle firmly grasped his shoulders. "Stan. Promise me now that you'll never do that."

Stan nodded softly. "I won't, Ky...I'm so glad that you're okay, Dude...but how on earth are you alive?" he hugged him again. Kyle laughed softly and once again hugged him back.

"It's alright, you big baby," he chuckled. "The miracle of modern science is just amazing. Let's just leave it at that." Kenny grinned. For someone with little lying experience, Kyle sure was good at it. "Now, how many people think I'm dead?" Stan pulled back and looked at him with shiny eyes.

"Everyone, Dude. Bebe and Wendy called a bunch of people for your memorial."

"Oh shit!" Kyle shot his head towards Kenny. "What the fuck do we do now, Ken?!"

Kenny looked between the both of them and shrugged. "We parade you around town, I suppose. Come on, I'm sure that the other four are at home crying right now. Should we go see them?"

Kyle shook his head. "Not yet, there's some people I need to talk to first."

Stan shot his eyes towards Kyle. "Dude, you cannot talk to your family! After what they did to you?!"

Kyle shrugged. "Regardless of how they treated me, they are still my family. Besides, Ike needs to know. I can't just leave him wondering, that's fucking cruel."

Stan and Kenny looked towards each other with worried expressions. "Okay, whatever you say, Dude," Stan bit his lip. "I'll come with you," he started to lead Kyle out of the room. Kyle stopped him, an annoyed expression set on his face.

"First things first," he muttered, pointing at Stan's Nevermore shirt. "That is going in the fucking trash can! Now change your damn clothes, you freaking emo."

Stan chuckled. "Yes, Mom," he replied pulling off the shirt and tossing it towards the trash. He grabbed a black shirt polo shirt out, only to be met with Kyle's angry gaze.

"Make it colored, Stan," he growled. Kenny burst out laughing.

"Geez, Broflovski, simmer down! He's not in emo stage right now!"

"Well, he doesn't need to look it," Kyle tromped over to Stan's closet and threw a red t-shirt at him. "At least this will make you look semi-normal, Stan."

"You're so gay, Ky," Stan smirked playfully, changing into the shirt.

Kenny bounced up towards them, grabbing Kyle's chin and giving him a surprise kiss on the lips. He smirked back at Stan. "Why yes he is, thank you."

Stan shuddered. "That's gonna take some getting used to," he winced.

"At least you're not throwing up," Kyle pointed out.

"Yeah, but I haven't done that in like, forever," Stan shrugged. "Not since...well...," he faded out. Kenny nodded in understanding, letting his eyes drift over towards the bed. Something caught his eye and he went to investigate. He smiled when he came across a slew of pictures with Kyle.

"Reminiscing, Stanny-boy?" he asked over his shoulder, flipping through the images.

"What else could I do, Dude? It was either that or hang myself." Kyle frowned at his wording, biting his lip.

"I'm sorry, Stan," he whispered, looking towards his shoes guiltily.

Stan swung his arm over Kyle's shoulder and pulled him close. "Don't be, I'm just so fucking stoked that you're alright," he smiled. Kenny looked up from the pictures and smirked at their moment.

"Hey," he called out, sounding distracted. "Don't go feeling up my boyfriend or I'll kick your ass, Marsh."

Stan grinned playfully and pulled Kyle closer. "You think you can take me on?"

"I betcha I could. I just gotta grab Kyle and kiss him and you'll be too busy gagging to notice I'm beating the crap out of you."

"Can't kiss him if I'm holding him here, McCormick."

"Can too. And you're welcome to join us if you want."

"Oh for God's sake," Kyle rolled his eyes. "Can you two just pretend that you have a maturity level above that of four year olds?"

"Nope," they responded in unison.

"Didn't think so," Kyle smirked. Stan let go of him and they walked up to join Kenny's scavenging.

"Hey," Kyle pointed at the picture on top of the stack, "that was from freshman year, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, remember? That's when Cartman had to wear those stupid-ass glasses when he looked into the sun for too long," Stan chuckled.

They stared and admired the picture. It seemed so long ago. Kenny was still sporting the hooded look, though Freshman year was about the time he started taking it down more. Cartman was standing there, looking pissed-off as usual, crossing his arms and looking away in disinterest from the rest of the group. Kenny was openly staring at Kyle and Stan, smiling as they playfully wrestled each other.

"Why did we do that?" Kyle chuckled.

"I think that I stole your glasses or something really stupid like that," Stan replied with a grin.

"We were just a bunch of immature assholes with no idea what life had in store for us," Kenny mused.

"Yeah. It's nice to see how much we've changed," Kyle muttered sarcastically. Stan and Kenny chuckled in agreement.

"So," Kenny began, throwing the picture down on the bed. "Shall we venture to the Broflovski residence?"

Kyle nodded softly and sighed. "I honestly don't want to...but I need to."

"You and your damn morals, Kyle," Stan shook his head in disapproval.

"Hey, my 'damn morals' have saved our asses on plenty occasions!"

"They're still a bit absurd," Kenny stated. "I mean, I don't understand why you'd want to talk to them!"

Kyle sighed again. "I just...I just need to, alright? I need the chance to fight my own corner. If they keep me out of the house, then so be it, but I need to tell them that I feel right as I am and their opinions aren't going to change a damn thing." Kenny and Stan stared at him, unsure of how to respond. "Come on," he continued. "Let's get out of here."

"Ya know...," Stan started. "Cartman's house is on the way...maybe you should...stop and tell him that you're okay?"

"What the hell does the fatboy care if I'm alive?" Kyle muttered. "The only thing that upset him about me dying was the fact that he didn't do it himself, I'm sure."

"No, Kyle," Stan shook his head. "You didn't see him afterwords. He was so fucking quiet...it was fucking scary. I think that we should just stop by."

Kyle sighed in aggravation. "Fine," he mumbled. "But he cracks one Jew joke and I swear to God I will not hesitate to hurt him."

Kenny smirked, "and Stan and I will watch with popcorn."

"Stop encouraging him, Kenny," Stan muttered.

Kenny scoffed, "yea, like he needs my freaking encouragement to smack Cartman around."

Kyle smiled softly. "Alright, can we just go? We'll stop by Fatass's and head on to my house. Sound good?" They nodded and started following Kyle out of Stan's doorway and down the stairs.

"Hey, Stan," Kenny commented. "You should text Wendy, tell her that Ky's okay."

"Good idea," Stan whipped out his phone and shot her a quick message as they exited the house. By the time they hit the sidewalk outside, his phone started blaring it's tone.

"Hey Wends," he answered. "Of course I'm not lying! God, Wendy, I'd never fucking lie about something like this!" Kyle and Kenny rolled their eyes. "Wends, no! I...I'm not lying!"

"Oh for God's sakes, give me that," Kyle growled as he snatched the phone from Stan's hand and held it to his ear. "Wendy, I'm alive," he stated robotically. "Yea. Yes, a true miracle...well I love you too, Wendy...I guess. No...no, um, I suppose so. We're stopping off at Cartman's real quick. Psh, I don't know why, Stan and Ken are making me...we're going to my house afterwords...no...no I don't think that it's a good idea," he snapped. "I've gotta try though," Stan and Ken looked at him amusedly as he rolled his eyes towards the sky in frustration. "That's fine. Meet us there in about fifteen minutes. Yea, grab Bebe and Butters, I guess. Yea, I love you, too. See ya then," he hung up the phone.

"You love Wendy?" Stan asked with a quirked eyebrow.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "She said it first! I think it's rather obvious that I'm not interested in her, Stan," he slid an arm around Kenny's waist, which Kenny returned. "She wants to be there to fight my corner. I figure that I might as well let her...won't make a difference, really."

"I don't know how you talk with her all the time, Stan," Kenny mused. "Both of the times I've heard her being talked to over the phone in the past few days, it's ended up in the boy hanging up in frustration. Why is that?"

"Because she's a total bitch," Stan shrugged. "I love her, but she does have her moments."

"Your patience astounds me, Stan," Kyle grinned. Stan grinned back, turning his attention to the Cartman house approaching.

Kenny grabbed a tight hold of Kyle's hand as a familiar figure came into view as they walked.

"Well, well, well," the figure drawled. "I guess the rumors weren't true. I figured that your little Ginger ass was still up and running."

"Fuck off, Fischbach," Stan growled, stepping in-between Kyle and him.

"Why should I? He should defend himself like a man," Toby snarled.

Kyle stepped away from Kenny, still holding his hand, to stand beside Stan. "I'm not afraid of you, you fat fuck," Kyle snapped.

"Kyle, for the love of God, you just got out of the hospital!" Stan protested, placing his hand on Kyle's shoulder.

"Hospital? Why?" Toby questioned. "Your butt-buddy over there too much for you to handle?" He motioned towards Kenny. "Did the little Ginger pussy need stitches on his little ass?" He mocked.

Kenny's eye twitched, he was getting fucking pissed off. No one talked to Kyle like that. No one. He stepped up and slid his arm around Kyle's waist. "Care to try that again, Fischbach?" He dared.

Toby smirked. "Sure. That little ass-rammer of yours...well, is he an ass-rammer if he's catching? I mean, I'm not a fucking fag, so I'm not too sure of how the system works."

Stan growled at him, ready to advance. Kyle placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "Forget him, Stan. Let's go talk to Cartman," he started to lead them up the walkway towards Cartman's house. Kenny and Stan followed close behind, watching Toby carefully, who watched back with an evil smirk. As they scrutinized him, they didn't notice the two boys coming up from behind them.

"Fuck!" Stan cried out as he hit the ground, Kenny following suit. They glanced up and saw two figures hovering above them. As they moved to scramble to their feet, the others gripped them in strangleholds, disabling them to move.

"What the fuck? Let go of them!" Kyle shrieked, starting to advance on them.

"Kyle, run!" Kenny gagged out, seeing Toby beginning to move towards the small boy.

"Tom, Mark, hold em still," Toby commanded. "I'm gonna play with our little Ginger friend," he grinned evilly.

"_Fuck,"_ Kenny thought as he struggled against the larger boy's hold on him. He watched as Kyle backed away from Toby and yelped in pain as he grabbed his red curls and yanked him forward.

"Come on, Ginger. You're not afraid of me, so let's see how you fight." Toby punched him hard in the gut, sending him crumpled onto the cold sidewalk in a gasping heap.

"You fucker!" Stan screeched, wrestling with Tom's grip.

Kyle tried to scramble up, but was sent back into the ground by Toby bringing his foot down into the middle of his back. "Come on, Ginger! Fight back!" Toby teased, pressing his foot hard into Kyle's back. Kyle weakly glanced up at Kenny and Stan, who were still struggling to get loose. He scowled towards the ground as Toby's heel dug into his back. He shot his arm up and grabbed Toby's leg, pulling on it hard and sending him flying backwards into the ground.

As soon as Toby was down, Kyle leapt up and pounced on top of him, punching his face as hard as he could repeatedly.

"You fucking bastard!" Toby shouted as he regained his senses and grabbed Kyle's puny wrists to stop the barrage of attacks. He screamed angrily as he pushed Kyle onto his back and leaned his weight on top of him. Kenny and Stan could see that he was starting to develop a black eye and had blood dripping down the side of his face.

He held Kyle down and pressed hard onto his wrists, causing Kyle to groan in pain. "I told you I'd fucking kill you, and I intend on doing so," Toby spit out maliciously. He motioned towards the bushes by Cartman's lawn, summoning yet another boy to appear. "Come on, John, help me out here," he muttered.

John took hold of Kyle's wrists and continued to press them hard into the walkway. Kyle growled and thrashed around, trying to get loose.

"You're not getting out of this one, Ginger," Toby grinned. He pulled out a flick knife and opened it, running the blade smoothly across Kyle's face and chest.

"Don't fucking touch him you fucking asshole!" Kenny screeched, trying desperately to free himself. He knew that Kyle wouldn't die...but he knew that he could still get seriously hurt. He wasn't willing to take the kid back to the hospital.

"Come on, Ginger..., beg for mercy," Toby smiled.

"I don't fucking beg to pussies like you, Fischbach!" Kyle screeched. Toby frowned and punched Kyle's cheekbone. Kyle moaned expletives and shook his head, trying to shake off the throbbing sensation.

"In case you haven't noticed, Ginger, I'm holding the cards here," Toby stated with a raised eyebrow. "I suggest you listen to me if you don't wanna get hurt...or see your friends over there hurt."

"You think we're afraid of you?!" Stan spit out angrily.

"What do you want?" Kyle demanded, trying to thrash away again, but trapped under Fischbach's weight.

"What do I want?" Toby repeated. He leaned in towards Kyle's face, chuckling sadistically. "I want revenge, Ginger. I have officially been thrown out of my home, and I need someone to take it out on."

"Join the club," Kyle muttered.

"What?" Toby blinked.

"I've been fucking evicted from my house, too. But I'm not fucking going around looking for someone's face to punch in!"

"Well, that's because you're a fucking pussy," Toby smirked. He took the blade of his knife and gently sliced Kyle's cheek.

"Get the fuck off of him!" Stan screamed, thrashing wildly.

"Nah, this is too much fun," Toby replied watching Kyle's blood seep out onto the icy walkway.

"What the fuck did I do to you?!" Kyle screamed, trying to yank his wrists out of John's grip.

"Well, your little average made the fucking grading curve go out of whack, so I ended up failing all of my classes. Then, just because people point out that you are indeed a fucking nerd, we all get extra assignments. Too bad no teachers like any papers unless 'Kyle Broflovski' is written at the top."

"Well, if you weren't an illiterate moron, we wouldn't be having this discussion," Kyle spit out at him.

Toby's eyes began to flare with anger. "What'd you call me, Broflovski?" He asked, pulling Kyle's head back by his hair and holding the knife across his adams apple. Kyle just breathed softly, not letting his threats get to him.

Kenny and Stan were not quite so gracious as they screamed expletives at Toby and tried to pull themselves away from their captors.

"Come on, Ginger. You're always saying something, so repeat yourself," Toby growled, pressing the blade further into Kyle's skin and starting to gentle saw it back and forth. Kyle bit his lip, looking towards the sky and continuing to breath, though with noticeable difficulty.

Kenny saw red as he saw Kyle's blood pouring down his throat and staining the ground crimson. "GET OFF OF HIM!" He screeched.

Toby just continued to smile and press down into Kyle. Kyle started to gasp for air, trying to adjust the the stinging pain in his throat. He let out a soft whimper and shut his eyes. "That's right," Toby coaxed. "Cry. Cry like the big fucking fag pussy that you are."

"HEY! GET OFF OF THE JEW!" they heard. They all whipped their heads around and saw Cartman standing there, looking with infuriation at Toby.

"C-Cartman?" Kyle gasped out.

Cartman looked at him with a degree of disdain, but set his sights on Toby once more. "You heard me," he snarled. "Get off of him."

"And why should I?"

"Because I'll fucking kick your ass if you don't!"

Toby and John looked at each other and smirked. "Oh?" Toby asked, batting his eyelids innocently. "John, help the ginger up, would you?"

John yanked Kyle off of the ground and twisted his arms behind his back with one arm, holding the other across Kyle's small chest. Toby walked over and held the knife against Kyle's throat once more.

"Now then. Who will be kicking my ass when little Kyle here is just a slight flick of my wrist away from death? Hm?"

Cartman bit his lip, trying to find the best route of attack. Kenny saw that Mark was watching Cartman, and used it to his advantage. He took his elbow and jabbed it into his gut, able to escape his grip once he gasped out. He took his fists and clenched them together, bringing them down hard of the back of Mark's neck. He fell to the ground with a low groan and a loud thud as he hit the pavement. Stan saw this and mimicked his actions with Tom, ending with the larger fuck falling down beside Mark. The three boys eyed Toby and started to step towards him.

"Uh uh uhhh," Toby wagged his finger on his free hand at them. "Remember who has the knife."

The three stopped in their tracks and looked towards the small boy, who was trying to break out of John's grip without hitting the knife.

"Goddammit, let me go!" He screamed, wrestling away from the larger boy's grasp.

"Stop fidgeting, Ginger," Toby growled, raising his leg and kicking Kyle in the stomach. Kyle coughed a few times, his knees giving out underneath him. John held him up with ease, grinning at the suffering child.

"Look," Kenny started stepping closer to them and holding up his hands defensively. "Just let him go, Dude. He didn't do anything to hurt you, okay? Just let him go and we'll put all this shit behind us."

"Don't come over here claiming your boyfriend didn't do anything, retard," Toby flung his dark hair away from his eyes and pressed the blade to Kyle again.

"Just because you don't have his GPA doesn't mean that it's his fault," Stan murmured softly, joining Kenny's side.

"Yeah, so let go of him before I rip off your balls," Cartman snarled.

"Cartman, you're not helping," Kenny growled before turning back towards Toby. "Look, he didn't fucking do anything to you. So what if the curve was thrown off? It's not his fault he's a fucking prodigy!" He gestured wildly towards Kyle, who was staring at him blankly.

"We all have our fucking problems, Dude," Stan muttered. "But we don't go tracking down people who so indirectly affected us."

"Yea," Cartman snorted. "Usually we go after ourselves, right Kahl?"

Kyle looked at him and narrowed his eyes, his face turning red with anger.

Toby blinked at Cartman a few times before bursting out laughing, turning back towards the small boy next to him. "You suicidal, Ginger? Is the world dark and gray? What'd you do? Slash your wrists while listening to 'Every Rose Has it's Thorn?'"

Stan and Kenny growled at him. Toby caught their reaction and laughed harder. "Oh my God! It's true, isn't it, Ginger?" He patted Kyle's curls. "Let's see them cuts. I wanna know just how bad it was." He yanked out Kyle's hand from behind his back and stared at its pasty form, turning it left and right to find marks. When he didn't find anything on one hand, he threw his arm back into John's grip and went to observe the other one. Again, finding nothing.

Cartman and Stan stood, looking for the marks as well, their jaws dropped to their chests. Kenny and Kyle looked at each other in panic. How the hell were they going to explain that to them?!

"Well, I don't know what got your boyfriend's panties in a bunch, you don't have anything here...so let's change that," Toby grinned maliciously. He took the knife and quickly slashed the skin from the inner portion of Kyle's elbow to the middle of his forearm, prompting the boy to scream out in pain. He yanked his bleeding appendage away from Toby and brought it straight into the fat-boy's nose. Toby stumbled backwards and fell, and Cartman and Stan leaped towards him, taking his knife away and holding him by the arms in a death-grip.

John tightened his grip on Kyle and backed away. He took the arm across Kyle's chest and moved it to his throat, clenching his arm and cutting off Kyle's air supply. Kenny growled possessively and lunged towards the fucker, bringing his fist into his eye.

John shouted in pain and Kyle fell out of his grip, stumbling away from him and towards Kenny. Kenny grabbed him and held him in a protective embrace, growling at John as he started to move back towards the two. Kenny pushed Kyle gently to the side and stared at John as he continued to move towards him. He ran towards the larger boy, ducking the punch that he threw, and jumped on him, bringing him headfirst into the pavement.

Kenny stood up and panted, Cartman walked over from where he was with Stan and kicked John to make sure that he remained listless. Kyle came over and stood beside them to watch for himself. When he didn't get a reaction, they turned and glared over at Toby, who looked fucking pissed.

Good.

"You fuckers," he snarled, trying to wrestle away from Stan. He looked around desperately for some kind of escape. He wrenched his elbow away and brought it backwards into Stan's neck. Stan blinked for a moment before falling to the ground in a heap.

"Stan!' Kyle cried out, trying to run towards him. Kenny grabbed his arms and held him back, watching Toby's movements carefully. Toby didn't look back, but set his stare straight on the young Jew, who was looking desperately towards Stan. He smiled evilly and kicked Stan's quiet form a few times.

"KNOCK IT OFF!" Kyle spit out, trying to wrench out of Kenny's grip.

"Kyle, stop it!" Kenny protested, trying to hold him back.

"But...he's hurting Stan!" Kyle stated helplessly, looking back towards Kenny with glistening eyes.

"OW! Son of a bitch!" They heard Toby shout. They glanced over and saw Stan still on the ground, his hand holding Toby's knife handle, the blade shoved into his calf muscle. The ebon haired boy looked up, panting heavily, but maintaining his grip on the knife. Cartman took advantage of Toby's distraction and ran towards him. He balled up his fist and sent it into his mouth, knocking out a tooth and prompting a cascade of blood to pour out.

Stan yanked the knife out as Toby stumbled away from his attackers. Kyle broke free of Kenny's grasp and ran over towards Stan, helping him to his feet. He swung the taller boy's arm around his shoulder and held him up, glaring daggers at Toby. Toby returned the gesture, straightening himself upright. He glanced towards his fallen cronies and back towards the four in front of him. He shook his head and muttered, "fuck it."

He grabbed Mark and Tom's arms, dragging them towards a blue pick-up truck a few houses down. He lifted them into the bed, coming back and reaching down to grab John's arms. Before he started to drag him off, he glared at Kyle once more.

"You got fucking lucky again, but watch out. You won't always have protection, Broflovski. You've got to be alone sometime." He drug John towards the truck and hoisted him into the bed and slamming the end shut. He hopped into the front seat, and the four of them stared as the truck began to speed away. They blinked after it for what seemed like forever before Stan finally broke the silence.

"You okay, Kyle?"

Kyle whipped his head around to face him. "What do mean am I okay?! Dude, are _you_ okay?"

"I'm fine. I've got a fucking hard head," Stan smirked, hoisting himself off of Kyle and stretching his arms towards the sky.

Kenny walked over and grasped Kyle's chin gently. "Are you okay, Ky?" he repeated.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, okay?"

"No, you're not," Cartman replied bluntly. "Get your Jew ass in the house, you're bleeding like a fucking slaughtered animal." He grabbed Kyle's uncut arm tightly and dragged him towards the front door, Kenny and Stan close on their heels. Upon reaching his living room, Cartman swung Kyle towards the couch and he landed harshly against the cushions. "Wait here," he commanded, venturing off into the kitchen.

Kenny and Stan took seats on either side of Kyle on the couch. Kenny placed his hand lovingly on his knee, prompting a small smile out of the poor kid. "Seriously, Kyle," Kenny said gently, "are you hurt?"

"I've been worse," Kyle shrugged dismissively. He slid over towards Kenny and leaned lazily against his shoulder. Kenny wrapped his arm around him gently and kissed the top of his head.

"AY! No fucking gay in my house, you fags!" Cartman shouted as he returned with a first aid kit in hand.

"Don't fucking start, Cartman," Stan muttered. "I've got a fucking migraine." He yelped as a small bottle collided with his forehead.

"There's some Advil, take two," Cartman muttered. "Jew, let me see your arm." Kyle eyed him apprehensively, still wrapped in Kenny's embrace. Cartman sighed impatiently. "Kenneh, stop groping him and let me see his damn arm!"

Kenny slid away from Kyle and walked over to plop down on the chair nearby, much to Kyle's dismay and his own. Cartman walked over and sat beside Kyle, grasping his wrist and examining the damage. "Doesn't seem too deep," he muttered. He grabbed antiseptic out of his kit and poured some onto a rag he'd brought in. "This is gonna smart, Jew."

Kyle hissed as the cold liquid came into contact with his exposed wound. Cartman quickly dabbed at it and wrapped it tightly in some gauze, repeating the process with his neck. When he came to the wound on Kyle's face, he gently grasped the boy's chin and turned it so he could examine the scrape. "This one just needs some Neosporin and a band-aid." He quickly smeared some onto his fingers and rubbed it over Kyle's face. He carefully positioned the band-aid over the wound and smoothed it with his fingers when he finished. "There. Now you won't fucking make a mess everywhere," he muttered.

"Um...thanks, Cartman."

"Don't fucking thank me, Kahl. I'm sure it's taking a hell of a toll on your Jewish pride," Cartman muttered. He stood up and switched places with Kenny, who happily sat back beside his boyfriend and pulled him back into their previous position. Cartman rolled his eyes and Stan smirked at them as they snuggled close.

"Alright, I've done this long enough," Cartman snapped. "How the hell are you alive again, Broflovski?"

"Modern science is amazing," Stan replied, mimicking Kyle's tone from earlier.

"Uh huh. Well I couldn't find anything on how to bring someone back to life, and I spent fucking forever looking around for an answer."

The other three raised their eyebrows at this.

"You...you were trying to find a way to bring Kyle back to life?" Kenny asked slowly. They watched as all the color drained from Cartman's face.

"N-no! Well, I mean yes, but not specifically for him! It was for myself! I mean, K-Kahl would be easy to experiment on. I wouldn't feel guilty if I fucked up his body," Cartman stuttered.

Kyle broke into a small smirk. "You fat bastard, you missed me."

"Don't kid yourself, Jew. I was only thinking of myself."

"Hm. Well, were you thinking of yourself when you told Toby to get away from him?" Stan asked.

"Or when you punched him the first time he attacked Ky?" Kenny inputted.

Cartman leaned forward in his chair and glowered at them. "I've said it once, and I'll say it again," he growled. "It's my fucking job to cause the Jewrat pain. It's my pleasure in life and I'll be damned if anyone else is taking that happiness away from me. Including yourself, Kahl. You better be past this whole fucking slasher phase because it pisses me off."

Stan shot his attention towards Kyle. "Speaking of which, how the fuck are your wrists back to normal?"

Kyle and Kenny froze. Uh oh...

"Uh...uh...," Kyle fumbled.

"I made a deal with the devil!" Kenny blurted out.

"Wait...what?" Cartman blinked. Kyle stared at him in horror. What the fuck was Kenny thinking?!

"I made a deal with Satan himself," Kenny replied casually, leaning back into the couch cushion and squeezed Kyle reassuringly. "He said my constant dying was fucking up his system, so I traded my ability to keep coming back in exchange for Kyle's arms being healed. We both won in the end. I stop dying all the time and Kyle's arms are better," he grinned. Kyle chuckled and shook his head. It couldn't be a good thing that his boyfriend was such a smooth liar.

"Is that how Kyle came back to life?" Stan asked lowly, beginning to suspect something.

"Told you, Dude," Kyle said. "Modern science. Kenny made that deal afterwards before we came to talk to you." He was learning the art of deception rather well.

"Yup. No conditions or anything...aside from the fact that next time I go back, I stay there," Kenny chuckled. "But he told me that wouldn't be for quite some time because he was fucking sick of me bitching."

"Well you are rather annoying sometimes," Kyle grinned playfully.

Kenny smirked. "Yea, but that doesn't stop you from being my boyfriend, does it?"

"Guess I have a thing for immature morons."

"Well then why don't you like Cartman? He's about as immature as it gets," Stan smirked.

"That's fucking sick, Marsh!" Cartman gagged.

"Oh my god, I think I'm gonna puke," Kyle replied in disgust. "I mean...Cartman?! That's just fucking wrong!"

"Oh, but you and Kenny are so right?" Stan asked innocently.

"Hey, I take offense to that," Kenny pouted. They all broke into small laughter before falling into a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

"As much as I'm enjoying this," Kenny finally stated, squeezing Kyle once more, "we need to get to your house, Dude."

"It's not my house anymore," Kyle muttered sadly. The other three looked at him with varying degrees of pity.

"It's better this way," Cartman stated. Kyle looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Think about it, Jew. They don't accept you the way you are, so that'd just make living there a total hell. You'd be even worse off than you were. You would have put a gun in your mouth instead of giving yourself a chance. It's better," he repeated.

Kenny and Stan blinked at him confusedly. "Dude...are you like...trying to cheer Kyle up?" Stan asked suspiciously.

"Fuck no, I'm just saying his family is a bunch of assholes. I don't think any of you disagree with that." They all nodded in return.

Kyle sighed heavily. "Let's just go. We gotta meet the others there pretty soon," he stood up, Kenny and Stan following his lead as he walked towards the door. He stopped before turning the knob and looked back towards Cartman.

"You coming, Fatass?" He asked.

Cartman blinked at him. "Why?"

"Well, we're going to essentially tell off my parents...I thought that you'd be all over that."

"Are you...inviting me?" Cartman asked, sounding utterly confused.

Kyle shrugged. "First time for everything. Now get your lard-ass up and let's go," he walked out the door with Stan following close behind. Kenny looked back and observed Cartman as he stood up. As he turned his head, he could have sworn that he saw a small smile set upon Cartman's face.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: LONGEST CHAPTER EVER...okay maybe not ever. But oh my god, this took such a long time!_

_I think that it is by far my favorite though! I love the idea of Kyle being so protected by all three of the others. I am absolutely adoring the idea of Cartman doing it especially! And no, this will not turn into a Kyric slash, trust me. I love the idea of Kyric, but that is not the concept for this Fic._

_I'm sorry for such a huge filler, but I wanted the reactions of both Stan and Cartman in here. I think it worked pretty well =D_

_And oh noes! Toby threatened Kyle!...again. When am I going to write that fucker off?! And next time, the chat with the Broflovskis. Uh ohs. Can you spell drama?_

_Thanks for R&R-ing...and for reading this! I really appreciate it!_

_Oh, and I got a few questions in the last chapter...like from VampiressKatasandra, who wanted to know the idea behind Ky and Ken's immortality. To be honest, I'm not sure as of yet. I'm throwing a few ideas around, and we'll see how it turns out =)_

_And from foxgodess07, who wanted to know how the condition with Ky on the line worked. In a nutshell, Kenny's condition from the first night was that should he refuse his duties, his most precious possession would be taken. Kyle, in chapter nine, claimed that he now belonged to Kenny. Kyle's love is now what Kenny holds dearest. If he doesn't do his job, Kyle will be taken away from him by Satan by matter of the deal._

_Confusing, I know. Makes sense to me, and I'm sure that it'll become clearer to you after awhile =)_

_PS: don't you just love my random ass original characters who don't even get a word of dialogue? I mean, names like Tom, Mark, and John? I'm so fucking lame XD_

_And what's my obsession with Kyle being held down and threatened with a knife?! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH ME?!?!?!?!?!_


	14. Honeypaws

_A/N: Well, my last a/n was long enough that I don't need to delve into detail for this one._

_Though I may make this chapter relatively twisted by mistake because I'm currently watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre and it's fucking up my brain XD_

_I doubt that'll actually happen, but you never know. Enjoy_

________________________________________________________________________

_Here we are again. The four of us off on another adventure. Who would've thought that we'd end up like this once more...especially since we were missing one of us just hours ago..._

Kenny and Kyle walked close to each other in between Stan and Cartman. Kenny kept sneaking glances at each of them, laughing to himself at his observations.

Cartman was trying desperately not to look like he was enjoying himself. He had an almost constipated-looking expression as he tried to conceal a smile. He was just an inch or two shorter than Stan, and about three less than Kenny, but his extra girth made him seem larger than them all. In all fairness, he wasn't exactly fat anymore, he was just pretty sturdily built. Didn't stop the other three from teasing him though. His hair was all over the place, and he had dark bags under his eyes. Kenny could see how much losing Kyle had done to him. Those two may have been on opposite poles the majority of the time, but when it came down to it, they were a pretty good team. This idea made Kenny twinge with jealousy. **He** wanted to be the great team with Kyle...and he supposed that they were. Not as good as Stan and Kyle, but pretty damn close.

Stan was obviously trying to stay as close to Kyle as possible without being as close as Kenny. Kenny could swear that if Stan felt for Kyle like he did, he would have swept the young boy into his arms and whisked him off to the nearest castle. It was pretty clear that Stan felt as close to this as he could for Kyle without harboring those kinds of feelings. Kenny was pretty thankful for that. After all, if Stan felt like that, there was no way in hell that Kenny would be able to compete for Kyle...right?

This made Kenny bite his lip harshly. What if Stan _was_ like that? Would Kyle have not even given Kenny a second glance? After all, they meant everything to each other...knew everything about each other...they were inseparable! Kenny and Kyle had just reached this close level, but maybe they still weren't quite as close as the dynamic duo.

"Kenny?" a sweet voice rang through his ears.

"Ken? Dude, what's up?" another voice questioned.

"Poor-boy! Wake up!" he felt a sharp pain across the back of his skull.

"Ow!" he exclaimed, bringing his hand up to rub the impact point.

"Dude," Kyle stared at him. "Are you alright? You were staring at us," he gestured his head back towards Stan.

"Just thinkin'," he shrugged.

"Oh? About what?" Kyle responded innocently.

"Nothing in particular."

"He was thinking about the best way to get into your pants, Jew," Cartman stated distantly.

"Dude, I did NOT need to think about that," Stan groaned.

"Oh admit it, me and Kyle? Talk about some hot lovin'," Kenny joked, sliding his arm suggestively around Kyle's small waist. Kyle just rolled his eyes and smiled apologetically at Stan.

"So, what do you plan on telling your Jew family?"

Kyle looked from Stan to Cartman and sighed. "I don't even know...I guess something along the lines of 'this is who I am, suck it up and deal with it.'"

"Oh please, you're too much of a pussy to tell your charming mother that, Kahl," Cartman retorted.

"Cartman...," Stan growled with a gentle warning.

"No, he's right...well, sort of. I'm not a fucking pussy," Kyle paused to glare at Cartman quickly. "But I don't think it's going to be that easy, unfortunately..."

Kenny pulled him in closer and leaned his head atop Kyle's. "I'm sure it'll be okay. And even if it doesn't work out, you have a home, you have a guaranteed spot in any college of your choice, and you've got a hell of a future ahead of you. No matter what they say, you've still got us, Kid."

"Thanks, Ken," Kyle broke them apart gently and grabbed his hand to make their walking a bit more comfortable. Kenny mindlessly swung their hands back and forth as they continued moving.

"You two look like two year olds," Stan chuckled.

"I hope to God no two year olds are making out," Cartman commented.

The other three let out small chuckles. "I dunno," Kyle started. "They're saying that sex starts younger and younger everyday."

"If that's true, then why don't you catch up with everyone else, Kahl?"

"S-shut up, Fatass!" Kyle blushed. "It's not like you've ever...right?"

Cartman looked over at him and smirked victoriously.

"No fucking way!" Stan exclaimed. "Who?!"

"Sucking off Butters when we were nine doesn't count, Cartman," Kyle muttered.

"Shut up, Jewrat! And that's NOT what I was talking about."

"Well then who?" Kenny insisted.

Cartman hesitated before sighing, "Remember Red?"

"You...you mean Wendy's old friend?" Stan stammered.

Cartman nodded. "Yup, she was all over me."

"No wonder she moved away," Kyle stated. "She probably couldn't live down the humiliation of sleeping with someone like you."

"Ay! Shut your Jew mouth! She moved because her mom got a job in Milwaukee."

"You still talk to her?" Stan asked. "Wendy hasn't mentioned her since she left."

"Well that's because if someone isn't there to kiss her hippy-feet, they're pretty much dead to her. Unless they're stuck in some worldwide plight, then she can't get enough of them."

"That's my girlfriend you're talking about, Dude! Watch your freaking mouth!"

Kenny sighed impatiently. "Cartman, do you still talk to Red?" he repeated.

"Yea, two or three times a week when she isn't at school or work," he turned his head towards the front and spoke softly.

"Aww," Kyle cooed. "Cartman has feelings."

"Shut up, Kahl," Cartman said through gritted teeth.

"Cool it, guys. At least you finally found someone, Cartman. Why didn't you ever tell us about it?" Kenny asked.

"I don't need to share every detail of my life with you guys. You have your own problems to deal with," he glanced at Kyle and Kenny's intertwined fingers. Kenny involuntarily clasped his fingers around Kyle's tighter.

"You don't share any details of your life, Cartman," Kyle stated.

"Well excuse me for not being a girl and whining about my emotions," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Well, usually when a guy gets laid he goes straight to his buddies to brag about it," Stan pointed out.

"You're not my 'buddies', Marsh. You're merely the people I hang out with in a vain attempt to find your weaknesses and exploit them for my own personal gain."

"Well, we knew that," Kenny cracked. "But still, I figured you'd wanna brag about it. It'd be something that you'd wanna rub in Ky's face." Kyle pouted slightly at this.

"That's not worth rubbing in his face. The mere fact that I'm not Jewish makes me higher than him. The fact that he's still a virgin isn't anything I really give a shit about."

Kyle began to blush furiously. Kenny caught this and smirked. "Don't worry, Kyle. You won't be a virgin for long," he winked flirtatiously.

"Kenny...," Stan growled as Kyle's color deepened.

"KYLE!"

The four of them shot their heads up and spotted Wendy, Bebe, and Butters running towards them at breakneck speed. Kenny felt Kyle's hand being ripped out of his as the three of them slammed into the kid. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman turned around to meet the sight of Kyle slamming into the concrete.

"FUCK!" he cried out, sitting up and grasping his head in his hands.

"Kyle, you're alive!" Bebe cried, throwing herself on top of him and squeezing his arms into his side.

"Bebe," he gasped. "Ca-can't breath!"

"Sorry!" she exclaimed, clambering off of him. Butters reached down and offered his hand to help him up. Kyle gladly accepted and was roughly yanked into a tight hug by the blonde upon gaining his ground again.

"Kyle, I'm so glad you're okay!" Butters sniffed. "I just knew you were too strong to die, I just knew it!" Kyle smiled gently and patted his back.

"I'm fine, Butters. You can let go, I'm not leaving."

"Oops, sorry bout that, I'm just so so happy, that's all," he apologized, breaking off from him. Kyle smiled at him and turned his attention to Wendy.

"Aren't you going to try to suffocate me, too?" He joked. Wendy stared at him for a moment as though she were looking at a stranger before breaking into joyous tears.

"Oh, Kyle," she sobbed, throwing herself into his chest and holding him tightly.

He looked down atop her head and blinked slowly. "Uhhh...," he drawled out, looking towards Stan for help. He just smiled gently and nodded at him. Kyle slowly wrapped his arms around her heaving shoulders. "I'm okay, Wendy. We're all okay," he whispered.

"How could y-you do it, Kyle? Wh-why would you want to leave us?!" She cried into his frame.

She might as well have just socked him in the stomach. The other five watched as Kyle stiffened, looking down at her again. "I...I didn't want to leave you, Wendy. I just needed out...," he cupped her chin and pulled her head up to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered, guilt playing into his soft, green eyes. "I promise you, it'll never happen again. I lost too much...I can't lose it all again."

Wendy sniffed a few times, standing on her tiptoes and kissing his cheek gently. Kyle's eyes widened, looking at Stan. Stan just stood and watched, staring at Kyle with a forgiving expression. He shrugged at him and turned back to Wendy.

"You okay now?" Kyle asked with concern.

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and nodded. "Yea, I'm fine since you're alive," she smiled sadly.

"Well, if we're done playing Soap Opera, we're here for a reason," Cartman stated bluntly, gesturing to the Broflovski house in front of them. Kyle took a deep breath, exhaling shakily.

"R-right," he responded, trying to even out his breathing.

Kenny walked over towards him and gave him a tight embrace, pulling back to smile at him gently. "Ky, we're right here for you. I promise, no matter what happens," he turned to gesture at the others behind him, "all of us are here, alright?"

Kyle gave a small smile. "I know, Kenny...but it shouldn't be this hard to talk to my family...should it?"

"It is if your family is a bunch of Jewish prudes."

"Goddammit, Cartman, you're not helping!" Stan exclaimed.

"No, Cartman, they're not prudes...," Kyle started. "They're just...," he hesitated.

"Jewish?" Cartman finished.

"Y-yea," Kyle bit his lip. Kenny laughed softly. That couldn't have been easy on Kyle's pride.

"Look, Jews or not, they're your family. Maybe they'll surprise you," Kenny winked.

"Come on, Kyle! Let's go give em what for," Wendy grasped his hand and started dragging him towards the front door. He stumbled a bit and tried to keep his feet planted. They all frowned, this was not good.

"Come on, Kyle," Stan urged, pushing his back gently. "Ya gotta do it."

"I-I know. I'm just...pre-preparing myself."

Kenny sighed and walked up to him. He grasped his chin and pulled him up into a passionate kiss. He ignored the gags from Stan and Cartman and the coos from the other three, pressing Kyle's soft lips hard with his own and enjoying their sweet taste. Kyle hesitated for a brief moment before kissing him back with equal passion. They broke it off and smiled at each other. Kenny reached up and brushed some bangs out of Kyle's face and stared deep into his beautiful eyes.

"Kyle, do it. Do it for us. Who the hell's gonna pay for our wedding if you don't talk to them?"

Kenny could barely suppress his laughter as Kyle started to glow his usual rouge shade. "That a proposal, Ken?" Kyle asked sweetly.

"Could be. You interpret it however you want," he grinned sheepishly.

"Geez, going out for barely even a day and getting hitched," Stan laughed. "You sure move fast, Kyle."

"Why is it I'm the one that 'moved fast?'" Kyle pouted sillily, pointing at Kenny. "He's the one that started it!"

"I thought you were supposed to be the mature one," Bebe giggled.

"I'm not hearing a 'no!'" Kenny sang.

Kyle turned and playfully swatted his shoulder. "I think we should hold on for a bit before talking about smashing the glass, Dude."

Kenny nodded. "Okay, we'll talk after you speak to your lovely parents," he grabbed Kyle's hand and once again started leading him to the door. Kyle didn't resist, and he seemed far more comfortable than earlier.

"_Probably because __**I'm**__ the one holding his hand and not his best friend's girlfriend_," Kenny smiled to himself. As they reached the front door with the others close in tow, Kyle paused and took another deep breath. He bit his lip, gripping Kenny's hand tighter, and rang the doorbell.

Kenny looked over and saw him breathing heavily with his eyes closed. This had to be one hell of a strain on the poor kid.

They all stared as the door slowly creaked open, revealing a very exhausted looking Ike Broflovski.

"K-Kyle?" he asked, staring at his brother with an almost terrified expression.

"Ike, what's wrong?" Kyle asked gently.

"You...you were dead! I...Filmore told me! I...I thought...," he didn't finish his statement as he broke into tears and grasped his brother tightly.

Kyle broke off of Kenny's hand and quickly returned his hug, allowing Ike to sob into his shirt before pushing him back a bit to look him in the face. "I was dead, but I'm okay now," he smiled reassuringly. "I had to get back here and tell you that. Thanks for...well, not being like Mom and Dad."

Ike nodded, "no problem. I always knew you were queer, not like it shocked me," he gave a sad smile. Kenny smirked. This kid was a lot like Kyle, despite the obstacle of not being blood-related.

"I'm also here because...," Kyle bit his lip. "I...I need to talk to them. Are they here?"

Ike nodded again, "they're upstairs...but why would you want to talk to them?! Kyle...they...they kicked you out! They hated you just because you like taking it up the ass!"

"Ike, don't talk like that," Kyle lectured as he stepped into the house with the others following suit. "And I know that they're completely horrible about this whole situation...but I need to talk to them. It never hurts just to let them know exactly where I stand. I didn't really get a chance to go into much detail last time before they stormed out of the house."

"I don't think that they're going to wanna talk to you, Kyle," Ike muttered. "I totally see your point...but these are our parents we're talking about here. Not exactly the most easily movable objects around."

Kyle nodded. "I know. Can you at least try for me? Tell them that someone's here, but you don't have to tell them that it's me."

"And if that doesn't work?" Cartman raised his eyebrow.

"Then," Kyle turned towards him. "I go up to them. They don't have to listen, but I am going to tell them where I'm coming from. Not like this situation could get much worse," he shrugged.

"I'll go see," Ike said, heading for the stairs. He paused halfway up and gave Kyle a small smile. "Glad to see you're still here, Bro. Life sure wouldn't be nearly as interesting without you." He bounded up the rest of the steps as the group made themselves comfortable on the Broflovski's furniture set. Bebe and Butters settled into the love seat while Stan, Wendy, and Cartman plopped down onto the couch. Kenny threw himself into the plush chair beside of them, leaving Kyle standing, looking absolutely apprehensive about the whole situation.

"Ky, come here," Kenny curled his index finger at him. Kyle looked at him for a moment and blinked before walking over slowly to beside where Kenny was seated.

"What's up?"

"You. Sit down," Kenny commanded, grasping his small waist and pulling him onto his lap.

Stan chuckled, "tell Santa what you want for Christmas, Ky."

"Looks like he won't be getting much because it appears that Santa's on Welfare," Cartman commented.

Kenny smiled at Kyle as he glared at Cartman. "Don't fucking say that, Fatass," Kyle growled.

"Why not?"

"Because I said so!"

"Oh, so now _you're_ playing defense for your boyfriend?"

"Seems to be that way," Wendy commented, staring at Kenny's hand as it worked it's way up towards Kyle's and intertwined their fingers. Kyle sighed before looking down at Kenny and smiling gently. Kenny grinned back, aware that Kyle needed all the reassurance he could get right now. This idea became more apparent as two sets of heavy footsteps came down the stairs and Kyle stiffened on Kenny's lap.

They all stared as Sheila and Gerald came down the stairs slowly, looking rather pissed off. Ike must have said something. What a good little Canadian.

Sheila was the first to take note of Kyle's position and she scowled. "I don't think that I can do this, Gerald," she muttered to her husband. He sighed heavily and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Well, we need to." He looked towards Kyle and Kenny's hands and raised his eyebrow. "Well...Kyle. We're glad to see you're all right."

"That's why you just left me there to die on my own, right?!" Kyle spit out, instantly regretting it and slamming his palm onto his face. This conversation was not off to a good start.

Sheila's temperature seemed to be rising with fury. "Kyle, don't you dare speak to us that way!"

"He can't help it!" Stan jumped in. "No offense, Mrs. Broflovski, but your family doesn't do well with thinking before speaking when debating. We've all been there and seen that plenty of times."

Even Gerald nodded in agreement with this. Sheila, however, looked even angrier. "Don't you dare speak about my family like that, Stanley! There is just no excuse for that tone of voice!"

"You kicked him out! And left him alone in the hospital! You didn't even care that he'd tried to kil-," Stan stopped. He just couldn't finish the sentence. The rest of the words hung in the air like a suffocating blanket, egging to be released, but no one brave enough to lift the sheet.

"Well, he shouldn't be acting like this," she growled softly.

Kenny left Kyle's hand and wrapped his arms around his waist to spite her. He smiled to himself as he watched her eyes begin to narrow further.

"So...you two are dating now?" Gerald asked with forced neutrality across his face. They nodded at him, afraid of saying the wrong thing.

"I knew it!" Sheila screeched, taking her usual hands-on-her-hips stance and pointing a quivering finger towards Kenny. "That little....hood rat corrupted Kyle!"

There was an awkward silence for a moment, Kyle shifted uncomfortably on Kenny's leg.

"What does it matter?" Cartman muttered. "It's not like you were going to get involved with his life anyways."

Sheila turned and glared at him before stamping over towards the group. "You will speak with respect when you are in our house, young man," she demanded.

"Maybe you should give Kyle some first, then we'll consider," Wendy retorted angrily.

Sheila scowled at her before reaching over and yanking Kyle away from Kenny's lap.

"Respect?" she scoffed. "How can I 'respect' such a disgraceful child?" she held Kyle's wrist tightly and pointed at him.

Kyle mirrored her scowl, whipping his arm from her grasp. "Disgraceful?!" he repeated through clenched teeth. "I've been gay for four years! I'm not any different! You always told me how fucking proud you were because of what I'd accomplished, and now, just because I'm gay, you think I'm a disgrace?! Just where the hell do you get off?"

Gerald stepped beside Sheila, a disapproving frown upon his face. "Kyle," he started, "you're just confused."

Kyle blinked at him. "Confused," he repeated. Gerald nodded. "You think I'm confused."

"Yes, Kyle," Sheila inputted. "We can make this better, we'll get you help if you're just will-"

"I don't need any fucking help!" Kyle exploded, sending everyone into a terrified cringe. "You know what's really confusing?" he drawled out sarcastically, placing his hands on his hips in a fashion similar to his mother's. "It's really confusing how my parents of all people would push me out of their lives just because I prefer the company of guys over girls."

"It goes against the principles of our religion, Kyle," Gerald protested.

"Fuck our religion!" A loud smack was heard and everyone blinked at Kyle and Sheila. Sheila still held her hand in the air, breathing heavily. Kyle slowly raised his fingers to his cheek, running his fingers over it gingerly.

"Did...did you just hit me?" He asked stupidly.

"Sheila, your blood pressure," Gerald stated lowly, grasping her arm and coaxing her backwards.

"Blood pressure?! She just fucking hit him!" Kenny leapt to his feet and grasped Kyle's chin, running his finger gently over his face. "Are you all right?" he asked with concern.

Kyle laughed softly, "you worry too much, Dude."

"Stop molesting my son!" Sheila screamed, stampeding towards them and pulling Kyle away. Kenny growled and grasped his other arm, turning it into a desperate tug-of-war.

"Let go of me," Kyle snarled at his mother with a venomous tone. She blinked and grudgingly let go, allowing Kenny to grasp Kyle around his arms, daring Sheila to try anything like that again.

"Dude, let go," Kyle asked softly, lacking the poison he'd just used against Sheila. Kenny gently released him, putting his wandering hands into his pockets. Kyle flashed him a grateful smile and turned to face his parents.

He sighed deeply and stared them in the eye. "Look, I think that we can agree that we're not exactly on the best of terms right now. You don't accept me and I have some degree of disdain for you. We're family, but that word will be for appearances only until things work out. Kenny found me an apartment, so I'm not here looking for a place to stay or anything like that." He paused and grabbed Kenny's hand out of his pocket, intertwining their fingers. "I'm just here to tell you that I'm with Kenny now...and nothing you can say or do is going to change that." Kenny smiled and squeezed Kyle's hand. Stan and the others gave them gentle smiles as well. Sheila and Gerald remained unmoving.

"Kyle," Gerald started slowly. "I think it's best that you leave. Give us the address and go."

Kenny felt Kyle stiffen in his grip. "not before I tell you exactly what I expect," Kyle stated firmly.

"You're in no position to be giving us orders, young man," Sheila growled.

"Hear me out first. I don't expect you to love or accept me...hell, I don't even expect a Hanukkah card when the time rolls around...but I'm asking...no, demanding that at least one day a month, I get to see Ike."

"So you can turn him into a homosexual, too?" Sheila raged.

Kenny could hear Kyle trying to manage his breathing. "No, because he's my brother and he happens to be just fine with who I am. I think that I deserve some time with the kid since he's the only member of this family who even remotely cared that I was dead."

"Now that's not true," Gerald insisted.

"Then why did you say that you didn't care?!" Stan shouted, jumping to his feet. "You said that it just meant he was going to Hell faster and you fucking walked away!"

Kyle stared at him for a moment, then turned to look at his parents. They had slight traces of guilt passing over their faces, but perhaps it was only Kenny who caught it.

"You're right," Kyle whispered. "I should just go."

"Kyle, this is probably for the best. You've always been independent...maybe this was just the final push towards you starting your own life," Gerald said softly.

"You...should go gather up some more of your things, Kyle," Sheila said, staring at the wall past Kyle's head. Kyle didn't say anything in response. He just silently shuffled towards the stairs.

"I'll come with you," Stan volunteered softly.

"Me, too," Kenny added. He turned to the other four. "Give them the address and meet us at Ky's place." They nodded as he walked away, glaring at Sheila and Gerald as he passed them. He went up the stairs, stepping slowly into the all-too-familiar room.

He saw Kyle sitting on his bed with his head cradled in his hands. Stan was sitting beside him in silence, staring off in deep thought.

"I knew it," he heard Kyle whisper.

"Knew what, Ky?" He asked gently.

Kyle raised his head and gazed at him with glimmering eyes. "I knew this would fuck everything up. I mean, I'm happy about us," he attempted a smile, "but...I never would have thought that it could actually get to a point where my parents wouldn't even bat an eye if I just dropped dead," he blinked back tears.

Kenny walked over, sitting on the opposite side of him and pulled him in close, lovingly rubbing small circles along his back. "Well, that won't be happening anytime soon," he smiled ironically. "Besides, you're strong, Kyle."

Kyle scoffed. "Yea, I'm so fucking strong," he muttered, absently rubbing his wrists.

"Kyle, just because you did that... it doesn't make you weak," Stan said softly, grasping Kyle's wrist in his strong hand. "The fact that you're back and you're willing to pick up and keep moving...Kyle, that's what makes you so strong."

"Who's to say I won't do it again?" Kyle growled, clenching his fists and shaking slightly. Kenny and him knew better. They knew that he wouldn't be able to complete what he'd started...though the more Kenny thought about it, the more it terrified him. Kyle couldn't fully kill himself, but they were not free from the world of pain. He could still wind up in the hospital; suffering, wishing for release but never receiving it...

"You said you wouldn't," Stan growled, grabbing Kyle's shoulders and forcing him to return his azure stare. "You promised Wendy...you promised," his voice cracked. "Kyle, please...you...you don't know what that did to us. To all of us. Regardless of Sheila and Gerald's opinion, you mean a lot. You mean so fucking much to us, Kyle. You promised Wendy...now promise me. Promise Kenny. We can't lose you again.

Kyle stared at him a moment before hopping off the bed and heading for his closet. Kenny and Stan gawked as he carelessly threw clothes out of his way, searching around madly for something. Finally, he stopped and they could see him holding something gingerly in his hands.

"Stan?" he asked softly. "Do you remember this?" he held up a small stuffed bear in his hand. Stan stared at it in confusion before finally shaking his head slowly.

"I...I don't think so."

Kyle smiled at him gently. "You don't remember Honeypaws?"

Stan just continued to stare for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Oh my god!" He chortled. "I can't believe that! You still have that old thing?" Kenny blinked at Kyle in confusion.

"Honeypaws was Stan's bear from second grade," Kyle explained.

"Okay?" Kenny said. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Kyle shifted his gaze from him to Stan, who was looking at the bear in his hands affectionately. "I kept it because Stan made me promise to. He said I'd have to take care of it forever...and I just could never bring myself to get rid of it."

"Why did Stan give it to you?"

"My parents kept threatening to take him away," Stan replied with a chuckle. "I'd take the damn thing everywhere. I figured he'd be safe at Uncle Kyle's house," he laughed quietly.

"That still doesn't tell me what it has to do with what we were talking about," Kenny pouted.

"Stan made me promise to never let him get hurt...," Kyle walked closer and knelt down on his calf muscles in front of Stan, holding up the bear tail-first. "But he did," he finished.

Stan took the bear delicately from Kyle's hand and inspected the wound. It seemed that Honeypaws had had an unfortunate accident. His tail had been severed, and stuffing was showing through a large gash in his back.

"Ike learned to play with scissors," he explained softly.

Stan smiled at him. "Dude, do you really think that I care he's torn up like this? I mean, I used to love his old thing, but now it's just a memory."

Kyle bit his lip. "Is that how you'd feel about me if I'd stayed dead?"

Stan froze, his eyes widening at Kyle's question. "What?!" he shrieked. "Kyle, you're my best friend! You're not a damn stuffed animal!"

"If you can recall, that bear was your best friend at one point in time, too. You care about me, but what if I wasn't here and you didn't need to care for me any longer? Would you just stop one day? Would I be nothing but a memory in your closet?"

"K-Kyle, I could never do that," Stan said, seeming to be on the verge of tears.

"Stan, be honest."

"Would you get over me if I had died?" Stan asked with a spark of anger.

"If it was an accident, no. Never. If it was because of what I did...well, I don't think I'd ever actually get over it, but I'd certainly try to look it. No sympathy for the stupid, Stan. That's how the world works."

Kenny and Stan stared at him, shocked. Kyle stood from his kneeling position and grabbed Honeypaws gently from Stan's shaking grip. He turned it over and stared into his black, lifeless eyes.

"Promises don't always work," he muttered. "You say one thing, but sometimes there's nothing we can do to prevent what happens," he caressed the gash along the bear's back. "All promises are empty to some extent. I can't say that I won't try what I did again. Not to you two. I couldn't bring myself to lie like that."

"You said that you would never want to leave me," Kenny whispered miserably.

"And I don't. But you might leave me...or some unexpected fate may come along and rob you from me. You never know, Kenny. I just can't make any promises like that."

"Kyle...," Kenny started, interrupted by the door slowly creaking open. They turned to watch Ike's head pop into view.

"I'm not interrupting your little threesome, am I?" He asked with a sad grin.

"Nah, we were just about to start. Care to join us?" Kenny asked casually.

"Dude!" Stan exclaimed. Ike laughed and shook his head.

"You guys are so fucking weird," his grin faded as he turned to a miserable looking Kyle. He cleared his throat gently, "so, I'm guessing it went about as well as expected?"

"Pretty much," he replied softly.

"Well...don't listen to them. Just because you sucking balls doesn't mean that you're really any different."

"Goddammit, Ike. Stop talking like Kenny," Kyle put his hands on his hips. Ike burst out laughing.

"Oh my god, you're actually doing a hip stance. You are about as gay as they come, Bro."

"Shut up you little Canadian annoyance. Go play with some moose."

"That the best you could come up with?" Ike raised his eyebrow.

"I'm too damn tired to be witty, Ike," Kyle sighed. "Now, you need something? Cause I need to pack I guess."

Ike bit his lip and walked over to his brother. "Well, I just wanted to say I'm sorry that they're actually doing this to you. They may be my parents, too, but at least I'm not related by blood."

"I'm sure they'd gladly trade you for their biological son any day. At least then they'd have some excuse they could use for why I'm the way I am."

Ike shrugged. "Not like you can help it, Dude. I'm sure they'll calm down one day."

"Yea," Stan snorted. "When they need money to be kept in a home. Seriously, I've never seen Sheila back down on her opinion about anything."

"True," Ike mused. "So is the way of the Broflovski clan."

"Not this Broflovski," Kyle said. "I've certainly changed my opinion on a lot recently. Including the idea that our parents are fucking retarded. I used to have some level of respect for them, but now I just want them to get out of my life," he paused and gave a small smirk. "I guess sometimes you do get what you wish for."

"Yea," Kenny stood up and clasped him around the waist, snuggling into him. "Sometimes you do. And you think that it's the best damn thing that's ever happened to you."

____________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Okay, really cheesy ending, but that's okay. _

_This chapter, though it doesn't seem very important, actually brought in quite a few elements that will be brought back up at a later time. I'll leave it to you to guess what these details are._

_(I'll give you a hint: the actual talk with Sheila and Gerald plays the LEAST important part in this chapter.)_

_I know, weird, right?_

_Thanks for R&R-ing! I'm thinkin next chapters just gonna be some witty banter, haha. Dunno, I might get a spirit to finally pop up. We'll just have to see, won't we?_


	15. Partner

_A/N: I suppose this is another filler. I don't know why. I just have more fun writing them than those that are so plot-related XD_

_Whether or not Ken and Ky will finally get their first case together is still undecided. So we'll just have to see =D_

_Enjoy._

________________________________________________________________________

Kenny, Kyle, and Stan walked quickly towards the complex, bookbags and suitcases in tow. They were trying desperately to beat the rising sun, which had begun beating down on their backs relentlessly since they'd left the Broflovski home.

"Jesus Christ, it's warm out here," Stan said, wiping his brow.

"It's only like, 60," Kyle chuckled.

"Compared to the usual -10, this is fucking sweltering!"

Kyle grinned and shook his head softly, his curls swaying fluidly around him. "You're such a baby, Stan."

Kenny smirked at them as Stan stuck his tongue out at Kyle childishly. He turned and observed the cases that they were dragging across the wet sidewalk. "You sure that you have everything, Ky?" he asked.

Kyle turned to him and nodded, "yea. And if I don't have everything, Ike can always bring some stuff over when I see him."

Kenny smiled at him and turned to check his watch. "Hey, Jock-boy," he addressed Stan. "You're late for baseball practice."

Stan shrugged. "Some things are more important."

"Yea, tell that to Coach," Kyle snorted. "He's gonna give it to ya, Stan."

"Redfield can shove it up his ass. He'd never bar me from a game, so I'm not too worried."

"True. Not too many people are stupid enough to take off their best player," Kyle said thoughtfully.

Stan had a slight tinge cross over his cheeks. "I'm not the best," he stated sheepishly. "Anderson has the best average."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Average is just a word"

"It's a score, dumbass."

"It's merely a quantity, rating, or the like that represents or approximates an arithmetic mean."

Kenny and Stan blinked at him. "What the fuck did you just say?" Kenny asked.

Kyle smirked in victory. "I said it's just a word."

Stan shook his head and chuckled. "You freaking nerd. Nonetheless, despite what you have to say, Mr. Webster, numbers **do** matter. Anderson's at the top. I don't mind lagging behind him."

"Oh for the love of Moses," Kyle groaned, rolling his eyes. Kenny chuckled. He loved when Kyle threw Jewish talk into the mix. It was always good for a laugh, especially if Cartman was around. Kyle looked at Stan with a quirked brow. "Dude, you are the best. Just accept it. He may beat your score at batting, but we all know that he can't catch for shit. You're a well rounded player, so it puts you at the top. You're the most popular guy in school for a reason, Stan."

Stan blushed more and turned his head. "I'm not that popular."

It was Kenny's turn to roll his eyes. "Modesty is not necessary, Dude. If I were you, I'd be flaunting the Hell out of myself."

"I'm not modest, I'm just honest!" Stan insisted. "I'm really not that popular! I mean, yea, I get invited places but that's only because I play football! Everyone on the football team gets invited everywhere!"

Kyle shook his head. "You're not being honest, you're acting stupid. Why else would people flock to you in droves, Stan?"

"Cause I have the most awesome Super Best Friend ever and people just want the chance to be near him?" Stan asked in a cheesy voice and throwing his free arm over Kyle's small shoulders.

"No, Stan. That would be a repellant," Kyle retorted.

"Now if that were true, would Kenny have set his sights on you?"

Kyle looked at him, unamused. "Kenny set his sights on a lot of people."

Kenny reached over and pulled Kyle from Stan's grasp. "Nah," he interjected. "I've just set my dick in their general direction. The only person I've ever truly looked at is you," he kissed his cheek sweetly.

They smirked at each other as Stan shuddered. "Dude, please," he complained, "that was totally not necessary."

As many times as you've had full-blown make out sessions with Wendy in front of me, you're bitching about Kenny kissing my cheek?"

"This is different, Dude!" Stan spluttered.

Kenny frowned. "How? Just because we're guys?"

"No!" Stan said a bit too quickly in his defense. "It's just because you two have been my friends since we were fucking toddlers and now you're kissing. It's just...weird, alright? You'll have to forgive me for the shock I happen to be enduring."

Kyle smirked again as he opened the door to the complex. "You're a quarterback, a baseball player, and you're on the soccer and hockey teams...and yet you can't handle us kissing. You're such a wimp, Stan." He stepped aside to let the other two through.

Stan playfully swatted his head as he passed. "Nobody asked you, you nerd."

Kyle grinned. "My opinion is free to the general public. I give as I get." Kenny chuckled and grabbed Kyle's waist to pull him in the building behind him.

"Hello, boys," a chipper voice called out.

"Hey, Sally," Kenny responded.

"Your friends are upstairs, Dears. You go have some fun," she smiled.

"Will do," Stan responded as he followed Kyle up the stairs. They reached Kyle's door and opened it to four sets of smiles.

"Hey, boys," Wendy greeted from the window between the kitchen and the family room.

"Hey, what are you up to back there," Kenny asked.

Bebe popped up beside Wendy and leaned on the windowsill. "We're making everyone some hoagies. All of the ingredients are kosher, of course," she winked.

"That's not necessary," Kyle smiled gently. "You didn't have to make us anything."

"Like Hell they didn't," Cartman snorted. "They lost a bet, so they're in charge of fixin up the grub."

"Bet?" Stan repeated, turning his head to look at Wendy. "Wends, why would you make a bet with Cartman?"

Wendy shrugged. "It wasn't like there was a lot riding on it. I planned on making food for us anyway."

"What was the bet?" Kyle asked as he shoved his suitcase into the corner of the room.

Cartman chuckled. "We actually made this bet many years ago, Kahl."

"And it was...?"

"Who would Kenny choose," Bebe grinned.

Kenny stared at her. "What? What the fuck kind of bet is that?"

Wendy smiled gently and made her way out of the kitchen towards the others. "We always knew that you'd end up with someone close to you as your first real significant other. So we made bets on either what boy or girl you would end up with."

"And the contenders were whom?" Kyle asked slowly.

"The girls were myself and Emily," Bebe piped in.

"And the boys?" Stan asked.

"Butters and Kyle," she giggled.

"Butters?!" Kenny's eye twitched. "Dude! No, dude!"

Butter's face drooped. "Well, I'm sorry, Kenny. I didn't know that they had this bet. If I'd known that, I would have made them choose someone who wasn't me. I'm sorry I embarrassed you, Kenny," he looked down and shuffled his shoes guiltily.

"No, Butters, don't feel like that. It's just an...odd concept," Kenny grinned walking towards him. He threw his arms around the shy boy and gave him a quick hug. "Dude, don't feel bad. It's not your fault these guys are idiots," he turned to glare at Wendy and Cartman.

"I'm guessing you threw down me as the candidate, Cartman," Kyle growled.

Cartman grinned at him. "Well of course, Kahl. Wouldn't you have?"

"I don't know. I don't make bets on other people's relationships. I'm not in elementary school anymore."

"Well, we made the deal back in sixth grade," Wendy grinned. "So that's pretty close to the elementary school days."

"Holy shit, you guys thought ahead from sixth grade?! Since when is my life just a running bet?!" Kenny gaped.

"Sixth grade was when Kyle started acting more...well...," Wendy paused, trying to find a word.

"Gay?" Kyle finished with an annoyed expression.

She shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, Dear."

Bebe walked up and linked her arm in his. "Yeah, after you dumped me, we started putting two and two together."

"Dude, did you even know what gay meant back in sixth grade?" Stan asked with a raised brow.

"We had a vague idea," Wendy grinned.

"I'm curious," Kenny started. "If Cartman had lost, what would he of had to do?"

"Oh, he did lose," Bebe laughed.

"Shut up, Bebe," Cartman hissed.

Wendy turned to Kenny. "He has to do something, too. We also added how long the relationship would last. Cartman bet on three hours. I bet on two weeks," she chuckled. "I certainly hope that I lose on that, but I just have to make him more food if that happens." She turned to Cartman. "If you want your food, fulfill your half of the bet."

He groaned loudly. "You bossy hippy-bitch," he whined.

"I'm not hearing what I should be hearing," she sang. Bebe burst out laughing and even Butters indulged himself in a small chuckle. Kenny, Stan, and Kyle just stared at him in confusion.

He sighed heavily and stood from his chair, making his way towards Kyle. "Kyle," he started in a monotone voice. "You so are totally not a loser. You are not a Jew. You are awesome. Let's be friends," he rolled his eyes in annoyance towards Wendy.

"You're not done yet," she giggled. He grabbed his hair in frustration and let out an aggravated sigh. He looked at Kyle, who was staring at him with his eyebrow cocked high. Cartman grabbed the front of Kyle's shirt and pulled him towards him, locking his lips on the poor Jew's. Kyle's eyes widened and he tried to push himself away.

"Ten more seconds," Wendy sang.

"Hey! He's **my** boyfriend!" Kenny fumed, trying to yank Kyle out of Cartman's grasp. Cartman kept a tight grip on Kyle's shirt and had another hand secured in Kyle's curls to keep him from thrashing away.

"What the fuck, Cartman?! Let go!" Stan yelled, trying to help pull Kyle out of his grip. Their pulling only succeeded in making Kyle yelp with pain from the sharp tugs.

"Annnnnddddd time!" Wendy finished. Cartman threw Kyle away from him and started wiping his mouth clean with his sleep, making gagging noises as he worked. Kyle stumbled backwards and threw Stan and Kenny off balance, sending the three of them falling onto the floor.

Bebe and Wendy laughed loudly as Butters got Cartman some paper towels. Stan scrambled up, leaving Kenny and Kyle on the floor. He looked down towards them and snickered. "There are other people here ya know. Save it for another time."

Kenny and Kyle snapped up, realizing the compromising position they'd ended up in. Kenny was flat on his back with his legs spread slightly, and Kyle had fallen right into the space. His mouth was centimeter's away from Kenny's groin. Kyle scrambled backwards, his face a bright red. He started to wipe his mouth in a fashion similar to Cartman's, only much more vigorously.

"Why the hell was that Cartman's punishment?" Kenny growled as he pushed himself off the floor and offered a hand to Kyle to pull him up.

"Well, to be honest, the kissing was just for me and Bebe," Wendy winked.

"It's so hot when guys kiss," Bebe gushed.

"You could have just asked and I would have made out with Kyle like there was no tomorrow," Kenny smirked, pulling Kyle towards him and starting to gently wipe his lips with his sleeve.

"Yea, but come on. Cartman and Kyle? Don't deny that that would be so right," Wendy laughed, heading into the kitchen with Bebe and Butters in tow.

"Dude, that's sick!" Kyle cried out past Kenny's sleeve.

Cartman looked at them and growled. "Right. Totally fucking weak, you guys."

"What would be a better love story than that of you two?" Bebe asked as she brought in three sandwiches and handed them to the guys. Wendy brought in three more, handing one to Cartman.

"Your meal, lover boy," she batted her eyelashes.

"Shut the hell up, Wendy," he snarled. She giggled and retreated to the couch. Stan sat down beside her and they snuggled in close. Cartman sat on the other side of Stan and rolled his eyes.

"A love story? It'd be more like a murder novel," Kyle grumbled, plopping down on the love seat.

"Yup, the cute little Jew hands the fat Nazi's ass to him," Kenny grinned sitting down next to him. Kyle leaned into him and chuckled.

"Sounds like a good book to me," he smiled.

"Oh please, Jew," Cartman rolled his eyes. Butters came in and handed off six sodas and one for himself. He sat down on the floor across from the others and Bebe sat next to him.

"No, really!" She insisted after a bite of her sandwich. "Kyle and Cartman are like, made for each other in a sense!"

"We're made to cause each other misery and nothing more, Bebe," Kyle commented, sipping his soda.

"Well, I still think you two would be great with each other," Wendy gushed.

"Hey, I'm sitting right here, you know," Kenny frowned, tightening his grip across Kyle's shoulders.

Wendy chuckled. "Trust me, I think you two work really well together, too. But look at it from a romantic perspective. Two lifelong enemies with a common bond: undeniable lust. Then that lust turns into more until finally they form a bond so impenetrable that not even God himself could tear them away from each other."

Kyle and Cartman looked at each other, then quickly turned away and shuddered. "That's just sickening," Kyle muttered.

"You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?" Kenny raised his eyebrow towards her.

She nodded. "Hey, I can't help it. I see a good pair and I try to see what would connect them. In Kyle and Cartman's case, it would be years of unbridled lust brought about by their heated and almost sensual arguments."

Kyle shot his wide eyes towards her. "Sensual?" he squeaked.

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Okay, sensual probably isn't the best word. How about passionate? Admit it, Kyle. No one makes you more passionate about a topic than Cartman."

"Depends on the topic," he shrugged, nuzzling closer into Kenny. "It's not my fault that idiocy makes me go off on a tangent."

"What's that supposed to mean, Jew?" Cartman shouted.

"I'm saying you're a fucking idiot when it comes to most things, you retard."

"Guys, don't start," Stan groaned.

"Leave them be, Stan. Let them build up that lust," Bebe grinned. Kyle and Cartman immediately dropped the subject and turned away from each other. The other five burst out into laughter.

"Well, we finally discovered the secret to getting them to stop," Kenny cracked, planting a small kiss upon Kyle's head as he nibbled at his sandwich in silence.

"That's just fucking weird to think about," Stan muttered, shaking his head. "I mean, Kyle with Kenny is strange enough, but with _Cartman_ of all people? That's just wrong," he chuckled.

"Can you imagine the sex?" Wendy laughed.

"Kahl can't. He has no idea what to expect," Cartman grinned smugly.

Kyle started blushing. "Fuck off, you fucking ass wipe!"

"Piss off, Jew!"

"Anyways," Bebe ignored them, "I think it'd be hot as hell."

"Well that's because Cartman's massive enough to hold the heat of a star," Kyle mumbled.

Stan, Kenny, and Butters chuckled as Wendy and Bebe continued to look thoughtful. "I can see it now," Wendy said softly.

"Wendy, stop imagining my best friend and Fatass having sex! It's fucking disturbing," Stan shook her gently.

"But Stan," she whined, "it'd be so amazing!"

"What the fuck are you on, Wendy?" Kyle asked in disgust. "I really don't need to envision Cartman naked, thank you."

"Why the hell would I want to see a scrawny thing like the Jew naked, Hippie? It's just...weak," Cartman held his tongue out in disgust.

"I'm not scrawny, you're just fucking huge."

"Kahl, you're like a fucking twig. Don't deny it."

"I'm not scrawny!" he shouted.

"Well there's a simple solution to this," Kenny set his food down on the coffee table and did the same for Kyle's. He leaned up and kissed Kyle's cheek gently, working his way down towards his neck. "Take off your clothes and we can see just how scrawny you are," he murmured into the pale form. He turned to see the reactions of the others. Stan and Cartman looked absolutely horrified, while Butters was making a big deal out of not watching them, his face starting to glow red. Wendy and Bebe, however, looked like they were about to throw money at them just to keep them going at it.

"Kenny, s-stop," Kyle pled gently pushing him back. Kenny smirked into the skin. It was so obvious that Kyle didn't want him to stop. If it wasn't for all the other people, Kenny would have dove right into making Kyle's night. But no. They just _had_ to be there, didn't they?

"Oh my god," Bebe said slowly, gaping towards them. "You two are so. hot."

Kenny snickered into Kyle's shoulder. Kyle pushed him back a bit harder and Kenny went backwards into the arm of the love seat, still laughing. Kyle looked at him with crossed arms, but an amused expression. "You're such an asshole, Dude," he smiled.

"But you wuv me anyways," Kenny wrapped his arms around Kyle's waist and pulled him back so he was laying into Kenny's chest.

"See, now **that** is something I can't imagine Kyle and Cartman doing," Stan pointed at them.

Butters smiled. "I think that it could work. I betcha Eric could be affectionate if he really cared for someone."

"You snuggle with Red after banging her, Cartman?" Kenny laughed softly and leaned his head atop Kyle's.

"Red?" Wendy repeated, turning towards Cartman. "_You're_ the one she was going out with?" she squeaked in shock.

"Oh my god...," Bebe shook her head.

"What?!" Cartman spit out. "Is it really that hard to believe that I was actually with someone?"

"No...it's just...I thought that...oh my god," Wendy threw her head into her hands.

"Wends? Wends, are you okay?" Stan asked, embracing her gently.

Wendy looked up at Stan with glistening eyes. "I thought that...she and you...," she trailed off.

"She and I what?" he insisted.

"You think that Stan cheated on you with Red?!" Kyle shrieked, obviously a lot better at reading Wendy than her clueless boyfriend. "Are you fucking serious, Wendy?"

Stan looked from him back to her in shock. "Wendy, you actually thought that I'd cheat on you?!"

"Well, if you had been there, you would have understood!" Bebe insisted, jumping to Wendy's defense.

"Understood what?" Stan asked, his anger starting to spike.

"Stan, calm down," Kyle said gently. He shot him an angry glare, but softened once he saw Kyle's understanding eyes. He took a deep breath and turned back to Wendy.

"Now...what don't I understand?" he asked, placing his hand atop Wendy's.

"We knew that she was with someone...she was just so happy," Wendy sniffed. "She wouldn't say who though...she said it was some huge secret. And I noticed that she hung out around your table a lot...so I thought she was with you, Stan...but apparently she was with Cartman...I'm such a fucking idiot."

"N-now, Wendy, don't you tell yourself that. You're a very intelligent woman," Butters said sweetly. "Anyone could have made that mistake, you can't go beating yourself up over it."

"But...I broke off our friendship. I made her a total outcast...and she convinced her mom to move because I made her so miserable," Wendy let out a small sob.

"YOU HIPPIE-BITCH!" Everyone jumped as Cartman hopped to his feet and glared at Wendy with fury. "It's YOUR fault she's gone?!" He snarled.

Wendy's usually articulate mannerisms seemed to be gone as she fumbled for words. Kyle leapt up from his position with Kenny and stood in front of Cartman. "You can't go blaming her, Cartman," he lectured. "You've only got one year left. Then you can get out of this fucking town and go live with Red. What's done is done and there's no going back."

"Bu-but, It's Wendy's fault that Red isn't here anymore!"

"Oh Jesus Christ, Cartman. At least you still talk to her."

"That's not the point, asshole! How would you feel if someone just took Kenny away?! Huh? How would you fucking feel, Jew? Knowing that you can't touch them when that's all you fucking want to do? Knowing that you don't even have the money to get to each other? How the fuck do you think that would make you feel, Kahl? You may have the most problems out of us seven but you're not the only one with them. You need to pull your big Jew nose out of your ass and realize that there are people in just as much if not more pain than you."

Kyle remained silent.

"That's what I thought," Cartman growled, turning on his heel to head out the door.

"Where are you going?" Stan asked.

"Home. I'm going to go call Red. I'll see you around I guess," he muttered, slamming the door behind him.

"I'm sorry, Eric," Wendy croaked out. He was already too far gone to hear her pathetic whimper. They stared after him in silence before Bebe let out a soft sigh.

"You know, he may not look it, but Cartman sure seems a lot of love to give."

Kyle snorted. "He loves making me suffer, does that count?"

She grinned. "No, that just adds to your sex crave," she watched as a blush crept onto the boy's face. "Anyways, he seems to really care for Red. Good for them. They both need someone."

Wendy sniffed and turned to snuggle into Stan's broad chest. "I'm sorry, Stan...I just didn't know what else to think."

"It's alright," he sighed. "I'm a bit upset, but whatever. We'll get over it," he smiled softly at her, which she returned gratefully. Butters and Bebe watched them with quiet awe as they snuggled into each other.

Kenny looked at Kyle, who was fixated on the door.

_He had no idea how to respond to Cartman...was he just caught off guard? Or was it something more...._

_---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

Kenny and Kyle sat snuggled together on the couch as the day drew nearer to a close. Stan and the others had dispersed awhile after Cartman had stormed out. They had left with Stan warning them playfully not to play too hard tonight since Kyle was still recovering. If looks could kill, Kyle's glare would have brought him down right there and then.

"You spending the night, Dude?" Kyle yawned.

"You're not afraid I'll try to ravish you?" Kenny smirked.

Kyle chuckled. "I trust you more than that, Ken. Give me some credit."

"Even after what I did earlier?"

"What? You mean the scrawny thing?" Kenny nodded. "That didn't really bother me," he shrugged. "It got Fatass to shut up and it's always a hoot to watch Stan squirm."

"True," Kenny mused, wrapping his arms gently around him. Kyle sighed contentedly and nuzzled closer into him. Kenny smiled warmly as he noticed a strange feeling building up in his chest. It was so different from what he was used to...it was like someone had grabbed hold of his lungs, making it difficult to breath...and yet, he couldn't get enough of the feeling. It just felt so damn right.

"So," he started softly. "What's your sudden fascination with me?" he twirled one of Kyle's curls around his finger.

Kyle was silent for a moment before he let out a gentle sigh. "I assure you, this isn't sudden."

Kenny smiled. "Okay, what's with the four-year strong fascination you've had with me?"

Kyle froze. "H-how the fuck did you...," he looked up at Kenny slowly.

"Read your journal. Your parents threw it into your first suitcase."

"Kenny!" Kyle exclaimed with mild desperation edging his voice.

Kenny shrugged. "What? I thought I'd get some insight on why you felt the way you did. Trust me, I'm beyond flattered. I'm just curious as to why you of all people would like somebody like me."

Kyle shrugged back. "Maybe I envy the fact that you're so different. You know that they say opposites attract, so maybe that's it...I can't say for sure though."

"So my favorite little Jew wants himself a bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks, hm?" Kenny smirked.

Kyle smirked back. "Maybe I do, maybe I don't. Maybe I want the happy medium."

"Oh? And do I happen to fit this medium?"

Kyle looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think you rank up pretty damn close to it."

"Well, good," he kissed the top of Kyle's curls.

"So why are you suddenly keen on me?" Kyle asked with a smile.

Kenny let his head fall listlessly to his shoulder as he pondered this. "Ya know. I'm not too sure. It's like, whenever I'm around you, I feel totally different. I feel...I dunno, human, I guess. Usually I just let shit slide off my back and don't give a damn...but when you're around, I feel like I need to care. Because there's someone worth caring for right beside me," he smiled.

"Dude...," Kyle gazed up at him with shimmering jades. "You're so gay."

Kenny laughed, "I know. But what can I say? You make me the gayest guy around."

"I'm not sure how to respond to that," Kyle chuckled.

"Then don't. Let me show you both sides of my happy medium," Kenny grinned, gently pushing Kyle onto his back. He leaned on top of him and was delighted when Kyle allowed this without a fight. He slide his arms up and held Kyle's face as he locked lips with his. He saw Kyle slowly close his eyes and began to do the same. He gently slid his tongue in-between Kyle's lips and began to let their tongues dance with each other. Kyle tasted slightly like potato chips and soda, and damn was it tasty. Kenny let out a small moan as he felt Kyle's arms reaching up to grasp his hair and pull him closer. Kyle let out a tiny purr in response that went straight to Kenny's libido. He gasped slightly as Kyle shifted his knee and it brushed against his groin. Damn his hormones! He tried to mentally scold himself for starting to get a boner, but any arguments were soon lost in the heat of the young Jew's tender lips.

"Goddamn, you taste so good," Kenny moaned into Kyle's mouth. Kyle chuckled softly, not breaking the pace of their kiss. Suddenly, he stopped and whipped his head around. Kenny continued to kiss him, not fully in the zone at the moment with his imminent stiffy and all. He continued to work his way down towards Kyle's exposed neck, but noticed that Kyle wasn't moving, so he lifted his head to see what was going on. Kyle was still wrapped around his head, but he was staring off into space.

"Dude, are you okay?" Kenny half-panted.

"Something's out there," Kyle whispered, glancing at the door.

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Kyle, you're so damn paranoid."

"No, no, I mean it. I mean, I feel like something's out there."

Kenny groaned and lifted himself off of Kyle's frame. He trotted over towards the door and swung it open, revealing the hallway of the complex. "Dude, there's nothing here," he shrugged. Kyle eyed it suspiciously and made his way over to beside Kenny.

"It's not here," he whispered. Suddenly, his eyes widened and he took off past Kenny and down the complex stairs.

"Kyle!" Kenny shouted after him. He slammed the door shut and pursued him. Kenny panted desperately, trying to keep up with the young track star, but finding himself shit outta luck. Kyle led him far from the building and off into the empty streets.

"_What the fuck is going on?!"_ Kenny thought as he passed the quiet houses, listening to his and Kyle's footsteps slamming down onto the pavement. Kyle veered left into what could be called the 'other' side of town. The place for hookers and thieves. Somewhere that not even Kenny would be caught dead roaming around.

"Kyle, stop!" he pled. Kyle did indeed stop, but didn't look back towards Kenny. He was glancing around left and right, looking for something. Kenny caught up to him and stood with his hands on his knees, panting heavily. "Dude...," he gasped. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Something's calling me," he murmured. Kenny stared at him. He didn't have the fucking money to put Kyle in psychology.

"Come on, Dude," he pulled on his sleeve. "Let's go home. This place is dangerous." Kyle didn't look back, but allowed Kenny to drag him off backwards towards the safer part of town.

"Wait!" he cried, planting his feet on the ground. Kenny turned around and cocked his eyebrow. "Look!" Kyle pointed down the street towards a glowing green figure.

"Holy shit," Kenny gaped. He continued to hold Kyle's sleeve as he darted towards the spirit. The figure eyed him suspiciously, breaking into a sprint before they could reach her.

"Wait, Dude!" Kenny cried. "We need to talk to you!"

"Kenny?!" Kyle gasped. "What's going on?!"

Kenny turned back and smiled at him as they ran. "Welcome to your first case, Kyle." Kyle blinked at him as he turned back around. They continued to chase down the young woman, dodging every obstacle they could, until Kenny ran right into a man exiting one of the bars.

"Watch where you're going," the man sneered. They were soon joined by two other men.

"Sorry, Dude," Kenny muttered, trying to get around him to keep on going. He was starting to lose sight of the spirit, and Kyle obviously was, too, as he tried to see around a large man in front of him.

"Where do you think you're going?" the man asked, pushing Kenny back a bit.

"We're kind of in a hurry, could you move?" Kenny asked curtly. The men all chuckled a bit.

"Ya know, you've got a hell of a mouth, kid."

"We're sorry. Could you **please** move?!" Kyle growled through clenched teeth. The man raised his eyebrow at him. Kenny sniffed the air and caught the distinct aromas of beer and whiskey wafting around the group. Not good.

One of the other men stepped up towards Kyle. "Ya know," he said quietly. "You got a pretty face," he smirked, grasping Kyle's chin and turning it sideways. Kyle pulled away from him and Kenny pulled him back beside him possessively.

The men chuckled. "Barney," the first man said, "I think you might have struck a nerve there."

Barney laughed heartily. "Well, how was I supposed to know we were talking to fags, Mitch?" Kenny growled at them and tried to lead Kyle around them.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Mitch exclaimed. "Why are ya leavin' so soon? We thought you'd like to have some fun," he grinned.

"I'd rather get my teeth pulled thanks," Kenny muttered, holding Kyle tightly against him.

"Aw, don't be like that," one of the other men spoke up. "You've got a rather nice looking face, too, Blondie."

"Not quite as pretty as Carrot-top, but nice nonetheless," Barney snickered. Kenny and Kyle glanced at each other worriedly. This was not good.

Mitch grabbed Kenny's arm and tried to wrench him away from Kyle. Kyle growled at him and tried to pull him back to no avail as Barney came up from behind him and grasped his arms.

"Let go!" Kenny shouted, trying to wrestle his way out of Mitch's grasp.

"But we haven't had our fun yet," the man whispered hotly in his ear. Kenny shuddered with disgust and turned to look at Kyle, who was having just as much trouble getting away from Barney.

"What the fuck do you want?!" Kyle screamed angrily. He yelped as a hand was shoved over his mouth by the remaining man.

"Just you, Dearie," Barney smirked. Kyle shouted incoherently against the other man's hand in fury.

Kenny bit his lip and tried to look around for a way out, not finding much as an option. "Just let us go," he half-pled.

Mitch grasped his hair and yanked his head back so he could face him. "Nah," he responded coolly. "We wanna have some fun with you boys. Is that too much to ask?" Kenny stared at him in horror. Mitch smirked at him and turned his attention back towards Kyle's assailants. "Richard, who do you reckon should be first?"

The man silencing Kyle looked up and shrugged. "Either way. Doesn't matter to me."

"I personally vote for Red over here," Barney inputted. "He seems like he's got a lot more spice to him."

"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HIM!" Kenny screeched, thrashing in Mitch's grip.

"Aw, don't worry, Blondes," Barney smirked. "We won't break him...maybe."

"OW!" They all shot their heads around as Richard flung his hand off of Kyle's mouth and waved it around frantically with little drops of blood flinging around aimlessly. Kyle stared at him and breathed heavily, a small stream of blood running down his chin.

"Don't fucking touch us," he snarled.

Barney smirked at him. "We'll do what we want, Kid." He pushed Kyle down onto the ground and laughed.

"Get off of me," he scowled, struggling under his grip.

"Just hold still and we'll be done before you know it," Barney chuckled. Kyle groaned in frustration and tried to squirm away. "Richie, hold his legs," Barney grinned.

"_Fuck,"_ Kenny thought. "Get away from him!" he raged. Mitch slammed his palm over his mouth and smiled at him.

"Don't worry, Blondie. Barn's always gentle."

"You fucking drunken fatass!" Kyle screamed at Barney, who was caressing his cheek.

"You sure you're a boy?" Barney asked, unfazed by Kyle's shout. "Cause you got such a pretty face, Red."

"Goddamn it, stop!" Kyle tried to pull his face away from the drunkard's hands.

"But it's so nice to touch," Barney gushed, grabbing his chin and yanking him back forcefully. Kyle darted his eyes towards Kenny, pleading for some form of help. Kenny stared back, terrified. He knew that these cases wouldn't go right, he just fucking knew it. He watched as Barney leaned his lips towards Kyle's ear and he started to tremble. Kyle yanked his head away from Barney once more, and brought it straight back into his assailant's nose.

"Son of a bitch!" Barney shouted as he stumbled away from Kyle, releasing his arms. Kyle shot his freed appendages up on either side of his chest and pushed up, sliding his legs out from under Richard as he went. Richard fell back into the wall behind them, sliding down in a silent slump. Kyle tried to catch his breath, looking at Barney, who was cradling his nose and muttering expletives with blood gushing from beneath his hands. Kyle turned from him and glared at Mitch, who still had a tight grip on Kenny.

Kenny shook off Mitch's hand and gazed fearfully at Kyle. "Kyle, run!" he begged. Kyle ignored him and continued to scowl at Mitch.

"You heard him, Kyle," he taunted. "Run off and play." Kyle growled and sprinted towards them.

"Duck, Kenny!" he shouted as he placed his fist up in the air. Kenny tried to comply, but found his head being help upright by his hair as Mitch ducked down. Kenny shut his eyes, only to feel his arms being released as Mitch fell to the ground, clutching his mouth.

Kenny blinked, staring at the fallen drunk as Kyle grabbed his hand and started leading them away. They ran past the damaged fuckers and towards the direction they were originally headed. Kyle continued to lead, his hand firmly grasping Kenny's as they sprinted away. Kenny had yet to wrap his mind around what'd just happened.

"K-Kyle," he mumbled. "We're safe, you can stop running." Kyle looked back at him panting and shook his head.

"Not just yet," he pointed in front of them. "Look!" Kenny followed his gesture and saw their green friend up ahead a good bit, trying to escape them.

"Dude, good eye! You can run faster, go get her!" Kyle nodded and released Kenny's hand, speeding up in front of him.

"_Holy shit that kid can run,"_ Kenny gaped as he watched Kyle leap over trash cans and discarded boxes without breaking his stride. Kenny, in contrast, kept tripping over everything that got in his way. "Goddamn it, I need to join a gym," he muttered after falling over a seventh box. He glanced up to see Kyle grabbing the girls arm and holding her back.

"Calm down," he could hear him saying. "We're not going to hurt you!"

"Let go!" She screeched.

"It's okay!" He pled. "We're just here to help you!" Kenny finally made it up to them both, panting heavily.

"O-okay," he gasped out. "I'll...I'll explain."

"God, Kenny, we have a track at school, use it," Kyle quirked his eyebrow.

"S-shut up, Kyle. We're not all built like a t-twig." He tried to catch his breath and looked up at the girl still secured in Kyle's grip. She was trembling, a deep look of mistrust set upon her face.

"Don't worry," Kyle assured her gently, relaxing his grip a little. "We're not going to hurt you."

"Then what do you want?" She shouted.

"We want to help," Kenny said quietly. "We're here to help you pass on into Heaven or Hell."

"Why? Who the hell are you? What did I do to you?!" She pled.

"If I let go, will you stay here and hear us out? Or will we have to chase you down again?" Kyle asked.

"I-I'll stay...just please let go." Kyle released her arms and she rubbed them gingerly, turning to face the two of them. "Now answer me," she demanded.

Kenny grinned goofily at her. "I'm Kenny. That's Kyle," he jerked his thumb towards the redhead. Kyle shot her a small smile and nodded in acknowledgement.

"I'm Bubbles."

Kyle quirked his eyebrow. "Bubbles?"

She blushed. "Well...that's what they call me anyway. Why are you two here? Am I in trouble or something?"

Kenny shook his head. "Not necessarily," he glanced around at their surroundings. It was a bit too open for his liking. "Hey, why don't you head back with us to his apartment so we can talk a bit more privately. People are going to start thinking us two are insane."

She sighed heavily. "Fifty per hour, thirty for a half. I accept no less than that."

Kenny and Kyle raised their eyebrows. "Um," Kyle started. "I don't think you quite understand, Bubbles. We're...um..."

"Just come with us," Kenny inputted quickly. "We'll explain when we get there. Do you happen to know the best way out of here?" He really was not wanting to face those drunkards again.

She nodded at them. "Yeah, follow me and I'll lead you back to your little haven," she muttered. They glanced at each other and shrugged before following her out. As they walked down the dirty and deserted alleyways, Kenny and Kyle took the time to look at their case, trying to put two and two together about her.

"_I have to touch her,_" Kenny thought to himself. _"Otherwise we may never figure this shit out._" They continued walking until they hit the familiar and clean surroundings of their half of South Park.

"I feel a hell of a lot better out here," Kenny smirked. "The other side reminds me too much of home."

Kyle smiled back and Bubbles just looked at him confusedly. They headed down the walkway and into the complex.

"Boys, why did you go running out of here so fast?" Sally asked them with a worried expression set on her face.

"Yea, you two were acting like the apartment was on fire," Joel added. "Are you okay?"

Kyle smiled. "Yea, but one of our friends said that he was hurt. Stupid asshole was just playing a trick on us," he shrugged.

"Well, he's not a very good friend then, is he?" Sally asked.

"As I said, he's an asshole," Kyle remarked, heading past them and leading the other two up the stairs.

"Night, boys!" Joel called out.

"Night," they responded, ascending the stairs. Kyle opened the door to the apartment and allowed the others to go in. He softly shut it behind him as he stepped inside and sighed.

"Dude, you're fucking quick on your feet," Kenny remarked with an amused expression.

Kyle shrugged sheepishly. "My parents trained me to be a lawyer like Dad, remember?" Kenny nodded and turned his attention to Bubbles, who was standing in the middle of the floor looking rather apprehensive.

"Sit down," he told her. "Trust me, the story is long and you're going to want to have something comfortable with you," he smiled.

She blinked at him and slowly sat herself down on the couch. Kyle fell back onto the love seat as Kenny got them some sodas.

"Hey, Bubbles, I'm curious, do spirits drink anything?"

She chuckled, "we can if we want to."

"Well, do you want to?"

"Sure, why not?" she smiled slightly at him. He smiled back and handed her a can as he plopped down next to Kyle.

He leaned forward and stared at her curiously. "So, you can just choose when to interact with objects?"

She nodded as she sipped at the soda. "Yea, if I didn't want to sit on this couch...," she started to slide down through the cushion before standing herself back up. "See?"

"Whoa, that's freaking sweet!"

"Yea," Kyle smirked. "It'd be great for getting out of those damned English tests, huh Ken?"

"Shut up, Kyle," Kenny playfully smacked his arm. Kyle snickered before turning his attention back to Bubbles.

"So, what exactly are you guys wanting from me?"

Kenny leaned back and folded his hands. "Answers. Not many. Just your average questionnaire, really."

"Ok?"

"Well, we just need your name, when you were born, when you died, how you died, and then we need to figure out why you're stuck."

"Stuck?" she asked.

"Why aren't you in Heaven or Hell," Kyle explained. Kenny grinned. That kid caught on pretty damn fast.

"Why is that necessary? I mean, what does it matter to you if I'm among the living or not?"

"Well, it doesn't affect us, per se," Kenny gestured to himself and Kyle. "But it pisses Satan off. The souls that are stuck screw up Hell's system and it makes everything messed up. That's the nutshell version really."

"That...doesn't really make sense to me."

Kenny laughed. "Trust me, I feel the same way. It's a bit silly sounding, but that's how it is." He pulled his notebook out from his waistband of his jeans and uncapped his pen. "Alrighty, Bubbles. Birthday, deathday, reason you died, if you please."

"I was born on April 12th in 1988. I died on...I think it was October 9th of 2005...and I died because...well...,"

"Because...?" Kyle urged her as Kenny wrote down what he could.

"Well, I was killed by my...boss."

"Why'd he kill you?" Kenny asked, raising his head from his notes.

She shrugged. "I don't know, probably a number of reasons. I didn't earn enough money and I was pretty much a risk to his whole...company."

"So, you weren't making your pimp enough money and he killed you so he wouldn't have to deal with the authorities busting him for having a minor working the streets, is that what you're trying to say?" Kyle asked quietly.

Kenny and Bubbles blinked slowly at him. "Y-yea," she nodded.

Kenny continued to stare at him. He never would have been able to put all of that together so damn fast. Kyle caught him staring and gave him a playful smirk and wink. Kenny smiled back. It was good to have a partner.

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_A/N: I almost didn't upload this because I got NO reviews on chapter 14 and it saddened me =(_

_Luckily for you, I'm impatient._

_I made this chapter so Kyle could have his moment of being a freaking ninja. I don't consider him to be the weak damsel in distress, in fact, I've always considered him the strongest character on the show. You'd have to be to put up with Cartman's bullshit. I just love Kyle put into situations where he's backed against the wall and needs someone's help. Always have, always will =)_

_Thanks for reading and HOPEFULLY some reviewing. I'm not gonna lie. 16 ain't comin' till I get at least one review. I'm greedy =P_


	16. Yin Yang

_A/N: Isn't it funny? You threaten to not update and the reviews just come right in XD_

_Actually, I was concerned about 14 not having any because I was like, 'wtf? Did people not get it or what?' So I did have some reason for wanting at least one that wasn't just me being a prick XD_

_I have a feeling Bubbles is gonna be a fun character. She's based off of an inside joke between me and my best friend, haha. so enjoy =)_

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Kenny and Kyle sat out on the couch talking to each other quietly as Bubbles lied sleeping in Kyle's bed. They watched as the clock across from them slowly ticked the time away, finally bringing their hellacious day to a close.

"Dude, I'm sure she would've been cool with being on the couch," Kenny commented.

Kyle shrugged. "I don't mind being out here, and it'd be rude to make her sleep on this thing. Why does it matter? You'd just rather have me in the bed?" He smirked.

"Kid, I don't care where the hell we are. Bed, floor, middle of the street, doesn't matter to me," he winked.

"Pig," he chuckled.

"Only if I'm a kosher pig," he grinned, wrapping his arm around him. He felt so worn out. They hadn't really learned much else from Bubbles, she was exhausted, too so Kyle just shooed her off to bed. After the deal with Satan, Toby attacking Kyle, and chasing down Bubbles, he came to the conclusion that most people were wrong. There were too many freaking hours in the day. Which reminded him... "So," he started. "I never did get the chance to ask you. When the hell did you become a ninja?"

"What?" Kyle stared at him in confusion.

"Earlier with the bar freaks. I mean, you freaking kicked their asses!"

Kyle shrugged. "I dunno, it wasn't that big of a deal."

"Stop being modest, it **was** a big deal. You took down not one, not two, but **three** guys that were all twice your size and we got away without a scratch! Even Stanny wouldn't have been able to do that!"

"I'm sure he could have. He's a lot stronger than I am."

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Stan focuses too much on just trying to punch the other guy's lights out. You only did that to one. The others you took down with some degree of tact. How'd you manage to hit that sucker's jaw, anyway?"

Kyle smirked and poked the side of his head. "Reverse psychology. Idiot took my advice directed towards you and didn't even notice that my other fist was coming up from under."

"See? Ninja."

He laughed softly. "I think my hair's too bright for me to sneak around without being noticed."

"Well, yeah. That and the fact that you're just fucking hot and all eyes go directly towards you," Kenny purred.

"You're rather complimentary, Kenny. And snuggly," he chuckled. "Never would have pegged you of all people for being that kind of guy."

Kenny paused. He was right. He'd never been like this before to any other person. Even sex had never prompted him to be so affectionate. "Guess it's just because I'm with you," he smiled.

Kyle smiled back and let out a gentle yawn. Kenny raised his eyebrow in amusement. Kyle's yawn sounded so gentle and sweet, almost like a kitten. A pretty little Jewish kitten.

"Kyle, that freak was right. You could totally pull off being a girl."

Kyle shot his head at him and narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Kenny smirked. "You're cute, that's all."

"Cute? What? Do you want me to put on a skirt and prance around throwing flowers everywhere?"

"Hell yes!" Kenny half-shouted, grinning brightly.

"Oh shut up, Ken," he pouted. He crossed his arms and stared in front of them with his usual annoyed expression. Kenny observed this and couldn't help but smile. He had only been joking about what he'd said earlier...but the more he thought about it, the truer it became. Kyle really was built like a girl. His hair was always soft and shiny, always perfect without him ever actually trying. His facial features were all small and narrow aside from his full, pink lips and those big, green eyes of his. He always looked so soft and fragile, as if a gentle gust would send him spiraling out of control. If Kenny didn't know any better, he would have assumed that he could take the kid down with no issue. But that was just a part of the little Jew; outside appearances overshadowing what lied within him: strength, love, hope, and pain.

"Kenny, I'm not putting on a skirt," he muttered firmly, breaking Kenny's train of thought.

"Aww, you ruin all the fun, Ky...How about nothing at all, then?" he purred, pouncing gently on top of him.

"We have company, Kenny," Kyle grinned, pushing the blonde's bangs from his eyes.

"Fuck the company," he growled huskily.

"No thanks. Necrophilia doesn't seem that appealing to me."

Kenny chuckled and gently placed his lips atop Kyle's. Kyle sighed gently into his mouth, returning the kiss eagerly. Kenny slid his tongue into his mouth, savoring every texture and taste he found. Kyle's fingers slowly traced the contours of his spine, making him shiver slightly. He could feel himself getting hard in his jeans, but this time he wasn't going to scold himself. He wanted this so badly, to be completely with Kyle. To express his feelings in ways other than off hand flirting.

He leaned back a bit further and gazed into Kyle's eyes. They were darker than their usual shade, but were shimmering in the pale light of the lamp on the side table. They seemed so different, so filled with a combination of love and lust, and damn was it turning Kenny on. He smirked and dove his head down, suckling gently on the skin right below Kyle's ear lobe. The small boy gasped slightly and shook, not used to getting this kind of attention. Kenny moved back towards his lips, surprised when Kyle kissed him back with a furious passion. Not that he was complaining or anything.

Kyle pulled back slightly and nibbled on Kenny's bottom lip, staring at him with those darkened eyes. Kenny couldn't believe how much effect Kyle was having on him from just little movements. Usually someone had to be completely stripped down before he started to feel like this, yet Kyle was just kissing him and he was just about ready to go.

Kyle moved down slightly and let his teeth graze Kenny's neck. Kenny let out a little mewl, amazed by how great it felt. Kyle started to kiss the side of Kenny's neck, gently sitting himself up as each moment passed but never letting his attention slip from his throat.

"Oh my god, Kyle," he whispered, shutting his eyes and trembling softly. Kyle was finally seated, still under Kenny, and supporting himself by gently wrapping his arms around the taller boy's neck. Kenny's arms wrapped around his back and pulled him closer. He turned his head and started nibbling on the boy's earlobe. Kyle let out a shuddery breath that turned hot against Kenny's neck. Kenny licked his lips as he felt his groin come into contact with Kyle's for a brief moment, delighted in the fact that he was just about as wound up as he was.

Kyle suddenly went from suckling his throat to tracing Kenny's jugular with the tip of his tongue, making Kenny shake violently with desire. Kenny took his hand and slid it up underneath Kyle's shirt, lightly tracing his toned abs with his fingertips. Kyle softly purred into his skin and it was enough for Kenny. He pushed Kyle back a little to rip his shirt off over his head. Once he was free from it, Kyle shook his head gently to get his hair out of his eyes as Kenny licked his lips at the sight of Kyle's torso. Sure, he'd seen it plenty of times before, but this time was different.

Kyle was his, this moment was theirs and theirs alone.

"God, Kyle," he whispered tracing his finger along the band aid on the boy's face. "You're so fucking perfect." Kyle blushed as Kenny leaned in to connect their lips once more. Kenny brought up his hands to intertwine his fingers in Kyle's curls to pull him closer as Kyle began to leisurely unbutton Kenny's shirt. Once he finally undid the last button, he trailed the back of his fingers up Kenny's stomach. Kenny shuddered as the boy's cool touch interacted with his blazing skin. He needed Kyle so badly it physically hurt. Kyle slid the shirt off of his broad shoulders and threw it to the side, not breaking away from Kenny's all-to-eager mouth.

Kenny gently pulled away, cupping Kyle's chin in his hands as he moved back. "Kyle," he said softly. "We don't have to if you don't want to." Kyle gave a soft chuckle.

"Do you really think I would have let you take my shirt off if I was thinking otherwise, you moron?"

Kenny smirked. "Good. Because otherwise I would have been in that bathroom for an awfully long time."

"Dude, that's too much inf-," he was cut off by Kenny slamming onto his lips passionately once more. Kyle fell back slightly in shock, but quickly regained his senses and pressed back into him. Kenny pressed him back into the couch and broke away, smiling saucily at him.

"You sure you want the 'hood rat' to be your first?" He asked.

Kyle chuckled. "I wanna see both sides of your medium," he smirked.

"Oh, trust me, you will," he winked. He bent down and ran his tongue over Kyle's left nipple, making it stand up for him. Once it was up, he bit down on it gently. Kyle gasped and arched his back slightly as Kenny moved over to begin working on his other nipple.

"Jesus, Kenny," he whimpered as Kenny ground his hips into his own. He arched them up a bit involuntarily and pressed himself harder against Kenny's growing member. Kenny moved his attention from Kyle's chest back up to his neck, sucking hard at it and letting it grow red before releasing the skin and licking his mark. He walked his hand down Kyle's abs before he got to his pant line. Kyle intertwined his fingers in Kenny's coarse hair, gripping and releasing over and over. Kenny continued working as he unbuttoned Kyle's pants slowly, watching for Kyle's reaction. Kyle let out a soft mewl as Kenny brushed his fingers right under his navel. Kenny took it as an invitation to dive his hand further down, stroking Kyle's cock lazily with the back of his index finger. He smiled as Kyle let out a soft moan. That was music to his ears.

Kyle had an absolutely adorable moan; filled with lust and a slight tremor, yet a higher pitch than any other moan Kenny had heard before. The effects of the sound were only intensified by the heat he felt emanating from the smaller body. He had to hear it again. It was almost like an addiction. There was no fucking way he was going cold turkey on it now. He backed off of Kyle and yanked his pants off of him, revealing ruby boxers with a slight rise in them. Kyle sat himself up and locked his lips upon Kenny's once more.

Kenny had never kissed anyone this much before. The girls he slept with usually tried to make it happen like that, but he didn't want to be so close to their faces. The guys he'd been with just wanted to fuck and drop. He always thought that that would be his preferred method of sleeping with someone, but this experience begged to tell otherwise. It was certainly heightening how he felt. Each time he made contact with any of Kyle's skin, he seemed to be set aflame, his sense shooting off in every direction, and he couldn't get enough of it.

Kyle unbuttoned his pants for him and he slid them off, not wanting to stop any kind of contact with the small Jew. They both sat on their knees on the cushions, cupping each other's face in their hands and making out furiously.

"Goddamn it, Kyle, you're so fucking sexy," Kenny moaned into his mouth.

"I can tell," he chuckled, motioning his eyes down towards Kenny's cock prodding against his thigh.

"Underwear just hides the look of my ass," he smirked.

"I'm sure it'd look killer no matter what," he smiled back.

"Aw, why thank you my beautiful little Jew," he kissed him gently on the nose, pushing his red locks back.

Kyle smirked devilishly and pressed him onto his back. He must of caught Kenny's look of surprise as he murmured, "my turn now," into his ear. Kenny's breath hitched as Kyle started to run his finger along Kenny's length and kiss his way down his torso.

"H-holy shit, Kyle," Kenny gently brought his arms up and pressed his hands against Kyle's head, urging him to keep that mouth going south. Kyle paused before reaching Kenny's throbbing cock. Kenny could tell that he was hesitant and groaned a bit in frustration. He really needed Kyle right now. Like the kind of need that rips you apart seam by seam until you either get it or die of frustration. His groans melted away into sensual purrs as Kyle planted a small kiss on his inner thigh. He ran his tongue along his length, sending Kenny into a tremble of ecstasy.

"Oh my god, Ky. Please for the love of Moses don't stop," Kenny pled. He could hear Kyle laughing softly and tried to listen for his response, finding his hearing being drowned away as he moaned in pleasure. Kyle took the head of his cock and suckled on it gently, slowly working his way down the member, bobbing his head as he went. Kenny whimpered softly and clawed the sides of the cushions as Kyle continued to work.

He'd been with so many other people, he'd done so much in the past, but all of that amounted to nothing compared to how he was feeling now. He knew that this would actually be a memory, and he'd wake up in Kyle's arms, not regretting what he'd done. Not making excuses to stumble away from the boy in the morning after. It all felt just so damn right.

He raked his fingernails against the cushions vigorously as Kyle increased his pace and sucked harder. He relished in the feeling of that damp tongue running up and down his aching cock, and the hands that were teasing his balls, pushing him closer and closer to his edge. He felt it approaching and he slammed his head back against the couch, whispering Kyle's name in desperation. His hips jerked up time and again, pressing deep into the young Jew's throat, prompting small moans from his end, giving Kenny a tingle that ran straight from his cock up his spine.

"Oh fuck!" he gasped as he neared his peak. He bit his bottom lip as he felt it getting closer...and they heard a shrill shriek coming from the bedroom.

Kyle whipped his mouth off of Kenny's cock just as he was exploding, his residue flying into the young Jew's hair and face. "Ah, Jesus," he cried as he fell backwards clasping his right eye.

Kenny sat up straight away, panting and numb, but looking at him in concern. "Dude...are you....oh geez, are you okay?"

Kyle looked up at him still holding his eye. "I just have a fucking load in my eye. No problem."

"Sorry, Dude," he shrugged sheepishly. They heard another shriek and turned towards the bedroom door. Kenny jumped up and threw on his jeans, wincing as his sensitive cock came in contact with the rough denim. "Dude, go clean up, I'll check on her," he stated quickly, rushing past Kyle who was gathering up his clothes quickly and trying to dash off to the bathroom. He busted the door open and scanned the room for Bubbles. She was lying in the bed, thrashing around furiously.

"Bubbles?" He shouted. "Bubbles, wake up!" He ran over to the bed and tried to get her to stay still. She started to flutter her eyes, though she was still fidgeting around like crazy. She screamed again as she opened her eyes, pushing away from Kenny and falling to the floor. "Bubbles, it's Kenny!" he pled. "Calm down!"

She stared up at him, panting. "I...I don't...how did I get down here?" she cried softly.

Kenny's expression eased as he looked down on her. "You had a nightmare, Kid."

"I-I did?"

He nodded. "You were screaming like a banshee. Musta been one hell of a dream."

"Bubbles? You okay?" Kyle asked as he entered the room, his hair and skin wet from his quick rinse. Kenny smirked slightly as he saw him limping a bit, apparently having trouble coping with his boner rubbing against his jeans.

She nodded softly. "I had a bad dream...apparently."

"You don't remember it?" he asked softly, holding out his hand to help her up. She grasped it and shook her head.

"N-no. It...it was scary as hell though, I guess...my heart's going insane."

"Spirits have hearts?" Kyle asked, his eyebrow raised.

"Well, they breathe, eat, and sleep, so it doesn't surprise me," Kenny grinned. Kyle nodded his head.

"True," he mused. He turned back to Bubbles and placed his hand on her shivering shoulder. "You think you can go back to sleep?" he asked with concern in his voice. "You're obviously exhausted."

She sniffed slightly and nodded. "Y-yea...thanks you guys," she smiled gratefully.

"No problem, Kid, you get some rest. We'll talk in the morning," Kenny said, following Kyle out the door. He softly shut the door behind him and turned to see Kyle plopped down on the chair, his knees pulled up to his chest.

Kenny smirked and walked over to him. "Didn't think you'd know so much about pleasing someone, my little Jew," he leaned on the back of the chair above him.

"Didn't think I would, either," Kyle chuckled softly.

"Well you did excellent for your first time. A plus."

"Oh thank you, oh gracious teacher of mine," Kyle rolled his eyes playfully.

"Ha ha. I'm just gonna have to repay you sometime, my Dear," Kenny leaned down and met his lips, when he was overtaken by coldness.

_It stared at him. No, not just him. Them. He felt a hand in his own, but couldn't place just where it was coming from. It stared at them with hate. With jealousy. A long awkward silence passed through the air as it continued to drill holes in his body with it's dark red eyes. Finally, it just turned and moved away. Slowly dragging itself further into the darkness. He turned to try to make out the figure next to him...it seemed so close, and yet so far from him. He took his hand and tried to reach out towards the other, but it faded away all too soon as light once again reigned supreme in his mind......_

"Holy fuck," he gasped. He glanced around, finding Kyle's apartment as he had left it. He turned towards the young boy, who was curled up tighter than before, looking around wildly and shivering.

"K-Kyle," he started. "Are you okay?"

"Dude, I just had a fucking hallucination!"

Kenny gaped at him slightly. "Hallucination? Was it a shadow? Was it just staring at you?"

Kyle shot his head up and stared at Kenny. "How'd you know it was a shadow?"

"That happens with these powers. I...well, apparently **we** can see why the person, in this case Bubbles, is stuck. I just had a vision, too."

Kyle still gazed at him, nodding slightly in understanding. "It wasn't staring at me though, it fucking attacked me!" he said with a slight waver in his voice. Kenny raised his eyebrow.

"That's fucking weird," he murmured. "Usually, I don't get a vision unless I touch the person. When I grabbed Bubbles to calm her down, I didn't see anything."

"Did you touch her earlier?"

Kenny thought back through the day. "No," he declared. "Only you did, when you caught her. Her and I didn't share so much as a handshake." He raked his fingers through his hair in confusion. "What the fuck is going on?" He stressed.

Kyle sat curled up still, pondering for a moment as Kenny paced in front of him. "Maybe we're both some sort of passage?" he suggested, sounding rather unsure.

"Passage? What?"

"Well, think about it," he said slowly, trying to piece it together. "I touched her and you didn't. We've been touching each other all night, but nothing happened," he pointed out.

"Mm, I'd sure say so. Best touching of my life," Kenny grinned.

"Ken. Focus," Kyle said firmly. "Okay, then you grabbed her, so you made contact with her, and you didn't see anything."

"Right...."

"Well, we walked out of the room without any kind of touching. Once we kissed though, we both got these visions."

"I'm not really following."

"I think that we both have two sides of the sight. We have to both contact the spirit in some form or another, but only once you and I touch can we actually see the vision."

"Very good, Kyle. Kenny was right, you are bright," a voice came from behind them. They whipped around to find Damien staring back at them with a small smile upon his face.

"Jesus Christ!" Kyle yelped as he pushed himself against the opposite arm of the chair.

"Goddamn it, Damien," Kenny growled, grasping at his chest trying to slow his heart rate down. "You need a fucking cell phone so we won't have to deal with this shit."

Damien grinned childishly. "Well that would just take all the fun out of it," he laughed, stepping towards them.

"What do you want, Dude?" Kenny asked.

"Just coming to check up on you. I can see that you're not too busy right now," he raised an eyebrow at their exposed chests.

"S-shut up, Damien," Kyle blushed.

"We're fine. Go away," Kenny said curtly.

Damien got an annoyed frown upon his face. "Oh, now that you're immortal, you're too good for me?"

Kenny sighed in frustration. "Not what I meant. There has to be another reason you're here."

Damien nodded. "True. I came to tell you basically all that Kyle just said."

"Okay, well we know all that already," Kenny said.

"Ken, let him talk," Kyle stated softly.

"Yes, Ken. Let me talk," Damien mocked, batting his eyelids.

"Either talk or go fuck yourself, Demon-boy."

"No wonder you never got any house guests, McCormick. You're rude to others."

"Just fucking talk!" he growled angrily.

"Alright, geez. Anyways," he looked between the both of them. "You two are connected by more than your dicks and your simple abilities to see auras and all that good stuff."

"Okay?" Kyle urged him softly.

"Your powers are basically a yin-yang kind of principle."

"Yin-yang?" Kenny blinked at him.

"He means that they balance," Kyle explained. "Yin and Yang are the two parts of the Chinese belief involved in Taoism. Yang represented light and the Earth, depending on the myth you read. Yin, in contrast, was dark and the sky. Good and evil, black and white. They were always together to create balance within the world and represent how to come about inner peace."

Damien nodded approvingly. "Very nice, Broflovski. You're much smarter than I gave you credit for. Course, falling for someone like Kenny's gonna drop your IQ a few points..."

"Hey, shut up," Kenny growled. Kyle laughed quietly at his reaction. Kenny sighed and stared at Damien. "Anyways, what do you mean by they balance?"

"You both had separate visions just then, yes? Kyle was attacked and Kenny was just standing there?" They nodded. "These two visions must be combined to form the full picture," he explained. "Bubbles in there," he gestured to the bedroom door, "had these two events happen that caused her problem. You need to put them together and figure out just what it was that made her stuck."

"Okay, that won't be too hard," Kenny shrugged.

"Oh, I'm not done," he grinned sheepishly. "Kyle, tell me, how did you find Bubbles?"

Kenny turned to stare at him, wanting to know this as well. He'd let it slip out of his mind, but now that he remembered it, he was just as curious as Damien.

"I-I don't know," he stammered. "Something just told me that I **had** to find whatever was calling me in that direction."

Damien smiled gently at him, "Congratulations, Kyle. You're the first to discover one of your unique abilities."

"Unique abilities? What the fuck, Dude?!" Kenny half-shouted. "Is this more fine print that your dear old dad forgot to mention?!"

Damien shrugged, "he thought it'd make your job easier. It's not hurting you, so calm the fuck down, McCormick."

"What's my ability?" he asked, his curiosity starting to spike.

"Not gonna tell," Damien sang, starting to fade away from sight.

"Hey! That's not fair!" Kyle shouted.

"No one said this job would be fair. Have fun figuring it out, boys," he smirked as he disappeared from the room. They stared at the empty spot on the floor, blinking slowly. Kenny sighed heavily to break the silence.

"I shoulda known Satan would throw something else to make a mess out of everything."

"Not necessarily a mess, it's just a bigger puzzle now. We'll get through it," he stood up to stand beside Kenny. "Let's hit the sack, Dude, I'm exhausted."

Kenny smiled. "Okay." They pulled the foldable bed out of the couch, throwing one of Kyle's blankets over their half-naked forms as they snuggled in close. They listened to the sound of the crickets outside of the window and relished in the first true moment of peace and quiet they'd had for days.

"Kenny?" Kyle mumbled tiredly from Kenny's chest.

"Hm?"

"Um...thanks for...everything. I...I really messed up, didn't I?"

Kenny grasped his chin and pulled up his face. "No, you didn't. You were hurting. The only thing that you did wrong was hide how you felt. I don't blame you for what you did and you can't either. Stan isn't angry, Cartman isn't, no one is. We need you here, Ky. We love you. Just...don't let yourself get to that point again. We're living forever...so you're kinda low on options," he smiled.

Kenny could see the guilt etched on the poor boy's face in the dark as he muttered, "I know. I don't want to leave. I haven't been this happy since...well, since I was twelve."

Kenny stared at him. "Why twelve?"

Kyle sighed. "I started liking you at thirteen...and it started to eat away at me. Now that I actually have you, I feel...alive again, you know?"

Kenny nodded and kissed his forehead. "I do know," he smiled. "I love you, Kyle."

"I love you, too, Kenny."

Kenny intertwined their fingers and smirked. "It'll be my yin to your yang for the rest of eternity. You up for it?"

He could hear Kyle's smile as he replied, leaning his head against Kenny's chest again. "Yea. I think that together we'll make a pretty happy medium."

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Baha, don't you love how Bubbles had almost __**nothing**__ to do with this chapter? XD_

_I gave you smexiness! I totally cut it off before the really good stuff, though. Ohs wells. You guys have been so kind about this story, I decided that you deserved it. Kudos for you and your awesomeness. More will be popping up as the story progresses._

_Next chapter __**will**__ be Bubble's story, I assure you =)_

_Thanks for Reading and Reviewing as always, loves._


	17. Trusting

_A/N: Last time, you saw some smexiness._

_I wouldn't really expect it for this chap if I were you, but you know that this goes on a whim, so we might get something XD_

_Enjoy Bubbles' story...or not. Depends on how it goes =)_

________________________________________________________________________

Kenny slowly opened his eyes into the sunlight that was cascading through the window. He groaned slightly in disappointment, not wanting his sleep to come to an end. He smiled fondly at the memory of his dream from the night before, though. It was the first actual dream he'd had in quite some time. It was just him and Kyle, sitting out by a body of water, just watching the sun go down. Kyle was leaning into him, nuzzling closer and closer as time went on. He found his lips kept going down to meet those of the little redhead. Time seemed to be lapsing all around them, the world kept on revolving with the seasons coming and going, except for that one spot. Their little world stayed in it's own rhythm, refusing to let down their guard to conform to the rest of the Earth. Kenny felt a small flutter in his chest as he sat up and rubbed his eyes, looking for his little Jew.

He heard soft voices coming from the kitchen and got out of the bed to investigate. He peeked around the corner of the doorway and saw Kyle leaning against the counter, coffee cup in hand. Kenny subconsciously licked his lips as he eyed the boy up and down. He was wearing a somewhat tight black shirt, and a pair of hip-huggers that made Kenny want to jump up and throw him onto that counter to finish what they'd started the night before.

Kyle was talking to Bubbles as she nibbled on a piece of toast at the table.

"You go to school, Bubbles?" he asked, sipping his coffee.

She shook her head. "I used to, but we couldn't afford to keep me in."

"Who's we?"

"My family. Mom was a druggie and my dad kept running around. I only saw him about twice a year."

"Any brothers or sisters?"

"Nah. One mistake was enough for my mom," she mumbled. "She spent her last big amount of money on the surgery to get her tubes tied."

"Jeez, and I thought I had it bad," he muttered, mindlessly swishing his coffee around in the mug.

"Your mom drugged out, too?"

He chuckled softly, "sometimes I wonder. Nah, her and Dad are just...old-fashioned I suppose."

"How so?" She asked, finishing her toast with a tiny gulp.

"They kicked me out for being gay," he shrugged.

"D...doesn't that bother you?" She asked, her mouth slightly agape.

He took another sip of coffee. "It kinda does. I mean, I just got the official boot a few days ago. Then again, I'm used to them going all out against something that conflicts with their beliefs."

"Religious freaks, huh?" she said softly.

Kyle smirked. "Oh, like you wouldn't believe."

"You a religious freak, too?" she smiled softly.

He paused for a moment, and Kenny kept his breath hitched to keep from getting caught. "Well...," he started, "I'm not quite as hard-set in our beliefs, obviously. But I think that the basic Jewish principles are a good guideline for my life, so I'll stay this way, regardless of how my family or the synagogue might feel."

"Wow," she whispered, leaning her face into her palm with her elbow planted on the table. "I wish that I was like that. I'm such a hypocrite to my religion and I struggle with it."

"Christian?" he asked.

"Yea, is it that obvious?"

He shrugged again. "Not obvious, there just aren't many other religions practiced around here and I know that you're not Jewish since we're such a small and tight-knit group," he grinned.

"That sounds so nice," she smiled sadly. "The Christian group around here is just too big. No one really cares for the others, no one really pays attention to those around them. It's sad, really."

"Well, don't let that get you down, Bubbles," he said softly. "Despite who you are or what you do, just remember: they're people. They all have skeletons in their closet, too."

"Did the synagogue know yours?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Not that I'm aware of. My two biggest skeletons at least. They knew little things like that time I tripped up the fire alarm at school to get out of gym, but that's about it," he chuckled.

"Two big ones? Geez, Kyle, what kind of life do you live?"

"Well now, I'm much better," he grinned.

"What were they?" she urged. "I'm curious."

"Dude, we've only known each other a little while. Are my secrets really necessary for you to know?"

"I had to tell you who I am, you should return the favor," she smiled.

He sighed. "Well, you know one of them."

"Being gay?"

"Uh huh."

"Weren't there other gays in your group?"

"Not to my knowledge," he looked towards the ceiling thoughtfully.

"Well, what was the other one, then?"

"I was suicidal," he said casually, gulping down the last of his coffee.

"What? Why?! You seem like a happy kid!" she stated in disbelief.

"Seem is the key word, Bubbles. Appearances aren't everything, you of all people should know that."

"W-what's that supposed to mean?"

"To the outside, you just looked like a prostitute, right?" she nodded softly. "Well," he continued, "what do people think of when they think of prostitutes? They think of stupid, smelly, disgusting people with no morals, right? Because that's the way society has brought them up to believe."

"You sure know how to hit the nail on the head there, Kyle."

He chuckled. "Well, sugar-coating has never been my strong suit." Kenny had to stifle his laughter at the truth in that statement. Kyle had never been known to play with words, if he thought your shirt was ugly, he'd tell you. It was no doubt from years of telling Cartman exactly how he felt about the fatass and his insane schemes. Brashness just seemed to be a part of who he was anymore.

"Anyways," Kyle began, "you are obviously educated and you seem like a very clean type," he motioned towards the napkin in her hand.

She shrugged, "I am. I'm such a neat freak," she laughed. "I just started doing this because I needed to support my family and no one would hire me because I couldn't afford a uniform or anything like that, especially after Mom got sick."

"What was wrong with her?"

"She caught pneumonia and it hit her pretty...pretty damn hard. I don't think she ever fully recovered," she mumbled sadly.

"I'm really sorry, Bubbles."

"Don't be," she smiled. "Despite the fact that we were poor as shit and she was an addict, we were fairly happy. She loved me and she told me that every day."

"So, no abuse or anything like that?"

"She only hit me once and that was when I started working the streets. She was hoping it'd knock some sense into me...and she was kind of out of it with her pneumonia, so she didn't really mean it."

"She didn't support you going into this?" Kyle asked. "I mean, I really hope she didn't, no offense."

She giggled, "none taken. She hated that she couldn't get me out of it once I got into the business. I was under strict contract, and she wanted to save me. I love her so much for that."

Kyle and Kenny both smiled at her gently. Kyle poured himself some more coffee and leaned back against the counter, blowing on it gently. "Well, I'm glad there was some sort of bright light for you in that situation."

"Me, too. So, what's your bright light?"

"Whaddya mean?" he quirked his eyebrow.

"Who are you gay for? I mean, obviously you like someone or you wouldn't have come to that conclusion, right?"

He laughed a bit and sipped his coffee, "well, if he'd stop eavesdropping he could tell you himself."

Busted.

Kenny stepped into the kitchen with a sheepish grin spread across his face. "Told ya you're a ninja, Brof."

"Nah, you're just noisy. How'd ya sleep?"

"Fine thank you, Love," he walked up and kissed Kyle's cheek gently. He turned to Bubbles and waved.

She giggled a little and waved back. "I totally would not believe it if I didn't just see that," she chortled.

"Why?" Kyle asked, handing his mug to Kenny.

"I dunno. You two just don't...look gay, ya know?"

Kenny cocked his eyebrow in amusement as he gave Kyle his cup back after a long sip. "Well, we talk gay. Kyle was just offering yesterday to put on a skirt for me."

Kyle started choking as the hot coffee tried to make its way back up his throat. "D-dude, I did not!" he spluttered.

Bubbles threw back her head and laughed as Kyle's face began to glow red. Kenny smirked at him and threw his arm around his shoulders. "Come on, Ky, you'd look so good in one, don't you think so, Bubbles?"

She smirked towards the blushing boy. "I think he has a great figure for it."

"Oh Jesus, don't encourage him," Kyle pled. They all shot their head towards the door as they heard the bell go off.

"Shit," Kenny grumbled. "Bubbles, we can't talk to you if there are other people around, you okay with that?"

"Yea, no prob," she grinned. Kyle left to go open the door. Kenny and Bubbles followed and stopped behind the couch. Kyle opened it up to the faces of Stan, Cartman, and Butters.

"Hey, Dude," Stan addressed Kyle. "I-I mean...dudes," he said quietly as he noticed that Kenny was standing there...and lacking a shirt. Kenny rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"HA! What'd I tell you Stan? That's five bucks you owe me, Asshole," Cartman grinned as they walked into the apartment.

"Five bucks? For what?" Kyle asked, shutting the door behind him.

Stan ignored him and marched up to Kenny to grab his arm and drag him off into the kitchen with a pissed-off expression set upon his face.

"Dude," he hissed as soon as they were out of sight. "You said you weren't going to try anything!"

"Hey, for one thing, you weren't here, you didn't see what the fuck was happening."

"I'm not stupid Kenny. You're half naked. You're wearing the same pants from yesterday. Even Cartman could figure out what the hell happened here."

Kenny's face darkened slightly. "No, you have no fucking idea. I'll have you know I didn't even touch Kyle...like that at least...Not much."

"Bullshit, McCormick," Stan said through gritted teeth. "He just fucking got out of the hospital! Do you really think it's appropriate to go molesting him?!"

"I didn't molest him!" Kenny protested, trying desperately to control his temper.

"Fellas?" Butters asked softly.

"What, Butters?" Stan said curtly.

"W-well is everything alright?"

"I don't fucking know, Dude. But I'm about to find out," he muttered back as he stormed past Kenny. Kenny followed him, a scowl set on his face.

"Hey guys," Kyle smiled brightly at Stan and Kenny from the love seat, but noticing their matching scowls towards each other, his grin faded into a look of concern. "You okay?"

"I don't know, are you?" Stan asked sharply.

"Um...I'm fine. Why?"

"Well, you know, with all the stuff that happened yesterday. Getting out of the hospital, Toby and all that, Kenny shoving his cock up your ass, ya know. Stuff that might not be great for recovering."

Kyle's eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly. "What the **fuck** did you just say?"

"You heard me," Stan frowned at him.

"Who are you, my mother?!"

"Even Stan's not that bitchy," Cartman smirked.

"Cartman, shut up," Kyle addressed him disinterestedly, still staring at Stan. "What Kenny and I do is none of your concern, Stan."

"It is when you're still recovering!"

Kyle scoffed. "Dude, I appreciate the fact that you care about my well being, but I feel just fine. I don't go delving into yours and Wendy's sex life, do I?" He stood up from his seat and went to stand in front of the taller boy.

"Well, no, but that's because you said you would throw up if you ever thought about Wendy being naked!" Stan half-shrieked.

Kyle raised his brow. "So, your saying that the idea of Kenny and I being naked doesn't nauseate you?"

Cartman and Kenny snickered as Stan started to glow red. "T-that's not what I meant!" he stammered. "I'm just concerned, Dude."

"Why? Maybe it'd make me feel better, Stan."

"You shouldn't have sex just to feel better, Kyle!"

Kyle slammed his face into his palms and shook his head gently. When he looked up, he looked like he was caught between wanting to laugh hysterically and wanting to cry. Kenny wanted so badly to kiss that little red face, but Stan was likely to blow a fuse at him if he so much as touched Kyle. He didn't want to face the quarterback wrath, it was never fun.

"Dude," Kyle sighed. "We didn't fucking have sex, okay?"

"I don't believe you," Stan muttered firmly.

"Oh Jesus Christ, Stan! Do you want an exact description of what we did or what?"

"I just want you to be honest with me! Kenny promised this would all be **your** pace, not his!"

"It **was** my pace!" Kyle screeched. "Ya know what. I'll tell ya what happened," he drawled out sarcastically as Kenny slowly inched past Stan and made his way to stand beside Cartman and Butters, who looked a bit frightened. It was nice to see that the feeling was pretty mutual. He hated to watch the two of them fight, it was so rare, but when it happened, it damn near wrenched your heart away.

"Good, be honest," Stan crossed his arms. Kenny grinned madly. This oughta be good.

"We came home from a walk. We sat and talked on the couch. We started to make out. He took off most of my clothes and I took off all of his. I gave him a fucking blowjob, but we heard a scream outside and freaked out a bit. I pulled away from him and he came in my fucking eye and my hair and it took forever to wash out. By the time we had calmed down whoever was screaming, the mood was fucking dead so we passed out. **There**. Are you fucking happy now?!" He emphasized his anger by stamping his foot hard on the ground below him.

Stan just stared and blinked at him as though he were looking at a stranger. Bubbles, Butters and Cartman did the same. Kenny however, smirked at his willingness to be so open to get Stan off of their backs.

"So...you...were willing to...," Stan fumbled for words.

Kyle looked at him with an annoyed expression. "I said **I** gave the damn blowjob, Stan. Now drop the subject or get out."

"Jesus Christ," Cartman said softly. "You move fast you stupid little Jew," he paused and smirked. "Where'd you learn how to? Watch a bunch of pornos in your spare time you little slut?"

"Just because I'm a virgin doesn't mean I'm a fucking idiot on the subject, Fatass," Kyle muttered, looking away with a red stain overshadowing his face. Kenny couldn't hold himself back anymore. He walked behind Kyle and clasped his arms around the tiny waist.

"No, Stan's the fucking idiot for not trusting you," Kenny muttered, glaring up at Stan. Stan just stared back at him with his usual softness plaguing his eyes once more.

"Sorry, Dudes," he muttered, looking down at the floor in front of him. "I just kinda freaked when I thought Kenny had...well..."

"Raped me?" Kyle stated flatly.

"S-sort of."

"I'd never fucking do that Stan," Kenny growled, tightening his grip around Kyle. "If I give my word, you know I fucking follow through. I'm not Cartman."

"Ay!"

"I know. I'm sorry," Stan walked up and extended his hand to Kenny. Kenny released one of his arms from Kyle's waist and shook it. They turned to look at Kyle, who was staring off into nothingness beside them.

"Ky?" Stan asked softly.

"You didn't believe me," he mumbled.

"I...I know. I'm sorry."

"I really fucked up. You're never gonna trust me again, are you?" he turned to Stan with glimmering eyes.

"I trust you more than anyone, Kyle."

"No, you don't," Kyle's voice cracked slightly. "I...you...," he sighed in aggravation. "After all this shit...After what I did, I guess I can't expect you to trust me. After all, I'm a fucking moron who can't even take care of himself," he grumbled, glaring at the floor but clasping his arms over Kenny's.

"Kyle, look," Stan took his finger and lifted up Kyle's chin. "Dude, forget about that, okay? You're still my best friend, and I still trust you. Me getting into your business like that has nothing to do with trust. It was just concern for your health. You know that I care, right?"

Kyle nodded softly, refusing to make eye contact with him.

"Fucking gay," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Fuck off, Cartman," Stan muttered. "Ky, look at me, Dude." Kyle reluctantly set his emerald eyes into the path of Stan's ocean orbs. "Look, let's...let's go do something to take our minds off of this...Ken, that okay with you?"

"Only if you don't hurt Kyle again," he muttered, pressing Kyle closer into himself.

"I wouldn't dream of doing so. What are you up for?" he offered with a small smile. Kyle shrugged.

"Whatever you wanna do, Dude."

"Don't think so," Stan grinned. "This is your day. We didn't give you a proper birthday party, so today is all about what **you** wanna do. That was why we came over, anyway," he winked.

Kenny released him and grabbed his shirt from the floor and threw it over his head. He walked back over to Kyle and kissed his cheek sweetly. "Whatever you're up for, Dear."

Kyle shrugged again, "basketball?" he suggested. They all broke into wide grins.

"Sounds killer," Stan stated as they started to walk out of the house. Kenny and Kyle looked at Bubbles and motioned for her to follow. She nodded and bounded behind them as they walked out and shut the door.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Goddammit, Kahl! Pass me the goddamn ball!"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "You moron, you're not on my team," he stated as he dribbled circles around Cartman.

"I'm trying to trick you!"

"Oh? And how's that working out for ya?"

"Shut up, you goddamn Jew!" Cartman shouted.

"Cartman, play defense, will ya?" Stan called out from by the net. Cartman growled and lunged for Kyle, who skillfully dodged and began running down the court. Stan ran up to block him, but found his wider frame to be a disadvantage to the little redhead as he sprinted around him. Kyle gracefully shot the ball into the air and it landed straight through the net with a gentle swish.

"Dude, this is weak!" Cartman cried out in frustration. "Kenneh's not even doing anything!"

Kenny smirked at him. "Sure I am. I'm watching Kyle kick both of your asses."

"No, you're watching Kyle's ass," Stan rolled his eyes good-humoredly.

"So I'm multi-tasking," he shrugged playfully.

"This isn't cool though," Cartman protested.

"Why? Just because I'm better than you?" Kyle asked, passing the ball to Stan.

"N-no, you stupid Jew! It's because you're too small. If we try to take the ball, we might break your little twig frame in half. Don't you see we're only concerned about your well being?" he smiled in a mockingly sweet way.

"You're just jealous that you suck at this game."

"Not all of us are captains of the basketball team, Ky," Stan said, mindlessly dribbling the ball.

Kyle shrugged. "Okay, so I have a little advantage. If we were playing baseball or football, you'd kick our asses, so I deserve at least one sport to be better in," he grinned.

"You got basketball, track, tennis, and soccer. You're fucking unbeatable when it comes to them, Dude," Stan retorted, passing the ball to him with a lazy lop.

"Those are all pussy sports. Hell, track isn't even a real sport," Cartman commented.

"Just because you can't run doesn't mean that it's not a sport, Tubby," Kenny inputted.

"It's just running!"

"It's endurance training, you idiot," Stan said, catching the ball as Kyle threw it back.

"All right, let's just agree that Cartman's fucking dumb and move on, shall we?" Kyle asked. He turned to look at Bubbles and Butters on the sidelines. "What's the score, Dude?" he yelled out.

"Kyle has 14 and S-Stan and Eric have 8," Butters called back.

"I love how he left my name out of the list," Kenny chuckled. "I'm just gonna go sit and keep my eyes on you, Love," he winked at Kyle.

Kyle smirked. "Okay," he turned to Stan and Cartman. "First to fifteen? Then we can go grab some food or something."

They nodded as Kenny started to walk away. "Ken?" Kyle asked sweetly.

"Yes?" he responded. "Does my Jewey want a kiss for good luck?"

Kyle grinned. "You read my mind." Kenny walked back and planted a short but passionate kiss on his lips before they pulled back and smirked at each other.

"Can we please just play and lose?" Stan groaned.

"Fuck this, Dude. You play with the Jew," Cartman grumbled joining Kenny walking towards Butters and sitting next to him. Stan and Kyle shrugged at each other and simultaneously bent down, eyeing each other as Stan dribbled. They moved in half circle increments, each time Stan twitching his leg to get Kyle to block the wrong direction. Kyle just smirked. As if he didn't know what Stan was up to.

"Come on you pansies!" Cartman called out. Stan and Kyle didn't flinch from their positions, daring each other to make that next move. Kenny smirked, he'd never seen Kyle and Stan playing one-on-one before. Although Stan was certainly more athletic, he seemed to have met his match in this game. Stan was by no means nimble like Kyle, so he had a bit of a disadvantage. That and Kyle's game eyes were enough to send anyone down into a shivering puddle...or maybe that was just Kenny.

Stan suddenly broke from their position and Kyle instantly shot his hand out to grab the ball. Stan got a shit-eating grin on his face as he grasped the ball in both of his hands and tried to pry it away from Kyle.

"Ah! Dude, no fair!" Kyle smiled as he tried to wrestle it away from him. Stan gently thrust his arm into Kyle, sending him onto his ass on the pavement. Stan shot past him and shot the ball through the net.

"Oh yeah!" He pumped his fist in the air. "Who just owned the basketball captain? **I **just owned the basketball captain," he cheered.

"Ah come on, Ref!" Kyle protested to Butters, who was staring at a caterpillar crawling on a blade of grass. "Butters!" he shouted again.

"Hu- What? What's happenin'?" he asked.

"Did you not see that?! He just had two freaking fouls!" Kyle waved his arms wildly in the air.

"Ref didn't see it, no foul," Cartman grinned smugly.

Kyle groaned. "Fine. I'll kick your ass anyways," he turned to Stan and grinned. "Butters, pay attention!"

"Will do, Kyle!"

Stan passed him the ball and bent down with his hands on his knees. "Come on. Show me whatcha got."

Kyle dribbled a few times, smirking at Stan's cocky attitude. "You're goin' down, Marsh. Ya can't cheat this time around."

"We'll see, Broflovski," he stuck his tongue out playfully and Kyle chuckled, bending down and ready to move. He mimicked Stan's moves from earlier, trying to psyche him out. He threatened to throw the ball in both directions a few times, making Stan jump slightly to each side, throwing him slightly off balance.

Kyle suddenly stopped in mid-hop and shouted, "I love you, Kenny!" over to the sidelines. Stan stopped for a moment to comprehend what'd just happened and Kyle dashed out around him. He quickly realized what was going on and he turned to pursue the smaller boy. Kyle kept ahead of him, but Stan lunged for him and he threw the ball towards the hoop as Stan brought his body on top of his and plunged them both into the ground.

They looked up and stared as the ball sailed towards the hoop and swished through the net with ease.

"Damn it," Stan shook his head with a grin, still atop Kyle.

"Ha. Who just owned the ultimate jock? **I** just owned the ultimate jock," Kyle mocked. Stan chuckled lightly at him. "Now get off of me before Kenny gets jealous."

"Too late," Kenny said, hovering above the two. "Any room for one more?"

"Ah, geez," Stan muttered, pushing himself off of Kyle then lending his hand to help him up.

As soon as Kyle was on his feet, Kenny yanked him into a long kiss.

"Ah, Dude! Come on!" Stan complained, looking away from their make-out session. They ignored him and continued to press into each other. They pulled back slowly and Kenny teased Kyle's curls.

"Every champion deserves a kiss," he winked.

Kyle chuckled and looked at Stan, who was still facing away from them in embarrassment. "Stan, stop being a baby," he stated.

He shot his head around and gave a half-ass glare at Kyle. "I'm not a baby, Dude. It's just weird."

"You're weird."

"Oh, good comeback Kyle."

"I don't have to be good if I'm telling the truth."

Stan smirked and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. What now?"

"Food? I'm fucking starving!" Kenny said with a wide grin.

"Sure," Kyle nodded. "Losers pay," he grinned at Stan.

"How about Cartman pays since he's a loser at everything?"

"Ay! I am not! Shut up, Jock-boy!"

"Oh whatever," Stan waved dismissively. "I'll pay, my ma gave me the money to anyways."

"Sweet, where to?" Kenny asked.

"H-how about that new burger place over on Washington? I-I heard it's really good." Butters suggested.

"Sounds tight," Kyle smiled at him. "Anyone against it?"

"Psh, it's free food. Why would we be against it, Jew?"

"Well, I know you're not, but some of us do occasionally stop thinking about food unlike you, Fatass."

"Ay! Watch your goddamn Jew mouth!"

"That's Kenny's job," Stan smirked.

"Nah," Kenny shrugged. "I like to cover that up. However, I like to watch some other things of his...," he pinched Kyle's butt playfully. Kyle squeaked a bit and Kenny smiled wider. He'd have to find a way to make him make that sound later tonight...

"Dude, not appropriate!" Stan cried out.

"Gonna sick Sexual Harassment Panda on me?" Kenny smirked.

"It's definitely in consideration," Stan muttered. "Kyle, how the hell are you so comfortable with him constantly attacking you?"

Kyle looked at him and shrugged. "I dunno. It doesn't bug me too much, I guess. Could be worse. Could be Cartman touching me."

"Wendy and Bebe would be all over that," Stan smirked.

"Goddammit, Stan, that's fucking gross," Cartman muttered as they started to walk off the court.

"Agreed," Kyle nodded. "I wouldn't want to be felt up by mountains of flab, thanks."

"Shut the fuck up, Kahl!"

"Don't wanna. Don't have to."

"Do too! I am your superior!"

"We don't judge our supremacy based on our body mass, Cartman," he muttered, looking away from him in boredom.

"Kahl...," Cartman growled.

"Whoa, fellas. Now, we s-shouldn't be actin' like this," Butters intervened. "A-after all, Kyle's okay, and we should be celebratin' that!"

"Butters is right," Stan grinned, throwing his arm over Kyle's shoulders. "This is a time for happiness and butterflies and all that good stuff. So let's break out the beer and party."

"Jews don't drink, Stan. They're pussy ways prevent them from having any kind of fun."

"Goddammit, stop belittling Jews, you fucking fatass!" Kyle shrieked.

"What? Kahl, have you ever drank?"

"I-I don't have to tell you anything, Cartman!"

Cartman smirked in triumph. "Told ya."

"Kyle doesn't have to drink. He has too many brain cells to save," Kenny stated. "Unlike the rest of us, he actually has a future."

Kyle frowned at this. "What the fuck are you talking about? Every single one of us can get into college. It's just that some of us don't intend on doing so."

"Not our fault we're not all fucking nerds like you, Jew-boy."

"No, we just all gave up because we don't really care, Dude," Stan muttered.

"Well, you're riding on full football scholarships, anyways, Stan," Kyle pointed out. "You don't really need to try that hard. You just need to pass so you can stay on the team."

Stan smiled, "right. No brains needed. That's why football's right for me."

"But you have potential to do more than just play football, Stan," Kyle insisted. "You just refuse to let yourself seem as though you know more than just plays!"

He shrugged. "Okay, so I don't apply myself. So what? I know where I'm going with my life and that's all that matters to me," he kicked listlessly at a stick in front of them as they walked.

Kyle sighed heavily and shook his head. "You're just not living up to what you could do, Stan."

"Kahl, will you stop bugging him? Not everyone's a perfect little Jew."

"Cartman, I don't care that he's telling me this. Whatever he thinks is what he thinks."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kyle narrowed his eyes.

"Well, you say that I'm not living up to my potential, but I at least have a goal in mind, Kyle," Stan began. "I mean, you've told me that you have no idea what you wanna do with your life."

Kenny shot his head towards Kyle. "Really? You don't know what you're gonna do?"

"Well, geez Kyle," Butters started. "I thought that you'd have everything figured out already."

"So I don't have any specific interests, big deal," Kyle muttered.

"Jewology?" Cartman suggested with a shrug.

"Oh, shut up," Kenny muttered, pulling Kyle into his arms. "Doesn't matter what you choose to do, Ky. You'll be the best at it," he smiled.

"Thanks, Ken," he said softly. They walked the rest of the way to the restaurant in silence, with Kyle secured under Kenny's arm.

"Welcome to Barn's Burgers," the waitress smiled. "Five of you?"

"Yes ma'am," Butters responded.

"Alrighty then, boys. Follow me," she led them off to a corner booth in the back of the building. They sat down, surveying their surroundings.

"Well, it seems like a nice enough place, even though no one's here...then again it's only nine," Stan commented with a smile.

"Well, all that really matters is the food," Kyle replied, glancing over the menu.

"Sure you can eat any of this stuff, Kosher-boy?" Cartman asked.

Kyle looked up at him with a dull glare over his features. "Dude, I don't fucking care about the damn Kashrut laws right now. Judaism isn't exactly my best friend at this point."

"Kyle, just because you're mad at your parents doesn't mean that you should abandon your religion."

"I'm not abandoning anything, Stan. I'm just being my own person. There are plenty of Jewish people who don't follow Kashrut to the letter. Besides, I was just getting a damn cheeseburger, lighten up."

Stan sighed. "Alright, Dude. Whatever you say."

The waitress bounded up and took their orders. As she finished, she shot Kenny a wink and skipped away.

Kenny looked towards Kyle who was glaring holes in the back of her head. "Dude," he laughed, "calm down. I'm not interested in someone like her."

"Would you have said that had this been a week ago?" Kyle raised his brow.

"That would have been different. Now I'm committed and I intend on staying that way," he leaned his head on Kyle's shoulder and gave him his best puppy dog expression. "Dontcha believe me?" he whimpered pathetically.

Kyle gave a short laugh and pecked the top of his head. "Sure I do, Dude." He laid his head atop Kenny's and they sighed simultaneously.

Bubbles smiled at them, her eyes shining at their moment. Kenny smirked at her and she looked away and blushed a bit. "It's just really romantic," she said softly. He pondered this idea: him? Romantic? Must be the apocalypse. Ah well, at least the end of the world could end with him locked on Kyle's lips. That'd be a hell of a way to go out.

"Hello," a voice came up from above them. Kyle and Kenny shot their heads up and felt their hearts sink. "I'm Barney, the manager. How are you all today?" he smiled, his eyes resting upon Kyle's face. His nose was badly swollen, but other than that he seemed to be in good health.

Damn it.

"We're fine, thanks. You got a nice place here," Stan grinned.

"Well good. I hope you enjoy your time here," he said, not taking his eyes away from Kyle. "Tell me, have you dined with us before?"

"Not yet since our food hasn't gotten out yet," Cartman replied with obvious disinterest.

"Well, I'll tell ya what. You're gonna get a burger on the house, thanks to your little friend here," he grasped Kyle's chin and wriggled it a few times before whipping his hand away and walking towards the back of the restaurant.

Cartman and Stan burst out laughing. "Look out, Jew boy," Cartman guffawed. "Looks like Barn there might be looking at competin' with Kenny for the honor of getting in your pants." Stan joined his laughter as Kenny and Kyle stared down at the table in front of them, not wanting to catch eyes with the large man again.

"Kyle? What's wrong, Dude?" Stan asked, his laughing reduced to a worried tone.

"N-nothing," Kyle said.

Stan frowned. "You're lying, Dude. This time I know it. Don't let that old perv get to you, I'm sure he just said that to be nice. Old people say stupid stuff and don't realize it, you know that."

"Y-yea, I know," Kyle laughed nervously. Kenny put his hand on his knee and squeezed reassuringly.

"Don't worry," he leaned in and whispered. "That fucker won't get near us when we're in public like this." Kyle nodded and sighed softly.

"Why is it everywhere I go, someone wants to kill me?" he asked sadly.

"You're too cute. They're all jealous," Kenny smiled. Kyle look at him with a lack of amusement.

"Whatcha talking about, you two?" Butters asked.

"I'm just telling Kyle he's too good looking for the eyes of you mortals," Kenny said casually, leaning back into the booth.

"Oh please," Cartman rolled his eyes. "Even Butters had a girlfriend he was actually interested in before Kahl."

"I was just waiting for the right one," Kyle muttered, looking down at the table and finding his table knife rather interesting.

"Well, at least you finally found him," Butters smiled.

Kyle didn't respond, however. He was taking his knife, turning it left and right in his hand, staring at the glint reflecting from the light above them. The other four sat and gazed at him.

"How did you do it, Kyle?" Stan asked softly.

"Hm?"

"How could you...I mean how the hell could you bring yourself to hurt yourself like that? It's...I don't think I could ever do it."

Kyle set the knife down on the table and stared at it with his chin cupped in his palms. "I don't know. I could do it again if I wanted to, probably. I guess it's just the way my mind works. Sometimes pain needs to be fought with pain, and I acted on that philosophy."

"Well it was fucking stupid, Jewrat."

"I don't care about your opinion, Cartman. Honestly, no one's opinion mattered to me at that point. My whole life had been completely fucked up in a matter of hours and I didn't didn't give a flying fuck who would or wouldn't care if I was gone," he paused and shrugged. "Sometimes things happen. Sometimes life drives us to the point where we either pick ourselves up or we take ourselves out. I chose the easy route and it was stupid in hindsight, but given my feelings from that moment, my choice makes perfect sense."

Kenny, Cartman, Stan, and Butters all stared at him with sympathetic expressions. They all had some reason to feel guilt for how Kyle had come to his conclusion.

Bubbles, however, had bursted into tears, throwing her head onto the table and sobbing loudly into her arms. Kyle raised her eyebrow at her as she looked up at him with shining, red eyes. He stood himself from the table and sighed. "Look, as fun as this conversation is, I'm going to go to the bathroom. I'll be back," he motioned for her to follow him. She grudgingly obliged and scampered after him to the men's room.

"Wow...that was...severely depressing," Stan stated quietly.

"God, he needs the fucking hotline," Cartman muttered.

"No, he just needs us," Kenny said, picking up the knife himself. "He needs people. He may be independent, but he does need some support. I mean, even before this whole thing the kid was almost always alone."

"W-well whaddya mean, Kenny?" Butters questioned.

Kenny slammed the knife down and sighed. "Think about it. Cartman always ripped on him, his parents left him to succeed on his own, I always died, and Butters, you just were never that close to him. The only other person he had was Stan," he glanced at said boy, who was hanging his head slightly. "Once he felt like Stan was gone, everything just fell to pieces."

"God, it is my fault," Stan mumbled, shoving his face into his palms.

"No, Dude, it's not. And you know that Kyle doesn't blame you, either. He was just...alone. We need to help the kid pick up the pieces, that's all we really can do. We've just got to assure him that we're always gonna be here for him."

"Psh," Cartman scoffed. "Yea right. Like I'm gonna play best buddy to Mr. Slash over there," he gestured to the bathroom door. "Look, the Jew's fucked up in the head, he needs fucking counseling."

"You know how Kyle feels about that crap, Cartman," Stan glared.

"H-has he had it before?" Butters asked.

Stan nodded. "Once his mom made him go because he didn't feel like going to the synagogue. She thought that he was repressing something and it was making him 'act out against authority,'" he smirked. "Truth is, he just wanted to hang out with me for awhile."

"Well, how'd it go?" Kenny asked.

"Horribly. Poor Ky spent the whole time getting asked what made him angry. As you can probably guess, Cartman was his answer to most of those questions," he chuckled.

Cartman smirked. "Well, I do my best."

Stan continued, "he thinks that psychiatry is a big conspiracy. Going made him feel even more depressed than he was earlier because they tried to convince him that he had problems that needed unearthed. Kyle got so stressed out about his mind and feelings overtaking his actions that his mom had to drop him out before he went insane."

"Too late for that," Cartman mumbled.

"I didn't know he ever went for help," Kenny said.

Stan shrugged. "He only told me. He said that he didn't need it being spread around school that he'd been taken to see someone because he was crazy."

Suddenly, they heard a crash coming from the direction of the men's room. Kenny shot up out of his seat and ran towards the door, the others close behind him. He got to the door and tried to pull it open, only to find it locked from the inside.

"Fuck! Kyle!" Kenny shouted.

"Kyle, why the fuck did you lock the door?!" Stan shouted.

Kenny turned to glare at him. "You idiot, Kyle can't lock the door."

"Hey, what's going on?" the waitress came up from behind them.

"The door's locked!" Kenny screamed. "Open the goddamn thing!"

"I can't," she stared at him. "Only the manager can...why would he do that?" she wondered aloud.

"_Come on, Red. You still full of that spice?"_ Kenny could hear from the other side of the door.

"Because your boss is going to fucking rape Kyle!" he screeched, pulling on the door as hard as he could.

"_Aw, your boyfriends out there, huh? Good thing, I'd hate for him to see what I'm gonna do to ya."_

"_Get away from me, you fucking freak!"_

Kenny started to panic, and Bubbles slipped through the door to meet his expression.

"He's hurting Kyle!" she cried out to him. He looked around frantically, trying to find something to break down the door with.

"Goddammit!" he screamed, slamming his fist down on the door. "Let him go!" he beat the door repeatedly.

"_Come and make me, Blondie,"_ the voice taunted.

"_Kenny!" _Kyle cried out. Kenny started to see red and continued to beat on the door. Suddenly he turned to the others around him and started to formulate a plan.

"Where's the supply closet?" he asked the waitress.

"I-It's around back...down the hallway."

"Good, show them where," he gestured to the three boys. "Grab a screwdriver, we're fucking taking this door down." They nodded and ran off towards the closet. He placed his ear against the door, listening for anything else to persuade him to kill Barney. Suddenly, he jumped back a bit as a loud thud came crashing against the door.

"_Come on, Reddy. Say something nice to your boyfriend,"_ he could hear.

"_K-Kenny?_" Kyle whimpered as he was pressed into the wooden door.

"I'm gonna get you out, Ky!" Kenny promised.

"_Might wanna hurry, Blondes. Ky and me are about to have a fun time,"_ he could hear the sadistic grin in the man's voice.

"_Let go of mmph!" _Kyle was cut off and started to scream wildly, muffled by something. Kenny's heart started to pound wildly in his chest. He had to get Kyle out of there before Barney got what he wanted.

Stan came running up towards the door with two screwdrivers and handed one off to Kenny. They quickly started undoing the doors hinges, racing against the madman just a few feet away.

"_Mmph mph!"_ Kyle screeched once more. Kenny recognized his name and bit his lip, focusing on going faster, trying desperately to keep a steady hand to get to him quick enough. They got the door unhinged and pulled it out to let it fall to the ground with a loud thud before jumping over it and into the room, catching sight of Barney and Kyle and growing angrier by the second.

Barney had Kyle's arms pinned up to the wall above his head with a belt wrapped around a coat hanger, and was grinning at him as he struggled to pull away. He had a scarf tied securely around Kyle's little mouth and nose, showing only his shining eyes to everyone around him.

"I'll kill you!" Kenny screeched, lunging for Barney.

"Hold it, Kid," Barney sneered, pushing him to the ground. "This little fucker broke my nose. I think that some revenge is in order here." he reached into Kyle's front pocket and whipped out his wallet. "Broflovski? What the fuck kind of last name is that?"

Stan growled and began to advance on him. Barney broke into a wide grin, making a grab for Kyle's pant line.

"Mph mmp!" Kyle, protested, trying to squirm away. Barney ignored him and took off his belt, securing it around his throat.

"Now, then...," he smiled evilly, slowly tightening the pull on the belt. "Are you sure you want to test me?"

"Get away from him!" Kenny shrieked. Barney gave a sharp tug to the belt, prompting Kyle to cough out a few times into the makeshift gag.

"What the hell do you want with the Jew?" Cartman demanded, stepping in with Butters cowering a bit behind him.

"Jew?" Barney blinked. "Ohhh, that explains the stupid name. Anyways, we just never got to finish our fun time last night, so I thought that I'd pick up where we left off," he grinned.

"What the fuck are you talking about? Are you a fucking kegger or something?" Stan asked.

"Come on, Blondes," he addressed Kenny. "Tell em about last night," he smirked, pulling slowly on the belt, starting to press into Kyle's throat.

"Mmph mph!" Kyle pleaded, his eyes watering slightly.

"Ken, what the hell is he talking about?" Stan demanded.

Kenny glared at Barney. "We ran into this fucker last night with some bar buddies when we were trying to help that screaming person. They tried to rape us both, but Kyle kicked their asses and we got away. Didn't think that we'd meet again so fucking soon."

"Well, I'm happy to see you, too, Blondie. Now, me and Kyle wanna continue, don't we?" he smiled at Kyle.

"MPHMM MPM!!!!!!!!"

"I thought so," he said, tightening his hold on the belt and starting to finger Kyle's jeans.

Kenny's eyes widened and he leapt towards Barney again, this time slamming into the fucker and bringing him downwards...with his grip still tight on the belt.

Kyle starting gagging violently, trying to regain his breath as the leather persisted to press into his larynx. Cartman and Stan ran forward, trying to pry the belt from his hands.

"Let go!" Stan screeched, pulling the belt towards Kyle.

Barney kicked Kenny to the side and yanked forward on the belt. Kyle lurched with it, caught by his wrists still ensnared above him. He started fading in and out, trying to keep his head upright.

Kenny ran and jumped into the air, bringing his foot down hard into Barney's stomach. He clutched his injured gut and started to cough, releasing his hold on Kyle. Kyle instantly started gasping for air, coughing every so often. Stan and Cartman blocked off Barney as Kenny ran towards Kyle, releasing the belt from his neck and untying the scarf.

"Come on, Ky. Breathe. One...two...," he counted slowly for him, though Kyle seemed too out of it to pay him any mind.

Barney stumbled to his feet, still holding his stomach. "God-fucking-dammit," he snarled. "You fucking kids made a big mistake. Get the hell out of my restaurant," he muttered as he started to walk away.

Stan and Cartman began to go after him until Kenny shouted "Stop! We need to take care of Kyle!" They grudgingly stopped and turned back to look at the boy, still dangling from the wall.

"Kenny, get him down," Stan whispered, eyeing Kyle with pity.

Kenny started to untangle his wrists, feeling Kyle start to fall limp. As soon as the belt was off, Kenny shot his arms to the front and dove down to catch the swooning boy. Kyle landed in his arms on his knees, his head turned on the blonde's shoulder.

"T-thank you K-k-kenny," he whispered.

"Shh, you're okay now. You're okay," Kenny rubbed his back, kissing his cheek gently. Kyle fell completely limp, still within Kenny's hold.

"Come on, he lost too much oxygen," Kenny directed, picking the young boy up in his arms.

"We going back to the hospital?" Cartman asked.

Kenny shook his head. "No fucking way. Kyle would never forgive us for taking him back there. Let's just take him home and let him sleep."

The others nodded in agreement and headed out the busted door, glaring at the waitress as she thanked them for visiting and to come again.

---------------------------(_A/N: I really should stop the chapter here.....oh well.)_-------------------

"Hello, McCormicks."

"Hey, Dad."

"Oh, hey Kenny. Where the hell have you been?"

Kenny sighed and looked towards Kyle's bedroom, seeing the bed just in the view. "Ky got hurt, I'm looking after him."

"Geez, Kenny, you'd think you were dating or something," his dad chuckled.

"Um....actually...," he bit his lip.

There was a moment of silence before his father spewed out "Oh, what the hell, Kenny? I thought you like girls!"

"Dad, I told you all three Thanksgivings ago that I was bi."

"I don't remember that, Kenny."

Kenny growled softly. "That's because you were too fucking drunk, Dad."

"Whatever. I really don't care that you're gay, Ken. Honestly, I have bigger problems to worry about."

"Like what?" Kenny inquired.

"Well, you haven't been home in almost a week, so I should probably fill you in. You know how I got the job with the AA?"

"Yea..."

"Well, they want me and your mother to live on the road so we can attend all of the meetings."

"Wait, wait, wait...what the hell does that mean for me?!" Kenny asked.

"Well...you can either come live with us or you can find someplace cheap to live in South Park..."

"Dude! I can't even afford the cheap stuff!"

"Well, ask Kyle's parents if they can let you stay there for a few nights and we can work on the funds...I don't know where we'd get it from though."

Kenny sighed in aggravation. "Dad, Kyle's parents kicked him out. He's living on his own now."

"Well there you go! You can move in with him! Problem solved."

"Um, no Dad. There's a big problem here. Kyle won't be willing to have his newly acquired boyfriend moving in on such short notice."

"How do you know that?" his dad asked.

"Because it's Kyle! You know, old fashioned sensibility Kyle?!"

His father sighed on the other end of the line. "Look, Kenny, it wouldn't hurt to ask him. Just fucking ask or I'll kick your ass."

"Great parenting there, Dad. You learn that out of a handbook or what?"

"Kenny, shut up and go play with your boyfriend."

"Whatever," he hung up the phone and ran his fingers through his hair. Great. Now what the hell was he supposed to do? He couldn't afford his own place, and Kyle probably wouldn't be too keen on him moving in for fear of having his ass pounded day in and day out. Goddammit.

"Problems, Dear?" Bubbles called from where she was lounging on the couch, flipping through one of Kyle's books dully.

"My dad and mom are moving. I don't have anywhere to go."

She looked at him and quirked her brow. "Ask Kyle to move in with him."

"What is with you people?!" Kenny sighed in exasperation. "Kyle doesn't do that kind of stuff! He's too...Kyle-ish!"

She rolled her eyes. "Dude, he admitted to all of your friends that he gave you a blowjob, okay? He's not as innocent as you make him out to be."

"Who's not?" a weak voice croaked out.

They shot their heads and saw the groggy redhead standing there with a confused look on his face.

"Kyle," Kenny breathed with relief. He ran up and grasped him in a hug. "Are you okay?"

Kyle returned the gesture and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just conked out after all that. Guess I'm still kinda weak," he chuckled nervously. "They all go home?"

Kenny shook his head. "Nah, they ran off to get you some ice cream," he smiled.

"Jesus, am I ten?"

"Nah, but we all need a good ice cream every now and then," Bubbles grinned.

Kyle smiled and rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Dude. So, what're we talking about?"

"Nothin' in particular," Kenny said swaying him gently back and forth.

"Kenny's parents are moving and he's too much of a pussy to ask if he can live with you," Bubbles said casually, leafing through her book.

"Bubbles, what the fuck!" Kenny exclaimed.

Kyle shrugged, "it's fine with me."

Kenny shot his head around and gaped at him. "Wait, what?!"

"Why wouldn't I let you? Even if I was still living at home I'd ask you to if it kept you in South Park."

"Dude, that's like a hell of a step for us, isn't it?"

Kyle raised his eyebrow. "Oh, but making a deal to share immortality isn't?"

"Touche," he blinked. "But still..."

"Dude, I insist," Kyle smiled. "Mi casa es su casa."

Kenny smiled back and squeezed him tighter. "I'm so fucking lucky," he whispered.

"And don't you forget it," Kyle smirked.

"Aww, Kodak moment," Bubbles cooed. They turned their heads towards her and gave her annoyed expressions and she giggled. "What? You two are really cute together!"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I swear, if one more person calls me cute or pretty, I'm gonna lose it."

"Well, it's true," Kenny grinned, giving him another squeeze and releasing him.

"Nobody asked you." Kenny snickered as Kyle walked over and sat down on the couch with his arms crossed in a small pout.

"Would you two mind if I stepped out for a bit?" Bubbles asked quietly.

"Why? Where would you go?" Kenny asked.

She shrugged, "I just wanna get out for a bit. Promise I'll be back...I'm just sorta restless right now."

"Alright, just make sure you're back before tonight," Kyle waved her off.

"Thanks, Mom," she smirked, dissipating through the door.

Kyle sighed. "Good, I need to talk to you about her anyways."

"Why?" Ken asked, plopping down next to him.

"Well, before that fucker broke in, she and I were talking. She was having a major breakdown for some reason. I asked her about it and she said that I sounded just like her boyfriend."

"Okay...?"

"Well, what if he has something to do with why she's stuck? When I was having my vision and I was attacked, the feeling wasn't terror...it was more like sorrow. Shouldn't that indicate that she trusted whoever attacked her?"

Kenny put his chin in his palm and nodded. "Right. Do you think that the thing that attacked you represented who killed her?"

Kyle contemplated this for a moment. "But she said that her pimp killed her... and she hasn't mentioned anyone else with even an inkling of suspicion. She never said that she even had a boyfriend...Hell, can pimps even date their, um, workers?"

"How the hell would I know?"

"I don't know, it was just a question. But there was something else, too..."

"What's that?"

"She kept saying that Barney guy's name when she was crying...Do you think that they know each other?"

"Possibly, I mean, they're from the same neighborhood."

"Maybe he's connected to her more than we know. We should probably talk to her about it later."

Kenny nodded in agreement. "Right. Speaking of which, are you alright?"

Kyle nodded, "Yea, I'm fine...though I can't help but wonder...what would have happened had it gone on longer?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"Well, we can't die, right? So how the hell would I keep everything circulating for so long?"

"Maybe our bodily functions are just for show?" Kenny suggested with a shrug.

Kyle leaned back into the cushion and groaned. "This is getting to be too damn complicated."

Kenny chuckled and pulled him in close to him. "Tell me about it. My head's been pounding since this morning," he paused and looked at him, glancing at the band-aid across his cheek. "Let's check on this," he muttered, peeling the band-aid away. He gasped when he saw the wound almost completely healed.

"What? What's wrong?" Kyle asked, gazing at him. Kenny blinked and grabbed the redhead's arm, ripping the gauze away from his wound, only to find a pale red mark against the skin; almost like Kyle had merely scraped it with his fingernails.

"Holy shit," Kyle breathed, clenching and unclenching his fist, testing out his arm.

"How the hell did...how did you get healed so fast?" Kenny asked, ripping the patch of gauze from his neck to discover a similar appearance from the knife wounds.

"I-I don't know...is this one of our powers?" Kyle asked. Kenny looked at him and bit his lip.

"I have no idea. Let's see," he jumped up and ran into the kitchen and came back with a knife secured in his hand. He sat back down next to Kyle and gazed into his eyes. "Okay, we're gonna test this. You ready?" Kyle nodded, biting his lip slightly. Kenny took the knife and made a gentle slice into the palm of his hand, wincing slightly as it stung. He pulled the knife away and looked at the fresh wound, oozing crimson.

Kyle held out his hand for the knife and Kenny eyed him with slight apprehension. "Ky...I don't think that you should..."

"Oh Jesus, Ken. We're going to do this properly, so give me the damn knife!" Kenny bit his lip and handed it over, watching as Kyle sliced his hand in a similar fashion without so much as a flinch. This made Kenny fall into a slight cringe as Kyle set the knife on the table in front of them and stared at his mark.

They huddled in close and held their hands palm-up beside each other, watching for any changes. Their eyes widened as they saw Kenny's wound slowly but surely closing up. It didn't take long before the entire gash was closed, and Kenny wriggled his fingers, not even able to feel where the blade had caused it's damage.

"Wow...," he whispered. Kyle was still staring at his hand, waiting for something to happen. They sat and stared for a few minutes.

"What the hell, Dude?" Kyle murmured. "That's weird."

Kenny took his hand in his and stroked the wound gently. "Well...," he started. "Maybe it's a one time deal...and I wasted it on this. Great," he scoffed and looked away.

"No, Ken, look!" Kyle exclaimed. Kenny looked back towards the cut and smiled as it slowly closed up.

"Damn, Ken! I like your power a lot more than mine," Kyle grinned.

"Dude, this is sweet!" Kenny cried out.

"Took you long enough," a voice spoke lowly behind them.

They jumped slightly and looked to see Damien once again standing there with a shit-eating grin spread over his face.

"Dammit, Dude! Stop that!" Kenny shouted.

Damien burst out laughing. "You two are pathetic," he chortled out.

"I'm guessing this means that we found out Kenny's power," Kyle guessed leaning back into the cushion behind him.

"Very good, Daywalker," he paused when he noticed Kyle twitch slightly at that. "Kenny has the ability to heal, a pretty generous gift from my father, I think you would agree."

Kenny nodded. "Not too shabby, I'll admit."

Kyle nodded with him, "yea, this will certainly come in handy with all the trouble we seem to get into," he muttered.

"You mean the trouble **you** get into," Kenny teased.

"Shut up, Kenny."

"You're my pretty little Jewish Princess Peach," he grinned.

"So, you're a short, ugly Italian who can't say more than four lines of dialogue and spends all of his time hanging out with mushrooms and turtles?"

"Alright you two, save it for when you're having fun time, alright?" Damien interjected. "Jeez, you two would think that you're nine again."

"Close enough," Kenny grinned, leaning into his palm.

Damien nodded, "Believe me, I know. So, how's your work with Bubbles coming along?"

"We think we're getting closer to figuring out just who killed her...and maybe what's holding her back."

"Ah, is this person perhaps someone you two may know?"

"Unfortunately," Kyle muttered, looking away from the other two.

Damien looked at him then back to Kenny in confusion. "This guy is a total psycho," Kenny explained. "He fucking tried to rape us both last night and attacked Kyle again today. He's not exactly our best friend right now."

Damien smirked. "Well, you got away, right?" Kyle nodded disinterestedly in the conversation. "Well," Damien continued, "that's all that really matters. He couldn't kill you, remember that."

Kyle sighed in aggravation. "I fucking know that. I'm just not to fond of the idea of being raped by a fucking maniac, alright?"

He snickered at the Jew. "I guess that's understandable. Well, congrats on discovering your power, Ken. Trust me, I think you'll find that you really need it to go along with this job."

"Oh goody. Can't wait," Kenny rolled his eyes.

Damien chuckled. "Well, so long, boys. I'll be stopping in every now and then, but probably not too often since you seem to have a fairly decent grasp of your powers by now. Though I will warn you, this is not the end of the road."

"What do you mean?" Kyle asked, turning back to him.

Damien gave him a small, sadistic grin. "I mean that you two aren't anywhere near fully understanding your abilities. You've merely scraped the surface of what you can do. These basics will get you through the menial tasks, but believe me, you'll find that you can do so much more and you'll be needing those extra powers as you go along."

"Why can't you just tell us our powers?" Kenny leaned forward.

"It's like why we couldn't just throw you into this job, McCormick," Damien stated. "It's because you need to have a least a general grasp of your abilities before you went and started calling upon every power that you have."

"Knowledge can only thrive upon the foundation of knowledge," Kyle gave a weary smile.

Damien returned his look with a nod. "Right. I'll catch you around," he waved to them and vanished.

"You were right, Kyle," Kenny said after a few moments of watching the spot where Damien had stood.

"Bout what?"

"This is too damn complicated."

Kyle laughed a bit and leaned into Kenny's warm frame. They sat there, moulded together, breathing slowly, falling into a steady pace with their fingers interlaced. The troubles of their days melted away in the tender moment. They inhaled as though they were trying to savor each breath, as if they were in danger of having it stolen away at any given time. But they knew better. It was just their time to relish in the moment. To feel each other's soft bodies pressed together, enjoying the other's scent and warmth, and to find comfort in knowing that this could be them for the rest of time.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: And I made this WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too long XD...seriously, we're at like, 10,400 words here!_

_I kept saying to myself 'omg, stop! you're going to bore the living hell out of everyone!!!!'_

_But I couldn't get myself to actually stop, and I didn't want to cut the chapter in half, so everything stayed here. I'm really sorry T_T_

_Yup, they're gonna live together already. Probably a bit too soon, but trust me, it'll play an important part in the next few chaps._

_Next chapter I'm thinkin that Bubbles will finally be done. I'm rather bored with her character, so I want her gone XD_

_And yes, I have a problem. I am totally mesmerized by the idea of Kyle being tied up and threatened. I have a problem, but I don't care. I am proud to admit it =D_

_Thanks for R&R-ing, guys =)_

_PS: FUN FACT! (not fun, but w/e) I totally mention Sex. Har. Panda in this chap and I just feel the need to mention that his theme song is my cell's ringtone XD_

_Ken and Ky not being smexy makes me a saaaaaad panda =(_


	18. Scream

_A/N: I don't think this chap will be quite as long as last. But you never freaking know with me XD_

_Thanks for being the most awesomest peoples ever =D_

_You've inspired me to keep on writing, even though last year my passion for it was completely broken by a certain teacher who shall remain nameless. That bastard. Anyways, you guys are just so nice, so thank you so much =D_

_I think you deserve this chapter...(you see where I'm going with this? ;-))_

________________________________________________________________________

"_Dude? Dude wake up," _he heard echoing in his mind, He shook his head softly and muttered incoherently towards the voice. "Ken, Dude, wake up!"

Kenny slowly peeled his lids open, revealing Stan staring at him with an amused expression. He smiled gently at him, turning his head towards where he had changed direction and laughed softly.

Kyle was leaning against his arm with his feet curled up on the cushion, his head laying listlessly against Kenny's broad shoulder. His mouth was slightly open and his chest was rising and falling with a deep and steady rhythm.

"What time is it," he whispered.

"About one thirty," Stan responded quietly.

He turned back towards the slumbering boy and grinned. "Ky? Kyle, Dude, come on. Rise and shine," he said. He planted a gentle kiss on his forehead and watched as his green iris' fluttered into view. Kyle blinked a few times before leaning himself off of Kenny and stretching his small arms towards the ceiling.

"What time is it?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eye.

"You have a calculator built into that freaking Jew head of yours, maybe you should upgrade to the version with a clock," Cartman replied, emerging from the kitchen with spoons in hand. He tossed two at the groggy teens and smirked.

Stan threw them both pints of ice cream and smiled, "Dig in."

"We gonna pop in a chick flick while we're at it?" Kenny smirked, popping the top off of his carton.

"Maybe next time," Stan cracked, producing his own pint with Cartman following suit. "We've all had a pretty strenuous week. I just figured that we needed a little pick-me-up."

"Thoughtful of ya," Kyle grinned.

Stan plopped down in the chair and saluted him. "Not at all. Now eat. It took me forever to find your flavor."

Kyle looked down at his carton and back up at him. "Aw, geez, Stan. You went all the way downtown for this?"

Stan shrugged. "It's your favorite, isn't it?"

"Well, yea, but I would have been just as fine with some vanilla or something. You didn't have to go that far just for ice cream, Dude."

"Well, that wouldn't have been cool of me. It's not your fault that no one around here sells it sugar-free, and I didn't really mind. Just eat it, Dude."

Kenny grabbed the carton from Kyle's hand and examined it. "Sugar free mocha? Geez, Kyle, you're just about as addicted to coffee as Tweek, aren't you?" he asked, handing back the container.

"I am not addicted," Kyle frowned, opening the pint. "I just like the taste of coffee. Is that so bad?"

Kenny smirked at him. "No, it's not. You're gonna need that caffeine if I'm around," he winked.

"Dude, come on!" Cartman whined, "I'm eating here!"

"Oh what a shock," Kyle rolled his eyes and took a bite of his treat. Kenny watched his little pink tongue dart out and run across his full, soft lips. He licked his own lips hungrily, scrutinizing every inch of the young boy's face. Kyle shot his eyes towards him and raised his brow with a small smirk. He returned the look and turned back to face his front, taking a small bite himself.

"Cartman's right, Dudes," Stan teased. "Tone it down a bit."

Kenny gave him a feigned offended look. "It's not like we're making out!...Unless you want us to," he smiled saucily and slid his hand over to grasp Kyle's thigh.

Stan shook his head and chuckled. "No thanks, it'd be a bit awkward."

"But now I'm hungry for some coffee flavored Jew," Kenny smirked, sliding his body over closer to Kyle. Kyle rolled his eyes at Kenny, taking another bite of his ice cream to try to ignore his teasing advances.

"How come it's bad when I call him Jew, and yet you say it and he doesn't even blink?" Cartman demanded.

"Because Kenny isn't trying to insult me when he calls me it, you retard," Kyle replied, not taking his attention away from his spoon. "I am in fact Jewish, so that isn't really an insult. It's the fact that you constantly attach some stereotype or a holocaust joke that pisses me off."

"So if I called you a 'cute little Jew', you wouldn't be offended?"

"Not so much offended as I would be terrified. You call me cute and I swear I will not hesitate to kill you because you certainly would not be the real Cartman."

"True," Cartman said, gulping down some of his ice cream. "I find you a horribly ugly little creature."

"Likewise to you, aside from the little part of course."

"Shut up, Kahl."

"Don't wanna, _Eric_," Kyle drawled out his name in the same tone, mindlessly stirring his dessert.

Stan and Kenny chuckled, it was good to see things finally coming back together. "So," Kyle asked. "What are you guys up to for the rest of the day?"

"I have baseball in an hour," Stan rolled his eyes. "I'm so fucking sick of practice. I wanna kill the next person to yell that they want ten laps around the field."

Kyle chuckled. "Well, then I can see why you're not in track."

Stan smiled goofily at him. "I don't have pure endurance like you do. I have too much muscle to carry around, it weighs me down."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "So I don't have any muscle is what you're trying to so nicely phrase," he grinned playfully at him.

Stan shrugged. "Hey, if you were me, what would you think?"

Kyle swallowed another spoonful and continued to gaze at him. "I'd think that I'm gonna fail that Astronomy test that I didn't study for for tomorrow if I were you."

Stan's eyes widened. "Holy shit, I forgot!" He slammed his face into his palm. "Dude, you were dead for hours and you still remember when my tests are? What the fuck, Ky?!"

Kyle shrugged. "You were bitching about it all last weekend. Go to practice, get your stuff, and come back here later. I'll help you out."

Stan grinned thankfully as he stood up. "Thank god I have the smartest fucking kid in school as a best friend. Thanks, Kyle."

"Not at all, now go play your stickball."

Stan rolled his eyes and swatted the redhead's arm jokingly. "Cartman, come on. Ken, you need a ride home?"

"Nah, I'll walk later."

"Alrighty then," Stan said as Cartman and he began to walk towards the door. "See ya, Ky."

"Later, Jew." Cartman nodded, heading out.

"Bye, Stan. Go away, Fatass."

"Ay!" They heard as Stan shut the door behind them. Kenny and Kyle broke into quiet laughter and continued to munch on their treat with smiles on their faces.

"So, if you're inviting Stan over tonight, when the hell do I get you all to myself?" Kenny asked saucily.

Kyle smirked into his ice cream. "We're alone now," he mumbled teasingly, refusing to make eye contact with him.

"Well then...," Kenny grabbed the ice cream out of his hand and pushed him back into the cushion. "Here we are again. We got to kissing once. We got a little further last time. Wanna see how far we can get now?" he wriggled his eyebrows at him.

"Not very since you waited so long," a voice came over from the door. They turned their heads towards the direction and saw Bubbles standing against the wall with a casual grin spread over her face.

"Dude, you have really shitty timing," Kenny muttered, pushing himself off of Kyle.

"What?" She laughed. "I've been gone for a few hours! That's plenty of time to play hanky-panky, Ken."

"We fell asleep," he shrugged. "Sure you don't need to go anywhere? Store? Movies? A cruise?"

"Kenny," Kyle growled at him before turning his head back towards Bubbles. "Bubbles, sit down. We need to talk to you about something."

She strutted over and threw herself down onto the chair. "What's up?"

"This morning...do you remember what we were talking about?"

They watched as her face fell slightly. "Y-yea."

"How do you know Barney?" Kenny demanded. Kyle turned towards him in annoyance.

"Kenny, learn some tact."

"Tact?! We're talking about the guy who tried to rape you this morning! There's no call for tact!"

"Barney...," Bubbles mumbled. "He was...my...well..."

"Was he your pimp?"

"Y-yea. But he kinda...liked me."

"Did he rape you, too?" Kenny asked with a quirked brow.

"Kenny!" Kyle hissed.

"No, no, he would never have done anything like that."

"I beg to differ," Kenny muttered.

"Kenny, stop," Kyle demanded, scowling heavily at him. Kenny looked towards him and felt a twang of guilt for his behavior, but he couldn't help what he was saying. If he were placed in Kyle's situation from that morning, he'd be saying a lot worse. Of course, if he were Kyle, he'd have enough sense to know when to keep his mouth shut, too.

Kyle sighed and turned back to Bubbles. "Okay, you need to tell us exactly what happened with you two."

Bubble's wrung her hands nervously and stared at them, refusing to look at the boys. "He liked me, I told you that. And he killed me. The end."

"Bullshit," Kyle muttered. "There has to be more than that."

"He...I....Well we kinda...oh geez," she put her face into her palm.

"Look," Kyle said gently, "we're not going to judge you or anything. We're just here to help...Morgan."

Bubbles shot her head up and stared at him. "W-what did you just call me?"

"Morgan. That's your name, right?" Kenny and Bubbles stared at him with matching faces of confusion.

"How the...how the hell did you know that?" she whispered.

"When he was attacking me, he kept stroking my face and calling me Morgan really quietly. It took me awhile to put it together, but I figured he targeted me above Kenny for a reason."

"You're hotter?" Kenny smirked.

Kyle smiled at him, "maybe so, but I think it's mostly because of our hair," he grabbed one of his curls and let it spring back. Morgan reached up and grasped her own lock of hair, rubbing it fondly between her fingers. "Our shades are different," Kyle continued, "but we both have red hair and curl. I think that's why he kept calling me Red around you, Ken. He was focusing on my hair and imagining Morgan instead of me."

Kenny frowned. "So, he liked to tie you up and try to force himself on you?" he asked her.

"No, he never attacked me like that...I just let him have his way."

"Why the fuck would you do that?!" he asked.

"Because she didn't mind it. She liked him back," Kyle said, not taking his eyes off the fidgeting girl.

"Dude! He's like, way older than you!"

Morgan frowned. "Actually, I was seventeen when I died. He was only twenty one. He wasn't that much older."

"How...why...what the fuck am I missing?!" Kenny shouted, grasping at his hair in frustration.

"Ken, calm down," Kyle said, placing his hand gently on his thigh. "Just quiet down and listen to me. Morgan and Barney were together, right?"

"Right..."

"Well, it's never a good thing for pimps to sleep with their workers," Morgan added.

"Okay..."

"Now," Kyle continued. "This was a mutual agreement between them, but Morgan never actually told him how she felt before he killed her. But why he did that, I don't quite know..."

"My mother," Morgan said quietly.

They shot their heads around to her. "Your mom?" Kyle repeated. She nodded at him.

"She threatened to tell the police about not only our...relationship, but the fact that I was a minor working the streets. He freaked out and killed me to avoid that kind of confrontation."

"And you just let him?!" Kenny asked with wide eyes.

"Well, I'd rather be dead than be in jail for being a whore," she shrugged.

"But why are you stuck?"

"Because she didn't tell Barney that she actually had feelings for him, too. I think her refusal to actually admit it for fear of getting him in trouble has held her back," Kyle said thoughtfully.

"Oh shit...don't tell me...," Kenny started.

Kyle let out an aggravated sigh and looked at his boyfriend with troubled eyes. "We're gonna have to tell him ourselves."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three of them grudgingly made their way downtown, staring at the walkway with somber expressions overshadowing their faces. The heavy silence reminded Kenny of a funeral march. This was really not what he wanted to be doing right now. And he sure as hell didn't want Kyle to have to go through this either.

"How the hell are we supposed to do this?" he grumbled.

Kyle looked at him with gentle eyes. "I'm kinda working on something. When we get there, I'm just gonna throw him a story and we'll see how it goes."

"And the story will be?"

"You're just gonna have to play along, Ken. I'm really not sure how to work it all out. I work better under pressure and you're quick on your feet. If we plan it, it'll be too rehearsed. He'd be sure to catch on to something else going on."

Kenny sighed. "Alright, Dude. You are the smart one, so I guess I'll have to trust you on that," he turned to Morgan. "Morg, what is it you wanted to tell him?"

"That I love him, I guess...," she mumbled. "God, he probably just remembers me as Bubbles. I don't know what to feel about that."

"Dude, he was calling me Morgan. I don't think that that's gonna be an issue," Kyle pointed out.

"True," she mused.

"Why were you called Bubbles, anyways?" Kenny asked.

She chuckled. "I got that name because they said that I was pretty on the outside, but nothing but air on the inside," she tapped her head pointedly.

Kyle frowned at this. "Those bastards. They actually said that?"

She shrugged, "I was the quiet one, so they just assumed that I was slow."

"I doubt any of them had above a fourth grade education," he huffed.

She chuckled again, "Yea. Barn was the only one to actually go past high school."

"Good for him," Kenny rolled his eyes. "I'm so happy for his success."

"Ken, if this is gonna work, you're going to have to behave."

He shot his head towards the little Jew and stared at him with worried eyes. "Kyle, what if he attacks you again? What if I don't get to you...or he hurts you...what then?!"

Kyle let out a heavy sigh. "I don't know, Kenny. We'll cross that bridge if we come to it. Maybe things will be okay once we mention Morgan."

"_Unless he decides that Kyle's a threat to him, too," _Kenny bit his lip and stuck his hand in his pocket. He gently stroked what he had grabbed as they'd passed his house on the way to the restaurant. If things got out of control, he would not hesitate to use it. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that, but if it did, he was ready.

"Ken, stop being so tense. We'll be okay," Kyle grabbed his other hand and interlaced their fingers. Kenny squeezed his fingers into Kyle's and forced a weak smile across his face.

"Kenny?"

"What, Ky?"

"Look, promise me you'll stay calm? Don't freak out and go into overprotective boyfriend mode. Otherwise we may be screwed and not be able to help Morgan."

"No promises if that fucker tries to touch you," Kenny muttered.

Kyle leaned up and kissed his cheek. "I'll be fine. You'll be fine. Morgan will be fine. Just don't worry. We'll play it nonchalant and hopefully we'll do what we came here to do, alright?"

"But what if he-" Kyle cut him off with a finger to his lips.

"We'll be fine. Now come on," he led Kenny up to the double doors of the restaurant. Kenny bit his lip, grasping Kyle's hand tighter as they stepped inside.

"Well, you're back!" the hostess smiled.

"Yea, yea. Where's your manager, Lady?" Kyle asked in an annoyed tone.

"Back in the office...you're not here to sue, are you?!"

"Don't know just yet," Kenny said. "Think he can control himself?"

"I-I'll just take you back there. Follow me and I'll let him know that you're here," she started to lead them towards the back of the building. Kenny felt a surge of pride as they passed the still-broken off door leaning against the frame, the wood slightly cracked from the boys trampling over it.

"_Hope that comes straight outta your paycheck, you bastard," _he thought to himself.

"Wait here," the woman murmured as she stepped into his office. Kyle and Kenny leaned against the wall as Morgan paced back and forth in front of them.

"Oh, what is he gonna say? How on Earth will you make it so he won't get suspicious?!" she fussed.

"Calm down, I'm working on it," Kyle assured her. "With my brain and Kenny's skill at lying, we'll be fine."

"He'll see you now," she smiled at them and stepped aside to let them through. As soon as they were in, she shut the door and locked it. Kenny gulped. This couldn't be good...

"Well, well, well," the figure behind the desk drawled out. "Little Kyle and his boyfriend Kenny are back. Tell me, what is it you plan on breaking this time? Or did you come for some fun?" he grinned devilishly.

"Not on your life, Pal," Kenny muttered. Kyle elbowed him in the side and took a deep breath.

"Look. We're here to talk to you about something and you're going to listen."

"Oh?" Barney responded, raising from his chair and beginning to pace behind his desk. "Tell me, Kyle. Why should I?"

"Because if you don't, I'm pressing charges," Kyle growled.

"You're just a dumb kid. I have three of the most powerful lawyers in South Park on my side...Your dear old daddy included." Kyle froze up slightly. "I knew I recognized your last name," Barney continued. "It's your dad that's kept me on the streets workin' all this time," he grinned.

"I'm sure that if he was told what you did to me, he wouldn't be on your side much longer," Kyle stated, his confidence slightly wavering.

Barney scoffed, "doubt it. Your dad and me have been drinkin' pals for a long time, Kid. I know that he has a problem with fags. I don't think that you two are probably doing that well right now, huh?"

Kenny grabbed Kyle's hand as it started to shake slightly. "Fuck off, asshole," Kenny said between his gritted teeth. "We're just here to talk to you."

"You do know that at any time I could call security in here and beat your asses, right?"

"I'm shaking," Kyle said in a monotone voice.

Barney smirked. "Should be, Kike." Kyle's eye slightly twitched while Kenny was reeling on the edge of jumping over the desk and pile driving the fucker into the ground. "Since you're so interested in speaking, do it. I'm a busy man."

"So busy that you could take time out of your schedule to rape Kyle, huh?"

"I was on break," he grinned madly. "I'm about to take another one, so I suggest you hurry up. I've killed before and I've gotten away with it. Don't think that I can't do it again, boys. A little rape wouldn't stain my record with Gerald on my side."

Kyle's breath hitched before he sent it back out of his system in a wavering stream. "Yea, like Morgan Peterson, right?"

Barney's eyes widened. "What the fuck are you talking about? Who the fuck told you little bastards this?!"

Kenny and Morgan both looked towards Kyle. If he had any idea of a plan, now was the time to start pulling it out of his ass.

"We're investigative reporters," Kyle said cooly. "We've been tracking down cold murder cases and trying to piece them together. All the evidence for this one points straight to you."

"That bitch of a mother of hers...," he muttered, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Morgan's mom had little to do with this," Kenny started. "She was our first resort for a source before we tried to figure things out on our own before we delve inside too much. Her testimony towards us was just the first piece of the puzzle."

"You kids bugged or what?" he glared, starting to advance on them.

"No, we're independent reporters. We answer to no one," Kyle said nonchalantly, not threatened by the large man looming over him.

"How do I know you're telling the truth, little Kyle?"

"You don't," he replied bluntly. "You're just stuck wondering now, aren't you?"

Barney's eyes widened and he grabbed Kyle's collar. "Listen to me, Pretty boy," he spit. "You can't fucking know about Morgan. Her mom died months ago, there's absolutely no evidence against me."

The tension in the room grew about double what it had been. Kenny glanced at Morgan, who was sliding down the wall in a silent slump, staring off into nothingness in shock. "N-no...," she whispered.

Kenny shot around and pushed Barney back off of Kyle. "Listen to me, Buddy," he spat out. "Don't fucking touch him again. Now we're here to talk about Morgan, so you better fucking listen."

"No, YOU listen," Barney pushed him to the floor. "I don't know how you fucking found out, but someone's gonna talk."

"We found out on our own," Kyle growled.

"Bullshit," he sneered. "Nothing of those two is left. Do you hear me? Absolutely **nothing**. So someone talked, and I want to fucking know who."

"We didn't talk to anyone!" Kenny screeched. Goddammit, this wasn't working at all...

Barney grabbed Kyle's arm and flung him backwards, sending him crashing on top of the wooden desk. Kenny's eyes widened and he tried to scramble up to get to Kyle's side, only to be stopped by the large man grabbing hold of his forearm and swinging him towards the door. "Hold it, Blondie," he breathed heavily. Kenny heard a clinking noise and tried to swing his arm away, only to have it stuck on the door handle by a pair of handcuffs.

"What the- you just happen to have handcuffs on you?!"

"I knew that you two were coming in and I figured that something like this would happen. It's not like I'm going to just let you free and let you keep trying to punch me," Barney raised his brow.

"ARRGAH!" Kenny screeched as he tried to pull away from the door.

"Uncuff him," Kyle demanded, stepping away from the desk, his head bleeding just slightly.

"Fat chance, Kyle," Barney smirked. "You need to give me answers. Now." he looked between the both of them.

Kyle clenched his fists and they shook at his side. "I told you, you fucking retard, we didn't talk to anybody about it. It's independent research!"

Barney reached over and grabbed his arms, yanking him an inch away from his face. "And I told you that that is fucking bullshit. Now tell me who it was!" He grasped Kyle's curls and sent him down into a clumsy heap on the floor. "Don't make me finish what I started this morning, Kid," he smiled evilly.

Kenny tried harder to yank his arm away, no longer caring if he dislocated his shoulder in the process. "I'll fucking kill you if you try, you freak!"

"Oh? Is that a challenge, Kenny?" He knelt down by Kyle and pushed him flat against the floor. He produced another pair of cuffs and restrained Kyle's arms behind his back. "Tell me who told you all of this and I may just let him go," he raised his brow, daring Kenny to say that he didn't have a name again.

"I-I told you, we don't have a name," Kenny said desperately. "Don't you think if I had one I'd give it to you if Kyle would be safe?!"

"I don't believe you at all," he shook his head softly. "Fucking kids. Guess poor old Kylie here's gonna have to pay the price," he smiled, working his hand up Kyle's shirt and stroking his back.

"Oh my god, get off of me, you sicko!" Kyle shouted, shivering in disgust as Barney continued to caress him.

Kenny reached his arm forward, trying to grasp Kyle and yank him away, falling short be a mere foot. He screamed in frustration and persisted to reach out.

"Come on, you can do it," Barney taunted, moving to sit astride Kyle's back "You're so close, aren't you? Just a little further and you could grab him, " he ran his fingers through Kyle's thick locks and grasped them to yank the boy's head up. "Come on, Kenny," he whimpered mockingly. "Little Kyle needs you."

Kyle squirmed under him, trying to get closer to Kenny's outstretched hand. he only moved about two inches before Barney slammed him back hard into the ground. He yelped as Barney threw his face into the carpet and held him down.

"Get off of me, Fatass," Kyle snarled into the floor, trying to shake his head out of his grasp.

Kenny reached into his pocket and grabbed his weapon, ready to thrust it through Barney's skull if necessary.

"Kenny, don't!" Morgan pled. He blinked at her and scowled. Wouldn't she be doing the same thing if she was in this situation? She ran over and grabbed his arm. "Please," she begged.

Oh how badly Kenny wanted to scream at her. They looked down towards the other two, with Barney pushing up Kyle's shirt leisurely.

"Tell him...the apple tree!" Morgan said suddenly. He blinked at her. "Do it!" she insisted.

He shook his head towards her in confusion. Not sure of where the hell she was going with this.

It didn't matter though once he turned back and saw Barney trailing Kyle's spine. "Apple tree!" he shouted. Barney shot his head up and raised his brow. "D-don't you remember...under the apple tree with Morgan," he stammered. Morgan clasped her hands together and bit her lip.

Barney slowly removed his hand from Kyle but stayed atop his back. "How did you know about that? No other person knew about that day."

"I...we found her diary," Kenny spluttered.

Barney frowned, "I have her diary." He stood up, grabbing Kyle's shoulders on the way and dragging him with him back towards the desk. "Keep still and I may not hurt you," he muttered. He pulled a key from his pocket and uncuffed one of Kyle's wrists. He pushed him down into the chair, re-chaining his wrists together around the back of the seat. He wheeled it around the desk and gave it a forceful shove forward towards Kenny. Kenny stopped the chair with his free hand and pulled it in front of him, wrapping a protective arm around Kyle's shoulders.

Barney was rummaging through his desk drawer, looking for something with a set determination across his face. Suddenly, he whipped out a small baby-blue book and shook it in the air. "**This** is her diary," he claimed. "She gave it to me before...," he trailed off.

"Before you killed her?" Kenny finished.

He shot his eyes straight into Kenny's. "None of your fucking business, Kid."

"Why do you have that in your desk?" Kyle asked, staring at the book. Kenny knew what he was doing, trying to stall time to think of a backup story.

Barney frowned at him. "If you fucking knew anything about her life, you'd know I loved the girl. I'm here most of the time, so I just keep it here with me."

Kyle and Kenny subconsciously glanced at Morgan, who stood with a big grin spread over her face and her hands placed atop her heart. Kenny inwardly rolled his eyes. Was she serious? Despite the fact that she loved him, she couldn't possibly forget that the man before her did try to **rape** his boyfriend not once, but three times in the past two days. He wasn't a saint by any means.

"If you loved her," Kyle said softly, "why would you kill her?"

"To protect her, you dumbshit. You really think the kid would have been happy in jail?! She asked me to. To keep us both out of trouble," Barney glanced away, then suddenly looked back with his usual vigor. "Now, how can you two tell me you found a diary of hers when I have the real one in my possession?"

"You have the decoy," Kyle said calmly.

Barney blinked at him. "Decoy?" Kenny looked down and stared at the top of his little red head.

"A lot of people do that," Kyle shrugged as best he could. "There's a basic day-to-day one and one that tells a lot more secrets. We found hers at her old house."

"Where is it?!" he demanded, slamming the diary onto the desktop.

"It's gone," Kenny responded.

"Gone? Whaddya mean gone?!"

"She asked that if anyone ever found it, she wanted them to throw it into the river so that no one else would run into it. We figured that it'd just be politically correct to fulfill her wish," Kyle replied.

Barney growled and started to move towards them, looking at the redhead furiously. Kenny shot his hand into his pocket and ripped out his flick knife with a scowl upon his face. He held the blade out, pointed directly towards the advancing brute.

"Touch him again and I swear that I will not hesitate to kill you," he growled.

"K-Kenny?" Kyle stammered, looking nervously at the blade just inches from his head.

"You don't have the guts, Kid," Barney scoffed.

"Wanna come over here and see for yourself?" Kenny challenged.

He seemed to consider this for a moment, opting to lean back against his desk with a deep scowl.

"Now then," Kenny breathed slowly. "we came here to fucking talk to you and you go and handcuff us. You're just afraid because you **know** that we're telling the truth. So you need to drop the fucking stupid act and actually talk. Do you get it, Fatman?"

Barney let out a small snort. "Sure, why not. Why the hell are you two here?"

"We came to tell you some stuff about Morgan. And get some answers from you," Kyle responded quietly.

"Trying to put me on trial, Kids?"

Kenny shook his head. "Everyone knows that you did it, you just got away with it. Kyle and I are just researching what it is that makes somebody snap, and why people kill those they're often the closest to."

"Morgan and me weren't as close as you seem to think."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because she didn't feel the same way about me. She was just young and confused. She just let me fuck her because she wanted to keep her job."

Bingo.

Kenny saw the opportunity and jumped for it. "That's where you're wrong, Dude. She totally cared about you. She said it in her diary!"

Barney glanced up at him warily. "You don't have any proof of that."

"T-the apple tree. That's where she fell for you," Kenny lied. "She said that it was just so beautiful...and...and that you just seemed so kind to her, she just...fell."

Barney was silent for a moment, allowing this to sink in. "She...she really said that?" Kenny nodded.

"She never said what it was, but it obviously held some significance with her. She drew a whole bunch of trees around the book after that entry."

Barney bit his lip slightly. "That was our first...time," he said softly. "I took her to the park and everything just sort of happened from there."

"Well, she appreciated it to the point where she began to love you, Dude." Kyle piped in. "And she never backed down on those feelings, she went out like she did to protect you."

Barney's face softened considerably as Morgan's hue slowly began to change shades.

"_Thank God,"_ Kenny thought to himself. He turned to face Barney again and sighed. "Look, Dude. That's all we came here for. We just wanted a motive and to tell you that she felt like that, she just could never tell you. We'll change your names on our report and we won't even press charges for kidnapping or attempted rape or anything if you just let us go."

"Thank you boys," Morgan whispered, kissing them both on their cheeks. She vanished into the air as they continued to eye Barney, rather regretting that they didn't even get a chance to tell her goodbye.

Barney stood from his desk and sighed heavily. He walked over and wheeled Kyle away from Kenny, placing him beside the desk. He picked up his key and Morgan's journal and walked back over to Kenny. "I'll let you go. Just give me two minutes after I leave. Then unlock yourselves." He handed the key to the blonde and gently pushed him away to open the door and let himself out, slamming the door behind him and yanking Kenny back with it.

"Ooh, fuck!" Kenny hissed as his head slammed against the wooden door.

"You okay, Ken?"

"Yea, I'm fine," he rubbed his head gingerly, glancing at the clock. "Alright, two minutes," he sighed.

Kyle sighed after him, staring down at his shoes. "Are all of them going to be like this?" he asked softly.

"Whaddya mean?"

"Are we constantly going to be assaulted when we try to do these cases?"

"Doubt it," Kenny shrugged. "This is the first time I've been physically attacked, but you never know. They told us that these cases would be dangerous...just comes with the job, I suppose."

"Right. Do we by chance get workman's comp?"

Kenny snickered. "Satan's too much of a tightwad for that."

"Well damn. How are we gonna buy the stuff to fill our apartment now?" Kyle leaned his head back in thought.

Kenny smirked at this. "_Our_ apartment? Well, well, well. Seems Cartman was wrong. Jews in fact do not have a problem with sharing."

Kyle turned his head back towards him and smiled. "Of course not. Not when it's someone like you that I get to share with."

"If I weren't chained to this door, I'd fucking kiss you."

"Then unchain yourself, Stupid," Kyle chuckled. Kenny stuck his tongue out playfully and unchained his wrist. He walked leisurely over to Kyle, circling the chair a few times.

"Dude, let me out," Kyle stated.

"I dunno. You just called me stupid. It kinda hurt my feelings," Kenny said.

"Come on, please? I'm sorry," Kyle said, pulling on his bound wrists.

"What'll you do for me if I let you out of here?" Kenny knelt down in front of him and grasped his chin, making his look into his gaze.

Kyle smirked. "I'll make it worth your while, I promise," he said lowly.

"Excellent answer, Love," Kenny winked, whirling the chair around to unhook his boyfriend's arms. As soon as they were free, Kyle yanked his appendages around and rubbed his wrists. Kenny twirled the chair back and locked him in with his arms. "So, your place or mine?" he growled saucily.

Kyle grasped his face with his hands, gently kissing him on the forehead and laughed softly, "Ours."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kenny practically threw the door to Kyle's apartment open, eager to get him started on that promise he made. He swung his arm under Kyle's legs and hoisted him up bridal-style.

"Ah! Kenny, what the fuck are you doing?!" Kyle shrieked as Kenny walked through the door and kicked it shut behind them. He threw his arms around the blonde's neck to keep from falling out of his grip.

"Why, I'm taking my fair princess to her chambers," Kenny grinned madly.

"I'm not a goddamn princess, Ken. I told you that I am not wearing a damn skirt!"

Kenny chuckled as he carried Kyle into his room, not bothering to shut it, and dropped Kyle down onto the bed and climbed on top of him."Well, we'll see about that, Dear," Kenny grinned, leaning in to kiss him.

Kyle grasped the back of his head and pulled him further towards him and Kenny breathed contently. Finally. Goddamn, finally. He darted his tongue out and outlined Kyle's gentle lips. Kenny sat back and trailed his fingers lightly up Kyle's shirt, taking his fingertip and rubbing his nipples gently. Kyle shuddered slightly and Kenny licked his lips at the trembling figure. Kyle just looked so fragile and innocent, and he had complete control over everything he felt. It was oh-so empowering and just oh-so arousing.

As soon as Kyle's nipples were at attention, he sat the boy up and ripped his shirt off, to which Kyle returned the favor, leaning forward to kiss and nip at his collarbone. Kenny relished in the moment and shook gently. He suddenly broke away and pushed Kyle quickly back onto the bed.

"I need you. Now," he growled, biting at Kyle's neck.

"I'm all yours," he responded in a small whisper. Just the words Kenny needed to hear. He ground his hips lightly into Kyle's, practically drooling at the little whimpers that they resulted in from the small boy. He felt something vibrate against his groin and looked down.

"What the hell?" he murmured. Kyle released his grip on Kenny's shoulders and dug his hand into his pocket. He pulled out his cell phone and stared at the glowing screen.

"It's Stan," he said softly. Kenny sighed in aggravation. He knew that Kyle wouldn't just let it ring. He pushed himself off of the boy and pouted at the edge of the bed.

Kyle sighed gently and answered the phone, "What's up, Stan?"

Kenny just shook his head and mumbled, "every goddamn time...goddamn it I'm gonna...if this wasn't Kyle I'd just leave..."

"Dude, are you okay?" Kyle asked into the phone. "No, you're not. You're a terrible liar to me, Dude. Uh huh." Kenny continued to listen in as Kyle burst into laughter. "How the fuck did you manage that? God, you'd think that you'd have at least some degree of grace. Yea. Don't call me that, you jerk. Uh huh. Seven's fine. Ok. Bye." He clicked off the phone and glanced at Kenny apologetically. Kenny just sat and continued to pout.

He felt Kyle come closer and wrap his arms around his waist, kissing his neck. "Sorry, Dude," he murmured into Ken's neck.

"Are you sure we can? I mean, feel any dead people?"

"Nope."

"Are there any in the house that are gonna scream at us?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Stan waiting to call you back just to be sure I'm not banging you?"

"Phone's off now, Dear. Stan just wanted to confirm that he was coming over tonight and that he's fucking clumsy."

"What'd he do this time?"

"Moron broke his finger. But enough about him. Why don't we pick back up, hm?" Kyle nuzzled his face into the crook of Kenny's neck. Kenny smiled, despite the frown that he'd been trying to keep up. He turned and threw Kyle back down into the mattress, grinding himself into the young Jew once more.

"So, when is Stanny boy coming over?"

"Seven," Kyle smiled.

"And it is right now...?"

Kyle looked at a clock nearby. "About four."

"Perfect," Kenny growled lustfully, leaning in to begin chewing his neck once more. Kyle let out a particularly sharp gasp once Kenny bit where his neck and shoulder meet. He pulled Kyle up with him, careful not to break away from his neck. Kyle grabbed his face and attacked his lips, nibbling on his bottom one every-so-often. Kenny dove his tongue into his mouth, caressing the boy's tongue with his own. Kyle let out a low purr and started to undo Kenny's jeans. With some degree of difficulty, he was able to unbutton them and slide them off down the blonde's thighs. Kenny kicked them off forcefully and broke away from Kyle's mouth, running his tongue down the boy's neck and gently kissing his way down his torso. As he worked, he fumbled with the Jew's pants buttons, shaking with excitement.

"_I don't believe it,"_ he thought to himself. _"I'm actually getting to nail Kyle Broflovski. And I'm his first no less! Goddamn, life is good!" _He hungrily continued to kiss Kyle's toned abs, feeling his shuddery breath passing through. He finally undid his jeans and yanked them down in one swift motion. He ran the back of his finger gingerly across the lump in his boxers. He started to finger the waistband of his underwear, breaking away from his kissing for a moment.

"I'm curious, is your dick kosher?" he grinned. Kyle looked down at him and smirked.

"Hey, if I didn't care whether or not yours was, you shouldn't care either." Kenny smiled back and ripped the boy's boxers off. He licked his lips hungrily at the sight he beheld. Kyle was damn near fully aroused, looking mighty fuckable. Looking down at his own member, he saw that he was at about the same stage. Goddamn, he needed this.

He loosely grasped Kyle's cock, running his hand up and down it in fluid motions, causing the young Jew to gasp and bite his lip. Kenny felt himself getting hotter and hotter as he watched the boy squirm. He slowly moved his head down and teased Kyle's balls with his tongue. The boy jumped slightly and whimpered. Kenny decided to see just how much it would take to make Kyle scream his name.

He took both of Kyle's nuts into his mouth, suckling gently on them and teasing them with the tip of his tongue.

"Jesus...," Kyle whispered. Kenny frowned slightly at this. Jesus was not the name he wanted to hear pass through those beautiful lips. He decided to up the ante a bit.

He withdrew from Kyle's sac, listening to his disappointed groan happily. Kyle wanted more, and he was more than happy to oblige. He took the full length of the boy into his mouth hungrily and started suckling at the blazing skin gently.

"Oh fuck, Kenny," he whimpered. Good. At least it was his name now. He just needed Kyle to actually scream it before he was satisfied. He sucked harder, rolling Kyle's balls in his palm and receiving each squirm with anticipation. Kyle reached one hand down and grasped Kenny's hair, tugging it slightly. The stinging sensation combined with the sound of Kyle's moans and the taste of his hot skin were enough to send Kenny reeling over the edge right then and there. He held on though, not willing to just let go before Kyle hit his peak. For five minutes he continued to suckle at the kid's skin and bask in his growing heat, each word the boy muttering being either 'fuck' or his name. No screaming of it though, and it was a bit disappointing. He felt Kyle tense up, sensing that he was right on the edge and he sucked harder and faster, squeezing his balls in his palm.

Kyle gritted his teeth and bucked his hips, releasing his load with a sensual groan. Kenny received the mess eagerly, sucking him dry for all he was worth. As he was sure that he milked Kyle, he swallowed, quite surprised with the mild flavor of the semen. He'd never actually given a blowjob before, so it was quite different. But damn was it a good kind of different! Kyle lied there panting as Kenny licked his lips hungrily. He had gotten Kyle off, but it didn't quite fill him. He **needed** to hear him screaming his name. To know that he was the only thing going through that pretty little head. His own erection prodded at his thigh incessantly, screaming for more.

"Ky?" He asked saucily, leaning over the small frame.

"Hm?" Kyle smiled at him.

"I want you. And I need you. Will you let me?" he asked softly. Kyle smirked and shakily sat up, wrapping his arms around Kenny's neck and pulling him towards his lips, crushing against them with a furious passion.

Enough said.

Kenny stood up from the bed, level with Kyle's body, and began looking around the room quickly. "Shit," he muttered.

"What's wrong?"

"No lotion or anything. This'll hurt like a bitch if we don't get some kind of lube," he bit his lip. He jumped slightly as something wet brushed over the head of his cock. He looked down to see Kyle looking up at him, smiling devilishly.

"Will spit work?" he asked innocently. Kenny broke into a wide grin.

"You're such a smart kid," he responded. He growled softly as Kyle gently took his length into his mouth, coating him as best he could with his saliva.

"Ah! Fuck!" He cried out. He pulled away from Kyle, admiring his shiny member. "Well done," he complimented. "We're not quite done yet, though," he held out his middle and index finger towards the boy's mouth. "If you'd please," he smiled.

Kyle took them into his mouth, teasing them with his tongue and sucking on them suggestively, sending Kenny's hormones into furious overdrive.

"Goddamn it, Kyle. You can't make me cum before we even get to the good stuff!" Kenny whimpered. "Not cool!" he whipped his fingers out of Kyle's mouth and helped him roll over over the edge of the bed.

"Damn, your ass is fine," he muttered. Kyle laughed softly.

"Why thank you," he batted his eyelashes at him. Kenny laughed and poked one of his fingers into Kyle's entrance. Kyle gasped softly and shook a bit, taken aback by the feeling. Kenny gently rubbed his finger back and forth, surprised at Kyle's tightness. This was definitely gonna hurt him. He stuck his second coated finger in him and started scissoring his entrance as gently as he could. Kyle writhed subtly beneath him as he dug his fingers deeper, just brushing over his prostate. Once Kenny hit that spot, Kyle arched up a bit and gasped. Kenny smiled and started to rub it over and over, making the Jew shake hysterically in pain and ecstasy.

"H-holy s-s-shit," Kyle breathed out. Kenny reluctantly removed his fingers, positioning himself behind Kyle.

"Ready?" he whispered huskily. Kyle nodded and he started to penetrate the boy. Kyle's arms shot out and he clawed desperately at the bed sheet, trying to gain some kind of stance as Kenny buried himself deeper and deeper.

Kenny couldn't hold back his throaty grasp as he buried himself halfway into Kyle. Holy shit was he tight! That little body sure made for a good fuck! He pushed himself until his balls hit the edge of Kyle's ass, looking down and seeing Kyle with his head turned, lying against the bed with his eyes shut in pain.

"H-hold on, Ken," he whispered softly. Kenny shut his eyes as he felt him trying to adjust to this feeling, tightening and relaxing his muscles against Kenny's throbbing shaft. He looked back down and saw Kyle looking back at him, wincing slightly. He nodded, permitting Kenny to start moving.

Kenny thrust outwards slowly, and pushed back in as he was more than halfway out. He couldn't stop himself from shivering in bliss. He continued this routine time and again, gaining just a bit of speed with each thrust. Kyle whimpered throatily each time Kenny pushed back into him, each time the sound of pain becoming less and less noticeable, fading into groans of pleasure.

"Nn-ngh, Kenny," he moaned. Kenny licked his lips, eager to hear the boy call out his name louder. He leaned down, continuing his thrusts, and started trail the boy's spine with his tongue. Kyle gasped and arched his back as much as he could without slamming into Kenny's face. Kenny continued to suck and nip at the milky skin, his thrusts becoming quicker and fuller with each moment.

"Ah!" Kyle shouted as Kenny changed his angle a bit and hit his prostate. "Fuck, Ken!" he groaned loudly. So close to that scream. So. Damn. Close. Kenny thrust harder into him.

"Jesus, Kyle!" He panted, sitting back up to gain more ground as he pounded into the small boy. He licked the palm of one of his hands, reaching under Kyle to start jacking his cock.

"Oh, shit!" he hissed through clenched teeth. Kenny dug his fingernails from his free hand into Kyle's hip, holding on tight as he continued to thrust. He was getting so damn close, and he could feel Kyle getting there once more, too. Kyle writhed under him, rocking his hips back strongly against Kenny's relentless pounding. He clawed at the bed, raking his fingernails against the cool sheets continuously. Kenny flung his head back, trying to fling his now-sweat drenched hair out of his eyes.

"Goddamn, Ky, I love you so much," he enunciated each syllable with a strong thrust.

"M-me, too, K-ken," Kyle stammered, rocking back into him. Kenny started to jerk his cock harder, anxious to feel his steaming release in his hand.

"Ah...ahh...," Kyle whimpered. "O-oh shit...KENNY!" he shrieked as he released. Kyle's scream was the final step needed to send Kenny over the edge, he exploded into Kyle with a strong groan, shaking with pleasure, still thrusting into him. Once his orgasm subsided, he pulled out of Kyle slowly and stepped over to collapse stomach-first on the bed beside him. He started to lick his fingers clean, smiling at Kyle as he worked. Kyle looked back at him, panting but smiling widely.

"That was fun," he commented with a laugh.

"Mhm. We should do that more often," Kyle agreed.

Kenny finished sucking his fingers clean and wrapped his arms around Kyle, pulling him close and kissing the top of his head. "Well, now that we're gonna be living together, I don't think it'll be that hard," he smirked.

Kyle smiled up at him. "True...should we tell Stan that we're gonna live together?"

"Why?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I think that I should tell him. But at the same time he'd freak and call me a hypocrite and probably punch me in the face."

"Well, he wouldn't do that, but why would he call you a hypocrite?"

He laughed nervously. "I told him about a year ago that getting an apartment with Wendy then was way too soon. This is after six years of almost continuous dating, mind you. You and I..."

"Two days," Kenny laughed. "Our situations different, though. We're closer than them," he intertwined their fingers.

"How do ya figure?"

"Hey, I went to the depths of Hell to rescue you, that's pretty strong."

Kyle let out a short laugh. "Ken, Hell used to be your second home. It wasn't that much of a stretch from your routine."

"That's not the point," Ken smirked. "Besides, we have that...and the fact that we're the only immortals on this whole planet."

This sent Kyle into a thoughtful stare at the ceiling. "That is pretty incredible to think about...but at the same time it's not."

"How is that not amazing, Dude?"

Kyle looked back at him and smiled sweetly, making Kenny's heart melt away. "Well, I wasn't talking about being immortal. I was talking about us two being the only ones. Being the only one isn't too spectacular. For example. This is the only South Park, Colorado. This is the only bed in this room...," he paused for a moment. "And you're the only Kenny McCormick I'll ever care about."

Kenny felt tears welling up in his eyes as he pulled Kyle closer. Never before had he been told he was important, that he was special. Never before had anyone shown him any kind of affection, and yet here Kyle was, giving him all that he had, despite all of the trouble the poor kid had been through in the last week. He may have worked for the Devil himself, but as he lied tangled up in Kyle's form, Kenny could not feel more blessed.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: While the rest of my school attended the big annual game between us and our biggest rival, I sat at home and typed a pornographic Fanfic. What the fuck._

_Oh well. I HATED the first part of this chapter. I mean pure, unregarded HATRED. Morgan __**sucked**__ as a character. I got so bored with her story that I had trouble actually sitting down and writing. I was so pissed off. Luckily, I have some other ideas for other spirits._

_Second part, I'm happy with. Yays for smexiness! You deserved it cuz I luvs yous!!!_

_Next chapter will be the boy's first day back at school with everyone shocked at Kyle's glamourous reappearance. Hugs all around!_

_PS: would someone like to help me? I want a better summary for this story so it'll grab more attention [without it being blatant 'SEX!', haha.] Anyone wanna help? I suck so hard at summaries XD_

_Thanks for R&R-ing as always!!!!!!_


	19. Anything But Forgotten

_A/N: Blah. That is my mood right now._

_Today we're hittin the school. Yay fillers._

________________________________________________________________________

"Oh Jesus Christ, Dude!" A voice shrieked into the quiet room.

Kyle and Kenny shot their eyes open and turned their heads towards the door to find Stan standing there staring at them with wide eyes. They looked at each other in confusion, then noticed that they were still tangled together and naked.

"Oh shit!" Kyle grabbed the blanket next to them and covered up their bodies, ducking his head under the sheet as well in embarrassment.

Kenny sat up and shook his head groggily. "Ever heard of knocking, Marsh?"

"You ever heard of closing the door when you're fucking, McCormick?"

"Well, why should we? We thought there'd be some privacy. We didn't expect you to just randomly pop in."

"I warned Kyle that it'd be seven. Well guess what, Einstein, it's seven."

"Dude, just go wait in the other room!" Kyle pleaded from under the blanket.

Stan pinched the bridge of his nose and wandered away, shutting the door behind him. Kyle sat up under the blanket and looked at Kenny.

"I don't think that he'd believe us if we told him we didn't have sex this time," Kyle muttered.

Kenny chuckled and threw the blanket off of them. He yanked his jeans back on and watched as Kyle did the same.

"Dude, stop that," he said.

Kyle paused and looked at him with a quirked brow. "Stop what?"

"Stop being so goddamn sexy or I'll have to ravish you."

Kyle rolled his eyes with a smile and proceeded to keep dressing. He took a step towards his discarded shirt and winced. "Ouch," he said quietly.

"Sore, are we?" Kenny grinned

"Have you ever had something flying in and out of your ass like that, you jackhammer?"

Kenny laughed softly. "Actually, no. I've never bottomed."

"Too much of a strain on your manly pride, huh?"

"Nah, just didn't seem that appealing. But judging from the noises you were making, it wasn't too bad."

Kyle blushed and threw his shirt over his head. "Shut up, Dude." He started towards the door with Kenny close behind. He slowly opened it to Stan sitting on the couch with his arms crossed and an annoyed expression set open his face. "Oh Jesus, he's mad," Kyle whispered.

"Too bad, he can't change anything. Come on," Kenny took the lead and grabbed his hand to pull him closer towards the ebon boy. Said boy turned his head and looked at them, the disdained expression never faltering.

"Dude, look, we fell asleep, okay? Sorry," Kyle muttered apologetically.

Stan sighed. "Dude, this is just too fucking weird, okay? It's not like I'm mad at you or anything. I'm a little pissed though because you kept telling me to wait for me and Wends to have sex, and yet you jumped right into it."

"Stan, you started your actual continuous dating when we were like, ten, okay?"

"That's not the point, Dude. You're being really hypocritical here."

Kyle winced, and Kenny smirked towards the accuser. "Oh, well you're about to think that even more."

Kyle's eyes widened as Stan quirked his brow at him. Kenny threw his arms around the small Jew and squeezed him tight, resting his head atop his curls. "I'm movin' in," he proclaimed.

Stan's eyes doubled as his view shifted from Kenny to Kyle, who was looking to the side guiltily.

"What. The. Fuck. Kyle, what the hell are you doing?! You have sex with him and now you're asking him to move in?!" Stan jumped to his feet.

"Hey," Kyle shot his head up, offended. "I'll have you know that this happened before we had sex, thank you very much."

"Why are you moving so goddamn fast, Ky?!" Stan asked with an edge of desperation. "You're supposed to be the smart one! The one that thinks things through! Why are you fucking everything up?!"

"How am I fucking everything up?"

"You're taking on more than you think you can. A relationship doesn't just...happen! It takes work!"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Thanks Dr. Phil. I'll keep that in mind."

"Damn it, Kyle, listen to me!"

"I am listening to you, Stan," he broke apart from Kenny's arms and stood angrily in front of his best friend for the second time that day. "All you're telling me is that I'm stupid and I'm going too fast for your tastes. Okay, so yea, maybe moving in is a little fast, but it's either that or I lose him!"

"What do you mean lose him?"

"My parents are moving for my dad's job," Kenny replied quietly. "I can't afford my own place and my only other option would have been to move with them."

"I'll find you somewhere," Stan offered in a low tone.

"No, Stan. You won't. If **you** were the one moving away, I'd offer to let you stay here, too. Don't think that this is just because he's my boyfriend. God, you're such an insensitive prick sometimes, you know that?"

"Oh, I'm the prick?"

"Yes, right now you are. You're basically telling me that I don't know what I'm doing. And maybe I don't. Maybe I can't see that far ahead, you're right. But as for right now, it works. We'll face problems when we come to them, but until then, I wouldn't mind having my best friend's support since everyone else in my life is kinda gone," Kyle said with his hands planted firmly on his small hips.

Stan stared at him for a moment, then looked at Kenny and sighed, falling back onto the couch. "Okay, okay. You're right. Right now this is how it is. And I guess you do have my support," he smiled tiredly.

"Good. Ken, you might wanna go grab some of your stuff," Kyle advised.

Kenny nodded, giving him a small peck on the lips. "Until later, mi amor." He smiled as as wave of scarlet passed over his little cheeks.

"What exactly do you need help on, Stan?" Kenny asked.

"A bunch of random ass facts about the planets. Like I really give a shit how hot it is when you stand on Jupiter," he scoffed.

"Jupiter goes from about -240 degrees to over 54,000 at it's core. And you can't stand on Jupiter, Stan, it's a gas planet. You'd fall straight through...were it not for the storm and gas clouds completely destroying you. Not to mention the gravity putting such stress on your body..."

"God, Kyle, you're such a nerd," Stan laughed.

Kyle shrugged. "So I like astronomy, so what? It's nice to think about bigger things than just this little blue planet." He sat next to Stan on the couch and Kenny almost burst out laughing as he cringed in pain.

"Well, I'll give you a nice big thing when I get home," Kenny winked, walking towards the door.

"Dude, sick!" Stan shuddered in disgust.

"Bye, Ken," Kyle said, ignoring Kenny's pervertedness. He was gonna live with the guy, might as well get used to it. Kenny blew him a kiss and walked out of the apartment, heading down the stairs.

"Hon, do you ever leave his side?" Sally asked, typing something onto her computer.

He walked over to her and leaned on the counter with a grin. "Not anymore since I'm moving in with him."

"Already? Hon, are you sure that's a good idea?"

He snickered softly. "Maybe. Maybe not. I don't know. I love being around him though and he obviously doesn't mind hanging with me, so I doubt it'll turn out too bad."

She turned away from her computer and flashed him a wide smile. "Well, if you think it's a good idea, then it is. You heading out to get some of your stuff?"

"Woman, are you a mind reader?"

She chuckled softly. "No, I'm someone who's watched people like you for years moving around and moving on with life. You better go, Sweetie. It's getting dark."

"See ya, Sal," he waved as he walked out of the complex and down the dark streets. He took a deep breath and did a little spin as he walked. He was in a fucking great mood. Morgan's problem was gone, Kyle was by his side...and he got to fuck Kyle. Above all, he got to fuck Kyle. He smiled warmly at the memory...Kyle kissing him, those adorable moans, his wet, full lips around his cock...that tight ass. He felt his jeans get tighter and sighed.

"Do you ever just stop?" he looked down and asked his crotch. Damn thing had a mind of its own...

"Hey, Kenny!" a voice shouted behind him. He whipped around and smiled as Bebe and Wendy came running up behind him.

"Well, hello ladies," he greeted them with a smile. "What are you two doing out here?"

"We had to pick some stuff up for a project down at the store. How are you and Kyle doing?" Wendy asked as they continued walking towards the neighborhood.

"Excellent. I'm goin' home to pick up some stuff."

"Spendin' the night are ya?" Bebe asked with a sly grin.

Kenny smirked back at her. "Many in fact. I'm moving in with him."

Bebe and Wendy stopped dead in their tracks. "A-already? Kyle's letting you in already?!" Wendy breathed in shock.

"Yeah, he'd rather do that than have me move out of state with my parents," Kenny shrugged.

"Oh, well then," Bebe's grin returned, "it makes a little more sense if you put it like that."

"Really?" Kenny asked, fairly surprised.

"Yea," Wendy mused, tucking a strand of raven hair behind her ear. "I mean, we thought that this was just a spur of the moment, 'oh my god, wouldn't it be cool to live together' thing. But this is a legitimate reason, and I applaud you two for making such a step in such a short amount of time."

"Well, thank you," Kenny grinned. "Wish Stan was this cool about it."

"Oh ignore him," Wendy waved dismissively. "He doesn't really get the deep emotional connection that you and Kyle have," she said as they continued walking. "I love that boy, but he is just so dense."

Bebe chuckled in agreement. "Yeah, he's just jealous that Wendy won't do the same with him."

Wendy shrugged. "As I said, I love him, but I'm not about to go running off and living in an apartment. I'm rather fond of mooching off of my parents for the time being. I've had to make most of my own money for college, so why shouldn't they pay for my room and board?"

Kenny laughed. "Wow, Wendy. Never woulda pegged you as a leech."

"I'm seventeen, Dear. It happens," she grinned.

"Don't you and Stan have that 'connection' that me and Kyle have, though?" he asked.

"I think we do. I mean, it's just the way that you and Kyle interact with each other that just screams 'relationship'."

"Really?"

"Yea," Bebe inputted. "You two, even when you weren't dating, were always by each other, except when you died of course. You were never as close together as he and Stan, but there was always something about you on his mind."

"What do you mean?" he quirked his brow.

"For example," Wendy started. "We were all going Christmas shopping when we were in middle school, and Stan dragged Kyle along, despite the fact that he really hated going shopping for a holiday he doesn't even celebrate. Well, he picked out everyone's presents really quickly. We all loved them of course, but he got them so quick, except for yours."

"Why'd he take longer with mine?"

"He had to be sure that it was perfect," Bebe smiled. "He got Stan's and Wends and mine and even Cartman's right away. But he scrutinized everything until he found something that he deemed absolutely perfect for you for when you got back from Hell. It was like he just _had_ to make you happy."

"And there were other things he did, too," Wendy added. "Just simple things like saying 'oh, Kenny doesn't like that color', or 'hey, that's Kenny's favorite food!,' or just random phrases like that. You were always floating around in that head of his. I'm thinking you were wedged in between his Chemistry equations and what he could and couldn't eat for Kashrut," she chuckled.

"Wow...," Kenny murmured, turning from her to face the walkway in front of them. "I had no idea. I always thought that I was just kind of...a background to him, ya know?"

"Far from it, Ken. I think he held you in higher regard than Stan sometimes," Bebe replied.

He turned towards her and quirked his brow. "Now that is bullshit. Stan's always been...may always be number one."

"Nah," Wendy shook her head. "I'm not stupid, Kyle doesn't like me much because I always steal Stan away. All those times, Stan fell a little in his eyes because he chose me over him."

"He likes you just fine, Wendy. It's just that Stan always leaves him hanging for you. It's not you, just what Stan does for you."

She chuckled. "Well, either way. He loves Stan as a best friend, nothing more, nothing less. But the love he feels for you is much deeper. And you know it. You can't compare your best friend and your boyfriend. That's like me having to choose between Stan and Bebe. It just doesn't work like that, Hon."

Kenny smiled. "You two need a hotline or something for relationship advice."

"I told ya, Wendy!" Bebe reached across Kenny and playfully pushed her arm.

"Oh, be quiet, Bebe," she laughed.

"So, I've got to know," Bebe started, looking up towards the sky thoughtfully. "Have you two...ya know, done the nasty?"

"Well, it was anything but nasty," Kenny smirked.

"Bebe! That's rather personal, don't you think?!"

"What? Don't tell me that you weren't curious, too, Wendy."

"Bebe, that's not the point," Wendy shook her head.

"So anyways, Kenny, what was it like?" Bebe grinned at him.

He laughed softly. "You really think that Kyle wants me to discuss our sex life with you two?"

"Hey, I wanted to do him...still kinda do even though he wouldn't agree since I'm missing some equipment," she smirked.

"Got the hots for my boyfriend, do ya?"

"Very much so," she nodded. "Kyle's one of the best looking guys at school. You can't blame me. I mean, you drool over that hot Hebrew ass, so you know what I'm talking about."

Kenny laughed harder. "True. You should see him naked. Talk about fucking sexy."

"Oh my god, Kenny. What would Kyle say if he heard you?" Wendy asked.

"He'd beat the ever-loving crap out of me...Or just try to hide his blush."

"I love it when he blushes," Bebe gushed. "He looks so cute like that."

"Dude, do you like masturbate to pictures of Kyle or what?" Kenny asked, still chuckling in agreement.

"I'll never tell," she winked.

"I'm totally telling him that you want his fine ass as yours still, Bebe," Kenny grinned.

She laughed at him. "Yeah, that'd go over well. 'Hey, Kyle. Bebe still likes you. Now suck my balls'," she chortled.

"Hey, I don't command him to do anything," Kenny said indigently. "However, if he wants to suck my balls, I'll be gracious enough to let him."

"Oh please," Wendy rolled her eyes with a huge grin plastered on her face. "The way you look at him? You're already wrapped around his finger. No matter what he wanted, I'm sure you'd give it with no questions asked."

"Hey, if the result is I'm sleeping with that Kosher boy of mine that night then I don't care about anything else," he smirked. They all broke into laughter as they approached the McCormick residence. He stopped in front of the walkway and smiled at them.

"We'll see you tomorrow, Ken!" Wendy waved at him.

"Yeah, make sure that Ky can walk tomorrow," Bebe giggled.

"No promises!" he shouted after them, turning to head into his....was it still his house? Well, he hadn't 'officially' left yet, so apparently it was. He turned the knob and forced the door open, coming across a rather...unusual sight.

His parents were bustling around, packing boxes and sweeping the shag carpet.

"Um...am I at the right place?" he asked, looking at them.

"Well, hey there, Kenny," his mom smiled brightly, her teeth showing their years of filthy hygiene in great detail.

"Hey, Son. You talk to Kyle?" his dad asked, setting down the box in his arms.

He nodded. "I'm officially moving in with him."

"Well good. Now you can finish school," his mother smiled again.

"So...you two aren't like...freaked out that it's me and Kyle?"

His parents turned towards each other and back to Kenny with confused expressions. "Why would we freak out?" his dad asked.

"Well...you used to not be to...accepting of um, gays. I just kinda...you know, figured that this might be a boot out like the Broflovski's did to Kyle."

"Wait, wait, wait," his mom shook her hands in front of her. "They kicked him out just because he was gay?!"

He nodded. "Yea, he got the boot, Stan wasn't talking to him...he thought I went against him, Cartman attacked him..."

"And so he attempted suicide," his dad finished quietly.

"Y-yea. How'd you know?"

"Sounds like a pretty obvious case. Give me some credit, Ken. I'm not entirely retarded. You said he was hurt and then you give all of those reasons? Come on, anyone could figure that out, even your ol' drunkard of a father," he smiled.

"Speaking of which, how's the job going? You sobered up?"

"It's only been a few days, Ken," his mother said tiredly.

"I've had one beer each day. The point is to not have as much as I had been having. I think it's going rather well."

"Well...I'm proud of ya, Pops," he smiled softly at him. He liked talking to his parents when they weren't drinking...they were actually rather pleasant people if one got to know them well enough.

"You better be," the man chuckled. "Now," he pushed a stack of boxes towards him. "Here's all your stuff. We packed it just in case we would know soon. Let's go throw it in the truck and I'll drive you over to Kyle's," he picked a few up and hauled them towards the door.

Kenny smiled gratefully, "thanks, Dude."

His mother walked over and kissed his cheek. "Now, you be good, Kenny. Kyle's being awful kind to let you live with him, so you better appreciate it."

"You have no idea how much I do, Ma."

"Good. You stay out of trouble. And we'll call you all that we can, okay?"

He kissed her cheek and grabbed the remaining boxes with a soft sigh. "Kay. Take care of Pops...love ya, Mom."

"Love you, too. Now go on and git. I have work to do," she smiled, turning back to her vacuum. He smiled back and walked out of the door towards his father. They stacked the boxes in the back of the truck and hopped in, speeding away towards Kenny's new life.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"No, Dude," he could hear Kyle through the door saying in exasperation. "Pluto is not a planet anymore, get off the damn soapbox."

"But, it was for like, seventy years! They can't just...change it!" Kenny dropped his boxes and leaned against the wall beside the door, listening to their conversation with a big grin.

"It's too damn small. It's considered a dwarf planet now. Like Eris."

"What the fuck is Eris?!"

Kyle sighed heavily. "Another dwarf planet. And Ceres is in consideration for being one, too. But as of now, it's still considered an asteroid."

"Why? What did it do?!"

"Oh Jesus...," Kyle muttered. Kenny laughed softly and pushed the door open.

"Stan, you're fucked on that test," he smirked.

"Nobody asked you, Kenny," he got up and helped Kenny grab his boxes.

Kyle stood up slowly behind him, walking towards Kenny with a large grin on his face. "So, you get everything?"

"Not like I had much to get. My parents already had everything laid out for me," he chuckled. Kyle leaned up and kissed his lips gently, pulling back with a small smile.

"Hey, stop making out," Stan called to them, walking out of the bedroom where he discarded the boxes. "I still need help."

"You're beyond help, Stan," Kyle rolled his eyes. Kenny snickered at this. "Alright," Kyle sighed. "Gravity of Venus?"

"Uhh...same as Earth?"

"Close. It's about .90 of Earth's. Remember, it's the sister planet," he said walking back over to the love seat with Kenny falling into it with him. "It's still smaller though."

"Right...," Stan muttered, looking rather frustrated.

"Having trouble, Stan?" Kenny asked goofily.

"Yeah. Kyle's not even in this class and he knows more about it than I do."

Kyle shrugged. "I told you, I like astronomy. I learn about it in tidbits and the information just hangs out there. You can do really well if you just study more, Stan."

Stan looked up at him with an annoyed expression. "Tidbits my foot," he grumbled. He ripped the study book off of the table and flipped to a random page. "Okay, Mr. I-Know-Everything, tell me about Callisto."

Kenny blinked. "There's a planet Callisto? Man, I'm really behind!"

Kyle chuckled. "No, Callisto is one of Jupiter's moons. It's about the size of Mercury if I recall correctly. It's the...eighth from the planet. It has more water and less rock than the seventh moon, Ganymede. It's the darkest moon and it's only half as reflective as Ganymede but it's twice as bright as our moon. And it may even have salt water which is a really exciting prospect!"

"See?!" Stan exclaimed, throwing the book back onto the table with a loud thud. "No one else would know this stuff!"

"Carl Sagan would," Kyle grinned.

"Who?!"

"Oh Jesus Christ, Stan! You're in astronomy and you don't even know who Sagan is? Your teacher hasn't taught you shit, has he?"

"Whatever, Dude." Stan sighed and looked at the clock. "Shit, it's getting late," he stood up and stretched. "I'll just fail the damn thing, I really don't care. I'm gonna go home...see you at school tomorrow?" he asked Kyle.

"Of course. I'm not going to further the idea that I'm dead by skipping school, that'd just be dumb," he grinned.

He smiled back, "right. Well, take care you two. You may want to lay low the rest of the night, you're sore enough, Kyle," he smirked.

Kyle's face drained of color and Stan and Kenny burst into laughter. "See ya, Stan," Kenny chortled out.

"See ya. I still giving you a ride?"

"Well duh," Kenny said.

"Alrighty, see you bright and early," he stated, shutting the door behind him.

Kenny and Kyle let a moment pass before Kyle asked, "is it really that glaringly obvious?"

"Kyle, you cringe everytime you sit or stand. Not too hard to draw conclusions," Kenny whirled one of his red locks around his finger.

"Well, it's not my fault," he half-whined. "It fucking hurt!"

"So, no more hanky-panky?" Kenny pouted.

Kyle sighed in aggravation and glared at him. "Okay. The aftermath hurt. Better?"

"So how was the actual time then?"

"I told you we should do it again," Kyle grinned, leaning back into him.

"Good. I intend on doing so," he responded, kissing his head and stroking his hair.

"How'd things go at your place?"

"Fine. Just a quick hey there, see ya later, be good type scenario. But it was hilarious getting there," he laughed.

Kyle looked up at him. "Why?"

He looked into his emerald eyes and smiled gently. "Ran into Bebe and Wendy. We had a nice little talk about you my little Jew."

"That's not a very reassuring tone."

"Probably not from your perspective. But it was nice hearing about our 'deep connection' as they so eloquently phrased it."

Kyle crinkled his nose. "Deep connection? What the fuck are they on?"

"I think they may be onto something. They just word it really strangely...they are chicks, after all." Kyle nodded in agreement. "They were just talking about how me and you have always been really close, and I never really thought about it until they threw it in my face...Is it true that you took a long time to pick me out presents?"

Kyle continued to gaze at him, chuckling lightly. "They must have told you about seventh grade year. It took like, an hour for me to find you something. Stan really regretted taking me away from our Hanukkah stuff then."

Kenny threw his head back, trying to pinpoint a present. Goddamn it. Think back, think back...let's see, Kyle had given him...oh shit. He shot his head back towards him, biting his lip.

"You have no idea what I got you, do you?"

"Um, sorry?" he apologized lamely with a shrug.

"Don't be. I wouldn't remember either," he laughed.

"Yes you would, you remember everything, Mr. Callisteto."

"Callisto, you moron. And I got you that orange jacket with the black trim, remember?"

"Oh my god, I do!" he cried out. "My old one was torn and you got me a really expensive one so it'd last longer! I wore it so damn much that it was done for in a few years. Jesus, how could I forget that?"

"Eh, you have memory lapses. I forgive you," he rubbed his head softly against Kenny's warm frame.

"God, even back then you were doing all you could to keep me warm," Kenny smiled.

"Well, I've always cared about you, Dude. Even before I started looking at you like I do now, you were still important to me. You were like my older brother or something."

"And Stan was your twin, right?"

Kyle chuckled. "Yea, my golden skinned, black-haired, muscled twin," he rolled his eyes.

"So what does that make Cartman?"

"You remember my cousin, Kyle?"

Kenny shuddered. "God, yes."

"Well, that was pretty much Cartman's stance in my life. The annoying, nasally-voiced distant relative who just wouldn't leave me the fuck alone. Not much has changed."

"I still can't believe you're related to that freak."

"Yea, well I have a feeling I'm not going to be invited to the family reunion, so I probably won't have to see him again," he replied quietly.

Kenny bit his lip and let the air waver with a heavy silence before sitting up straighter and pulling Kyle into his lap.

"Um, Dude...what are you doing?"

"Kyle, are you going to be okay?" Kenny asked, his blue eyes searching his green desperate for the truth.

"What? About my family?" Kenny nodded and he let out a soft sigh. "I don't know, Dude. I...I want to be with you. And I am stoked about the fact that we're living together," he smiled brightly, which Kenny returned. "But at the same time...," he continued, his grin fading slowly. "I...I guess I just never thought that this would be how I began my own life, you know?"

Kenny grasped his chin and turned him to look at him again. "Ky...I think that Cartman may have been right. Maybe it _is_ better this way. I mean, I am really sorry about your parents. I can't lie, Dude, I hate them for what they drove you to do. But at the same time, especially with the deal we made...this may make our lives easier. Who knows? Maybe...maybe it was fate that this happened."

Kyle raised his eyebrow. "Fate? Kenny, since when do you really believe in fate?"

Kenny pulled his chin towards his and kissed his lips gently. He pulled away and stared into Kyle's soft eyes. "Well, something must be working in my favor. Otherwise I wouldn't have you with me right now." Kyle gave him a smile and leaned in to kiss him once more. He broke away and rested his forehead against Kenny's.

"I love you, Dude."

"Love you, too, Kyle. Wanna hit the sack? I'm fuckin' wiped."

Kyle nodded and yawned softly. "Sounds good."

Kenny smirked devilishly. "Well then..." he stood, lifting Kyle up in his arms with him.

"Ken, I can walk you know."

"I like carrying you. I wanna be your knight in shining armor," he grinned sillily.

"This can't be good for your back," he laughed as they passed the bedroom door and made way towards the bed.

"Dude, you're like 100 pounds, okay? Not like you have to be a heavyweight champion to lift that," he said as he lowered himself down to the bed and placed Kyle back on his lap.

"I'm 128 thank you very much," Kyle frowned.

"Still a lightweight, Dear," he kissed his nose.

"Whatever," Kyle scooted off of Kenny's lap and they began shedding their clothes. Kenny couldn't help staring as he watched Kyle throw off his jeans and smoothly slide on his pajama bottoms. He wouldn't mind seeing them off again...

Bad hormones! Bad!

Kenny slipped on a pair of boxers and sat on the bed next to Kyle. "You okay with me being in the bed?"

Kyle looked at him confusedly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, I might fondle you in the middle of the night. I'm told that I do that."

Kyle chuckled. "Well, I talk in my sleep, you complainin' about that?"

"Nah, sounds killer. You whisper sweet nothings in my ear while I jack you off and we'll wake up confused as hell."

Kyle let out a short laugh. "Deal," he slid down under the covers. Kenny switched off the lamp and slid down next to him, pulling him in close. Kyle snuggled into his chest and sighed.

"Night Ken."

"Night, Ky."

"Love you," they said simultaneously. They let out a short bout of laughter before finally fading off into a much-needed slumber, cuddled together in this moment of warmth and peace.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"_Goooooooooood morning, South Park! It is now 6:20 and it's everyone's favorite day: Monday!"_

Kenny groaned, slamming his pillow down over his head. Kyle slowly pried his eyes open, squinting in the sunlight flowing through the window.

"I fucking hate alarm clocks," Kenny muttered from underneath the pillow.

Kyle chuckled lightly and pushed himself into a sitting position. He took his arms and stretched them towards the ceiling with a yawn. "I hate waking up in general," he replied.

Kenny pulled his head out and watched Kyle as he stretched. "How the fuck are you so tiny, Dude?"

"Whaddya mean?"

Kenny smirked at him. "I mean how are you so damn tiny. How else can I explain it?"

"Hey, you try being diabetic and Jewish and you let me know how easily you gain weight," Kyle frowned.

"Oh, you always have some sort of excuse," Kenny said as he got out of the bed. Kyle followed suit and they began pulling clothes out of their boxes and suitcases, listening to the news.

"_Well, it's going to be a beautiful day today. High of about 70, pretty nice for this part of town."_

"You got track today, Dude?" Kenny asked.

"Yeah. I should probably go since I missed the meet on Friday."

"Well...you kind of couldn't help that, Ky."

Kyle shrugged. "Coach wants me there no matter what, he probably won't believe me if I told him what happened. Especially since the evidence is kinda gone," he finished as he pulled his shirt over his head.

"_But, despite this beautiful day, we must not forget a tragic event this weekend. Well known local seventeen year old, Kyle Broflovski, passed away on Thursday."_

Kyle and Kenny froze on the spot, looking towards the radio as they continued to ramble.

"_His family wouldn't comment on it and little has been said after he died."_

"_How did he die, Ray?"_

"_I heard it was suicide. Whether or not that's true has yet to be confirmed, but it is a terrible loss nonetheless."_

"_Heard he was in line for valedictorian, too. Shame."_

Kyle grabbed his cell phone and dialed a number as Kenny sat back on the bed and watched him.

"Hey, operator? Yea. I need the number for the channel B103 radio station, please. Yea, I'll hold."

"Dude, what are you doing?" Kenny asked as Kyle stood and waited.

"What do you think I'm doing?" he responded.

Kenny shook his head and chuckled, continuing to dress. He started pulling on his shirt as Kyle began talking again.

"Hey, is this Ray and Leo?" Kyle asked. His voice echoed and he took the phone outside, shutting the door behind him. Kenny stayed behind and listened as he started combing out his hair.

"_Why yes it is! Can we help you? Song request or anything?"_

"_Far from it. This is about the Broflovski thing."_

"_Ah, paying condolences?"_

"_No. This __**is**__ Kyle Broflovski. I'm not dead, Dudes."_

"_Kid, that isn't funny. His parents might be listening in right now and would be heartbroken if you were defiling his name like this."_

"_My parents don't care. Trust me, they would just shut off the radio and move on. But I am Kyle."_

"_Prove it."_

"_How do you expect me to prove something like that over the phone, you retard?!"_

"_Whoa, watch your language, Kid. This is public radio." _Kenny burst into laughter and fell back onto the bed. _"Okay. If you didn't really die, why did we get news that you did?"_

"_I did die, but I'm back."_

"_Uh huh. Thanks for calling, Kid. Hope Kyle comes back and haunts you. Talk to you later but hopefully not too soon."_

Kyle came walking back in with a scowl upon his face. "They hung up. Fucking jackasses," he threw the phone back onto the bed.

"Dude, would you have believed you just then?"

"If it was about me, then yes. Who would, in their right mind, want to pretend to be me?!"

Kenny sighed and stood up, walking over the the angry redhead and wrapping his arms around him. "Ky, as soon as you're back in the public eye everything will straighten back out, I promise."

"I know. I was just kind of hoping..."

"_We have another caller!" _the radio bursted out. Kyle rolled his eyes and broke away from Kenny. He walked towards his pile of cases and pulled out his insulin kit.

"_Yea, this is about Kyle again." _Kyle shot his head up from the syringe.

"That's Stan!" he exclaimed.

"_Don't tell me that you're him, too."_

"_Nope. But Ky is alive, I assure you."_

"_Oh? And just who are you?"_

"_Stan Marsh. I'm Kyle's best friend. He was in the hospital, but he's back out and about now. Just last night I was over at his place studying for a test, Dude."_

One of the announcers sighed irritably. "_You know, there are people heartbroken about Broflovski's death and I'm sure that you're not helping them any."_

"_Listen to me. Of all people, I would not lie about this. You were just talking to Kyle in the flesh, alright? If he was still dead, I'd probably be busy being drunk off my ass right now."_

"_What part of this is a public radio station do you kids not understand?" _Kyle and Kenny snickered lightly.

"_Whatever, Dude. Just stop saying Kyle's dead. He's going to school today. Any of the kids will be able to tell you that he's still there."_

"_Whatever you say, Dan."_

"_It's Stan."_

"_Whatever. Alright, enough calls about Kyle, if you please. Next up..."_

Kenny shut off the radio and laughed as Kyle finished injecting the medicine in his arm and pulled out the needle. "Man, even the dynamic duo couldn't make them back down," he chortled.

Kyle looked up at him and smiled softly. "Well, like you said, after I go to school today, things will clear up. Now come on, we don't have a lot of time." he grabbed his bag and Kenny followed suit. "Don't forget to lock it behind ya, Dude," Kyle said as he stepped out of the apartment. Kenny locked it and slammed the door shut, following Kyle down the stairs.

"Hey boys, headin' off to school?" Joel asked.

"Yeah. Loads of fun all around," Kyle said deadpan.

"Haha, well, only a little while left and you're out of there," he winked. "Have fun, boys."

"Will do," Kenny nodded, following Kyle out of the complex.

As they walked down the sidewalk towards Stan's house, a thought occurred to Kenny. "Hey, Ky?"

Kyle shot his head up towards him. "Yea?"

"Are we telling people about us or not?"

Kyle turned back and stared straight ahead. They let a few moments of silence pass before he finally spoke again. "I say we just go ahead and act normally. If people ask, then we tell them the truth," he shrugged. "Why would we hide it?"

Kenny smiled and grabbed his hand. "Dunno. Just seems like that'd be the type of thing to put you in the center of attention."

"Dude, this whole 'I'm dead' thing is going to throw me in there. This way we'll be hitting two birds with one stone."

"PETA will have your ass on a platter if you do that," Kenny smirked.

"You're an asshole," Kyle grinned back. Kenny leaned in and pressed his lips against the Jew's.

"You know you love me," he said.

"That's not the point. You're still an asshole." Kenny smirked and turned back around front as did Kyle. They continued to walk in silence, hand in hand in the blazing sunlight until they reached Stan's house.

"Hey Dudes," he greeted, throwing his stuff into the trunk.

"Hey, Stan," Kyle smiled. "Nice try with the radio morons."

"I did about as well as you," he chuckled. He saw their intertwined fingers and cleared his throat lightly. "Cartman will be here soon. He just texted me."

"Whatever," Kenny said as he threw his bag in behind Kyle's. "I am so not looking forward to today," he groaned.

Kyle quirked his brow. "_You're_ not looking forward to it?"

Kenny turned back and smiled at him. "Well yeah. Everyone's gonna be eyeing you up and you may just ignore me."

Kyle grinned and squeezed his fingers. "Not likely. I'd much rather talk to you than some gossiping gawking retards."

"You have such a way with words, my pet," Kenny said, leaning in to brush his lips lightly.

"Kyle, you're freaking affectionate," Stan commented, observing them quietly. "Never would have thought you'd be like that, Dude."

"Why? You've thought about what kind of boyfriend I am?"

Kenny laughed loudly as Stan's face glowed red. "Dude, that's totally not what I meant. I'm just saying it's odd."

"So...what exactly did you think I'd be like? I mean, did you think I'd be wailing on the other person or what?"

"Well, no you idiot. I just didn't think you'd be so open towards public affection. I mean, you roll your eyes anytime me and Wendy kiss."

"No, Stan. I roll my eyes when you're inches away from fucking her right in front of me, okay? Kenny and I aren't furiously making out like you two do."

"We can change that," Kenny pipped up.

"No," Stan said firmly.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Dude, calm down. He was just joking."

"I was?"

"Kenny...," he growled with a small smile on his face.

"Hey Cartman!" Stan said as the larger boy approached them.

Cartman nodded his hellos, then saw Kyle and Kenny's hands and smirked. "So, I take it Jewboy's no longer the delicate little virgin flower?"

"Oh goddammit, Cartman," Kyle sighed. "Can't you just act like you have some degree of decency for just once in your pathetic life?"

"Nah. Too much fun to watch you squirm, Jewrat."

"You're gonna be the one squirming when I'm through with you, Fatboy!" Kyle ripped his hand out of Kenny's.

"Ooh, I'm so scared," Cartman said in a whiny voice, shaking his hands in front of him. "Don't hurt me, Kahl. I don't think I can take on your little 30 pound ass," he laughed.

"Better 30 pounds than 300 you tub of lard!"

Stan sighed irritably and stood in-between them. "Look, can we just go to school. Please?"

Kyle growled and turned away from them, looking across the street with his face glowing red with frustration. Kenny kissed his cheek and watched his disposition soften a bit. "Come on, Ky. Let's just go," he grabbed his hand and guided him to the car. Stan and Cartman followed close behind.

"Am I grabbing the front so you two can make out or are we doing this like normal?" Cartman asked.

"Kyle, get in the front," Stan commanded. Kyle and Kenny looked at each other and shrugged before hopping into their usual seats.

"You really have that big of a deal with me and Kyle kissing, Stan?" Kenny asked as they all buckled in.

"No, but otherwise I won't be near him again today," Stan smirked as he backed the car out of the driveway.

Kyle sighed and turned his head to look out the window. "Whatever, Dude."

"What's the matter with you, Jew?"

"None of your business, Fatass."

Kenny frowned. He knew that tone of voice. "Kyle, what's wrong?" he asked, reaching through the front seats to grasp his hand.

Kyle let a few moments of awkward silence pass through the car. "I don't even know," he finally mumbled. "I just got really depressed all of a sudden. I have no fucking idea what's wrong with me."

"I can name a few things."

"Shut the fuck up, Cartman," Stan growled. He turned to Kyle and gave him a concerned glance. "Kyle, if something's bugging you, you know you can always tell us, right?"

"I just said I don't know what's bugging me. What don't you get about that?" Kyle snapped.

"Jesus Christ, Dude. I was just saying we're here. No need to fucking bite my head off."

Kyle blinked at him a few times before turning back towards the window and throwing his eyes into his palm. "Sorry, Stan...I've just not exactly had the best week of my life. You know I don't mean it."

"Yeah, I know you don't. After school, we're taking you out, Dude."

"I have track, Stan."

"Then after track. We'll watch your meet and we'll go grab some grub and you can vent. Sound good?" Stan flashed him a patented super best friend smile.

Kyle turned back and returned a small grin. "Yeah. That sounds great...I'm not going into any bathroom though."

Stan and Cartman chuckled softly while Kenny tightened his grip on Kyle's hand. "So Stan," Kenny began. "How exactly did you break your finger?"

Kyle looked towards Stan again. "Yea, I never did ask you about that. What happened?"

"Baseball," Stan responded quietly.

"That's a lame story, Stan," Cartman said. "Obviously there's more to it."

Stan shrugged. "Not really. Little baseball tiff. No biggie."

"It must have been something if it broke your finger. You haven't broken a bone since middle school, Dude," Kyle commented.

"Nah. I just turned wrong and my finger gave out. It was a clean break, so it won't really damage me or anything. I can still pitch and catch, too, so it's not a life changing deal," he chuckled.

Kyle smirked. "Klutz."

"Not all of us are graceful ballerinas, Ky," he responded.

"Did you just call me a ballerina?"

Cartman started laughing. "Well who woulda thought that Stanny would throw an insult like that?"

Kyle frowned as Stan joined in his laughter. Kenny smirked and began, "well, I don't see how that's an insult. Ballerinas are graceful, beautiful, flexible..." he reached down and reclined Kyle's seat into his lap. "And they're damn good kissers," he finished, leaning down and meeting lips with Kyle's.

"Aw, weak!" Cartman cringed.

"Dude, sit him up. That's not safe," Stan lectured. Kyle and Kenny broke apart and looked at him.

"Stan's a safety prude?" Kenny grinned.

Kyle snickered. "Yeah. He won't let me past right inside his front door if I don't lock it behind me."

"Hey. Excuse me for not wanting to have my house broken into," Stan said defensively as Kyle sat his seat back up.

"You're just paranoid, Dude," Kyle stated as they approached the school.

"Hey, one day, you'll get robbed and you'll regret not being like me."

"Well aren't we Mr. High-and-mighty?" Kenny asked.

"Yes. Yes I am. Bow down, mortals," Stan chuckled. Kenny and Kyle looked at each other and smirked. Oh the irony.

They pulled into the lot and started to clamber out of the car. Kyle's bag caught on his seat and spilled papers and pens everywhere on the ground.

"Oh damn it," he groaned, bending down to start scooping up the supplies. Kenny knelt down and helped him clean up.

"Have fun, fags," Cartman smirked as he passed them to walk towards the buildings. Kyle cooly flipped him off, not taking his eyes away from his task at hand.

"Hey, Marsh!" A voice called from the opposite side of the car. Kenny quickly placed the voice with that of Craig Tucker. he looked over and saw Kyle's face set in a deep scowl and refusing to make eye contact with him and he smirked. Kyle knew full well that he and Craig had been together before and he was teeming with jealousy. Kenny leaned over and kissed his cheek, flashing him a comforting smile. Kyle gave a small grin back and continued picking up his mess.

"Didn't figure you'd be here today," Craig continued.

Stan shut his door and turned towards him. "Why?"

"Well with Broflovski and all...," Token's voice pipped up.

"Dudes, Kyle's fine. He's right..."

"Sure he is, Stan. He's in a better place now and all that," Craig interrupted, patting Stan's shoulder.

As they finished cleaning up, Kyle started to stand, but Kenny held him down. "This is gold, Dude," he snickered quietly. Kyle sighed and sat next to Kenny with his arms crossed.

Stan chuckled lightly. "No, I mean he's really okay. He's over..."

"It's gonna be okay, Stan. You're better off without him around anyway."

Stan's chuckling stopped and there was an awkward silence in the air. "Did...Did you seriously just say I'm better off with Kyle dead?"

Kenny grabbed Kyle's now-shaking fist and stroked it gently with his thumb, listening intently to the conversation.

"Well face it, Stan. He always brought you down," Token spoke up again.

"What the hell do you mean by that, Black?" Stan spouted, his anger becoming apparent.

Craig shrugged. "Jocks and nerds, ya know? Social hierarchy doesn't like people like you and him hanging out. Kyle was a good kid, but he just wasn't cut out to be hanging with somebody like you."

"Kyle's just as popular as I am," he said firmly.

"No, Kyle _was _well known, but not popular. He was the annoying ginger Jew kid who either had his nose in a book or shoved up his ass," Token said.

"Face it, Stan," Craig continued. "he was just part of the background. With him gone, maybe you can finally be with the people you're supposed to be with."

A heavy tension filled the air, with Kyle trembling uncontrollably in Kenny's arms as Kenny himself tried to control himself enough to not jump over the car and pull out his knife.

"You son of a bitch!" Stan growled furiously, followed by a loud thud against Craig's jawline.

"OW! What the fuck, Marsh?!" Craig cried out.

Kyle shot upwards out of Kenny's hold and rant to the other side of the car. He grasped Stan's arms from behind and held on tightly. "Stan, stop!" he demanded.

"Did you not just hear them, Kyle?!"

"Yes, I did. I'm used to this kind of crap, alright? Just calm down."

"Y-you're alive?!" Craig squeaked. He and Token stared at him with wide eyes.

Kyle glared over Stan's shoulder at him. "Yes I am. Sorry to be an inconvenience to the two of you."

"Um...I...uhh," Craig fumbled for words.

Stan started to wrestle way from the small Jew, much to his dismay. "Stan, please, stop!" he pleaded, trying desperately to hold the larger boy back.

Kenny stepped up beside them and glowered at Craig and Token. "Kyle can't hold both of us back," he warned quietly. "I suggest you get the fuck away from us unless you want either me or Stan beating the living shit out of you."

Craig and Token looked at each other, then back towards Kyle. "Sorry," they muttered before turning and walking away quickly. As soon as they were out of sight, Kyle finally let go of Stan.

"Goddammit, Kyle!" he yelled. "Why wouldn't you let me kill them?!"

Kyle glared at him. "Stan, it wasn't necessary. You think that I'm not used to being told I'm useless and unpopular and all that shit? Dude, I've been going through that since we were in elementary school! In case you've forgotten, most of our days, for some reason, were spent with Cartman."

"That's different! These were..."

"Two people who aren't too fond of me since I raised the curve in our calculus class," Kyle finished. "They rag on me nonstop, Stan. Welcome to reality. Now can we please just go to class? I'm sure I have pounds of homework that I need to catch up on." He didn't wait for a response as he picked up his bag from the ground and started walking towards the building. Kenny and Stan ran to catch up with him, walking on either side.

As they walked through the front doors, Kyle and Kenny said their goodbyes to Stan as he turned down a different hallway and continued towards their English class. As they walked, they felt all eyes turn towards them, or more specifically Kyle.

"God," he muttered. "It really got around fast, didn't it?"

Kenny smirked. "Stan said that Wendy and Bebe were the ones who told everyone. You tell Bebe something and half the county knows in twenty minutes. Besides, they should be looking at you. They need to take time to notice just how damn fine you are," he grasped his hand, resulting in excited whispers all around them.

"Jesus Christ, do they ever stop?" Kyle asked.

"Not unless you kill them. Keep in mind that that isn't our job, Dear," Kenny smiled.

Kyle chuckled. "It'd be a perk if it was though."

"True," Kenny mused as they turned into class.

"Kyle!" Mrs. Troyer shouted, running over to them and grasping him in a tight hug. "Oh, Kyle, I heard that you were dead!" She exclaimed, pulling away from him and staring at his face. "Dear, are you alright?!"

"I"m fine, Mrs. T," he smiled tiredly. "I was in the hospital, but I'm okay now. What'd I miss?"

"Miss? You think I'm going to make you make this stuff up?" She asked, a scandalized look upon her face. "Dear, you already know more about this than anyone else to begin with and you died for heaven's sake!"

Kyle rolled his eyes and Kenny chuckled lightly. "Do I have to make it up, Mrs. T?" he asked with a pathetic look on his features.

She glanced at him, noticing their intertwined fingers and smiled softly. "You were with Kyle, so I suppose not. Don't get used to it, Kenneth. You're doing tonight's assignment."

"Ah, shucks," he snapped his fingers on his freehand. She patted Kyle's shoulder and headed back to her desk. Ken and Kyle went to theirs and plopped down.

"Goddamn it, I better not get this treatment in my other classes," Kyle muttered.

"Gonna go crazy without work, Dear?" Kenny smiled at him.

"I just might. I don't like being singled out," he placed his chin in his palms and gazed at Kenny. "You don't mind extra attention, but I fucking hate it."

"I know, but it'll die down fairly quickly, I'm sure."

"You better be right, Dude," he said as the morning bell rang.

"Good morning class!" Mrs. Troyer started with a bright smile. "Today is a very special day, isn't it? Here we all thought it'd be nothing but sadness, but look who's back," she gestured to the now-flustered redhead.

"Oh Jesus," he muttered, slamming his face into his palm.

"Oh goody. Now we can all continue to fail," a monotone voice spoke out. The rest of the class muttered their agreements and Kenny shot them all a death look. God, he'd never thought that people actually thought of Kyle like that...no wonder he didn't invite anyone over for his birthday.

"Kyle's not the reason you're failing. These tests scores however," she waved a stack of paper in front of her, "are. Our highest score was a 64. A 64, kids! I gave you every single answer and yet you somehow managed to all fail!"

"It's a stupid book!" Another voice complained.

"The Scarlet Letter is a timeless piece of literature," she argued. "Hawthorne was a genius and you should be appreciative of the fact that you're able to enjoy his works."

"He was a depressing maniac who loved talking about evil ministers who sleep with people," yet another voice called out.

"And that would say what about his opinions? Why would Hawthorne portray them as such?" there was a moment of silence. "Anyone?" she looked around.

"Because they're human, too," Kyle said softly and all heads turned to him. He sat and stared at his desk, avoiding eye contact.

"Go on, Kyle," she urged.

He sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Hawthorne saw that there are no humans with imperfections and he played heavily upon that. He saw that people followed those portrayed as 'perfect' in droves, such as the townspeople did with Dimmesdale. His main point was to show that despite his role as a major figure in the town and a 'direct communication with God himself', Dimmesdale was just as human as any of us. He was capable of pain, suffering, and above all, sin."

"Very good," she smiled before turning away and continuing on with her lesson. Kenny stared at Kyle, whose attention was still directed at the ceiling.

"_There's more to that statement than any of them could ever imagine..."_

_---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

"Goddamn, Jew. Don't you ever eat like a human?"

Kyle sighed irritably as he and Kenny sat down at the table with trays in hand. "What's wrong now, Fatass?"

"You're eating a damn salad! Geez, you're like a fucking gerbil!"

"Well sorry that they don't sell anything kosher at this goddamn place, and unlike you, I can't survive on pounds of sugar. Let me eat my damn vegetables in peace. They're gross enough without your appearance making it worse."

Kenny smirked, he loved watching Cartman and Kyle's lunchtime banter. It never failed, the Nazi and the Jew always had something come up and they'd argue about it from bell to bell. This made Kenny a bit envious. Although they hated each other, at least they always had someone to talk to. He was never able to find anyone to hold conversations with until recently.

"So," Stan interrupted. "how have your days been going?" he smiled at them.

Kenny shrugged. "Same as always, really. Few quizzes I missed, but whatever."

Kyle looked at him, "lucky you," he muttered.

Kenny squeezed his hand. "That bad, huh?"

Kyle sighed again, "terrible. Everyone's either hugging the living hell out of me or telling me I should have stayed dead. I had a few random people I don't even know come up and push me just to make sure I was real, and I'm also having the pleasure of being called a ginger-fag because people saw me holding hands with you this morning," he grumbled.

Kenny retracted his hand from Kyle's and looked at his tray sheepishly. Kyle chuckled softly and grabbed his hand again. "Dude, that's fine. They can say whatever the fuck they want. Won't change a thing," he smiled reassuringly at him. This made Kenny's heart flutter a bit.

"You still goin' to track, Dude?" Stan asked, taking a bite of his burger.

Kyle nodded. "Might as well. Maybe running will calm my nerves a bit."

"Yeah, you can stare at all the sweaty guys," Cartman rolled his eyes. "Track must be like a field day to you."

Kyle glared at him. "Fuck off, Cartman. Just because I'm actually capable of doing more than just sitting on my ass like you doesn't mean that I do it just to ogle people, you fat freak."

"Oh please. It's like, two minutes of running and you're done. Don't act so high and mighty just for that."

"You idiot, I do the 5K. You think that takes two minutes?"

"You do hurdles, too, Dude," Stan pointed out.

"Not helping, Stan," he growled back, chomping on a piece of lettuce. "The point is that I'm not there to stare at the other guys, okay? Why the hell would I want to do that?"

"Because they're brimming with athletic prowess and Poor-boy isn't?"

"Hey, I've got more muscle than you, Tubs," Kenny said indignantly.

"Are _you_ staring at 'em Cartman?" Kyle asked, chewing on his carrot. "After all, I've never had the time to consider them 'brimming with athletic prowess.' It takes some degree of observation to come to that conclusion," he stared at him over his smart black rims.

Cartman scoffed. "Oh please, Jew. You're the fag here. Not me. I have a girlfriend, mind you."

"Kenny's had girlfriends," Stan pointed out.

"No, I've had fuckbuddies. Big difference there, Stanny. Kyle's my first true significant other," Kenny grinned, noticing a small one growing on Kyle's face as well.

"Oh whatever," Cartman waved dismissively. "Point is...um. I fucking forgot what my point was."

"Oh, nice," Kyle rolled his eyes. "Do you even listen to yourself when you talk?"

"Shut up, Kahl."

"Okay, guys, cool it," Stan smiled. He and Kenny just looked at each other and silently chuckled. This was better than not having anything at all...

"So, you comin' with me and Stan to Kyle's thing?" Kenny asked Cartman, biting into his pizza crust.

Cartman looked thoughtful for a moment then shrugged. "Might as well. Mom's redoing the damn house and I'm trying to keep out of her way."

"She finally building that isolation chamber for you I told her to make?" Kyle asked, picking at his salad.

Cartman flipped him off. "No, Dickwad. She just wants it changed for when I move out. She says it's going to be completely different as it is, and she might as well make it complete."

"Oh yes, what will she do without her 'special little muffin?'" Kyle mocked, Stan and Kenny burst into laughter.

Cartman began to grow red. "At least my mom didn't abandon me, Asshole!"

A harsh silence fell over the table. Kyle stood and glared at Cartman. He took his plate and thew the remaining salad at his head, the remaining leaves simply fluttering to the floor. "Knew I should have had dressing..," he muttered before walking off towards the restrooms.

They all watched him go, and as soon as the door closed behind him, Kenny and Stan turned to glare at Cartman.

"God-fucking-dammit, Cartman!" Stan screeched. "Of all of the fucking things you could have said! A Jew joke would have been better than that! Do you ever think before you talk you asshole?!"

"You know I don't," Cartman scoffed, looking away from them.

"Go apologize to him," Kenny growled.

Cartman whipped his head back and gave a surprised laugh. "Apologize? For what?"

"Cartman, there's a time and a place for comments like that. Don't you get how hard of a time he's going through?!"

"Hey, he brought it upon himself! If the Jew hadn't slashed himself open, we wouldn't be having this discussion!"

"Cartman. Go fucking apologize to him before I bash your head in," Stan said, slowly rising from the table, ready to make good on his promise.

"FINE!" Cartman shouted, pushing himself away from the table. "Goddamn fags," he muttered, heading off towards the bathrooms.

"God, what a fucking asshole," Kenny muttered.

Stan sighed. "This is just ridiculous. I mean, he's a big boy now. Shouldn't he know to have at least a little compassion for Kyle?"

Kenny looked at him and quirked his brow. "We're talking about Eric Cartman, Stan. Compassion isn't exactly his niche."

"You'd still think that he'd...Jesus Christ this is so fucking old. Those two need to either stop talking to each other or actually declare a friendship."

"Let's face it, Stan. They need each other. Cartman needs someone to rip on and Kyle needs someone to give him a backbone. Their hatred plays a necessity in their lives. We just happen to be in the middle of it all."

"Lucky us," he rolled his eyes. He looked over as the two enemies came walking out of the bathroom and Kenny followed his gaze. They both sat back down, refusing to look at each other or their companions.

"Come on, Dude, let's go to Chem," Stan insisted gently, pulling on Kyle's arm.

"Yea. Whatever," he mumbled, starting to grab his stuff.

Kenny leaned over and whispered, "You gonna be okay?"

Kyle looked back and shrugged weakly. Kenny gently pressed his lips against his, pulling back and watching his eyes brighten a little.

"Thanks," he whispered before getting up and following Stan out of the cafeteria.

As soon as they were gone, he turned to Cartman, who was watching him intently.

"You apologize?" he demanded.

Cartman sighed irritably. "Yes, you fucking poor piece of shit. God, you're almost as bad as the Jew, I swear."

"At least you're finally growing up," Kenny commented.

"What do you mean?" he raised his brow.

"Had this been just a few years ago, you never would have apologized for that. I think that Kyle's grown on you," he smirked.

"Like a poisonous fungus," he retorted. "I don't know how you can stand him. He's so...Jewey!"

Kenny shrugged. "He's not the Kyle you see him as, Dude. You just see a little ginger-Jew, but I see more of him."

"Well, I've said it before, I have no interest in seeing Twiggy naked."

Kenny sighed in exasperation. "That's not what I meant, you retard. He's smart and strong and caring.... and you just don't see those sides because you constantly throw him up against the wall with your damn insults."

"The Jew isn't very strong, Kenny. Strong people don't cut themselves,they deal with their problems. Kahl's just a pussy who can't handle the fact that reality's a bitch."

"Cartman, you've had your whole life handed to you on a silver platter by your mother. How can you possibly be made to compare lifestyles with him?"

"Well I don't see you playing the slashy game and you're not exactly living in luxury," he replied, leaning back in his seat.

"Kyle and my situations are entirely different. My parents were alcoholics and abusive, but they didn't completely disapprove of who I was. They didn't push me to be the best and not help me every step of the way. Kyle's lived his whole life trying to pursue a goal that he doesn't even know he's striving for yet. I've never had to have that problem. My life consisted of drinking and fucking. Not too bad of a lifestyle if you ask me."

"Well with your little Jewgirl holding you on a choke chain you can't do that anymore."

"And maybe I don't want to. I'd rather be with Kyle than a different chick or dude every night. He makes me feel like I'm...me, okay? I don't have to act different around him or anything. He accepts me and that's all that matters."

Cartman snickered. "Goddamn, Kenneh, you sound like such a girl."

Kenny smiled back. "Maybe so, but I feel fucking happy. And if you would just lay off of insulting Kyle left and right, maybe he could be happier, too. I know he didn't mention you in his...letter. But you know that you placed constant stress on him, you backed him into a corner where he couldn't tell anybody anything."

"Well, I just figured that's what I'm supposed to do. I'm the Nazi and he's the Jew," Cartman shrugged.

Kenny sighed. "You don't need to be outrageous about it, Dude. Ky's just like you and me. He's human. He can't take constant stress without hitting the breaking point. Just...back off a little, okay?"

Cartman sighed and glanced at the clock. He turned back to Kenny with a darkened expression. "I'm not promising you anything, Kenneh. Look, the Jew needs to grow a spine, alright? Have you not heard what everyone's been saying about him today? If Kahl doesn't learn to deal with it from somebody, then all of these people going at him at once is going to completely tear him apart and put him right back in the hospital." He stood up, still staring at Kenny. "I'm not stupid, Kenny. He's still messed up. Maybe you need to take a better look and teach the idiot to defend himself." He grabbed his tray and walked away.

Kenny sat and stared after him, ignoring the ending bell and the noisy passerby's. He just sat and stared into nothing long after Cartman had vanished into the crowd, his words echoing through his mind.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Why do I have a feeling all of the chaps will start being this long..._

_Did my love of Astronomy and the Scarlet Letter shine through horribly or was it just me? XD_

_Fillers = Fun and Reviews = more fillers! (and real chaps, but that's beside the point)_

_I really had fun with this chap and gave Cartman another shining moment. He's my second least fave of the four (my least being Stan), but he's still pretty fun to write. And he does care for Kyle, he just sucks ass at showing it XD_

_Thanks for R&R-ing, loves!_


	20. Protection

_A/N: Is it really that obvious that Stan isn't my favorite character? I mean, I like him, he's just not one of the three faves. I just find him...well, dull. But, I like his character nonetheless. I try to write them all fairly equally and give them the personality I feel that they'd have...am I failing at Stan?! _

_And apparently I made Cartman seem nice which was NOT my intent at all. Cartman was supposed to be...I wanna say protective, but that just doesn't work. I don't know. He's grown a bit since when the actual show would take place, and he's supposed to defend Kyle, but not to his face unless it's in dire need. Honestly, my writing must be getting worse because everyone's getting the wrong vibes_

_Now I'm self conscious =(_

_Btw, you like the new summary? I totally took the first line from VampiressKatasandra's idea for the sum. So thanks a bunch, Dear! Helped me bunches =D_

_Enjoy this...I guess this is kinda a filler, too. I'm having way too much fun with this story._

________________________________________________________________________

Kenny trudged down the empty hallway, the sounds of his scuffling shoes echoing down the corridors.

"Goddamn geometry," he muttered. "When the fuck am I ever going to need it?" He glanced at his watch and sighed. Kyle's practice had just started, so he'd make it in plenty of time. But he would have liked to have talked with him before hand...

"_If Kahl doesn't learn to deal with it from somebody, then all of these people going at him at once is going to completely tear him apart and put him right back in the hospital."_

Kenny shuddered as Cartman's words echoed in his head for about the thousandth time that afternoon. Was he right? Kyle's mood seemed to just deepen and he didn't know what the cause of all of it was. Was it the cases? Was it his now seemingly frequent fights with Stan? Was it all the kids against him? His parents? Was it Kenny?...Was it himself?

He bit his lip, trying to find the answers for himself, but to no avail. He'd just have to talk it out with Kyle later. He continued walking outside towards the track, scanning the bleachers for his group. He spotted a shock of red hair and smiled widely, quickening his pace to get there.

"Hey, Kenny," Kyle smiled brightly at him. Stan and Cartman nodded their hellos as Kenny sat down. He gave Kyle a quick peck on the lips, eyeing his track uniform.

"You already run?"

He shook his head. "Nah, Coach is having us go in pairs, I'm just waiting it out. What took you so long?"

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Marcus had me stay behind to learn how to do something with triangles. I don't know. I know what a damn triangle is, why do I need to learn to do math inside of one?"

"Because the school system is a giant conspiracy to overload your mind with useless information so you don't focus on the important things in life and try to overthrow the government," Cartman replied bluntly.

"Oh come on, Cartman, it's not a fucking conspiracy. The book fees maybe, but not the material," Kyle responded.

"Oh please, Jew. You're just saying that because you're teacher's pet."

"That may be so, but because of that, I don't have homework tonight. Tell me Fatboy, do you?"

"Lucky son of a bitch Jew," Cartman muttered. Kyle smirked victoriously and looked back towards the track. Kenny took the opportunity to ogle him a bit. His small arms were flaunted by the white muscle shirt he wore, giving a great view of his abs if viewed from the right angle. His tight calves and knees flowed out under his black shorts, making him look just slightly longer.

"Dude, stop ogling him," Stan pushed the back of his head playfully. Kyle gave him a confused glance, completely oblivious to his boyfriend's wandering eyes. Kenny just shrugged sheepishly and leaned against the bleachers behind them, looking down on the track.

"So, what exactly are you practicing?" Cartman asked, sounding genuinely interested.

"Right now, getting a tan," Kyle replied. He gave Cartman a playful smirk and looked back at the field. "I think I'm doing hurdles today. Usually we run as a big group around the school a few dozen times, but apparently Coach wanted to do something different."

"I don't know how you can stand all that running," Stan commented. "I mean, I run in football and stuff, but it's not constant."

Kyle shrugged. "I dunno. It's a great stress reliever. Usually I pretend I'm chasing down Cartman to beat the shit out of him," he gestured to the chestnut-haired boy himself.

"Glad to be of inspiration," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Well, good," he grinned.

"Broflovski! Get your butt down here! You're up!" The coach called out towards him. "Fischbach, you too!"

Stan stood up and shouted, "I object!"

Kyle stood and gave a quick stretch. "Dude, it's cool," he smiled at Stan. "We're just running. A quick two minutes and I'm done...until the last half of practice at least."

"Broflovski!"

"Coming! Shoe's untied, Coach!" he bent down and pretended to straighten his laces.

"Well hurry up. I want at least two seconds off of your last time."

"Alright," he sighed tiredly. Toby walked past them, a bandage over his injured calf.

"You're going down, Ginger," he growled.

Kyle straightened up and stared back at him. "Doubt it. The rocks in your head slow you down too much," he replied, following him down the bleachers towards their starting line.

Kenny, Cartman, and Stan all walked down to view from the very front of the bleachers, watching Kyle intently. He paid them no mind however, a set face of determination across his profile. Toby glanced over and glared at him, but he never broke his view.

"On your mark," they bent down. "Get set....," Kenny bit his lip, silently cheering for Kyle. "GO!"

Kyle's eyes widened and he took off, a little blur of orange and white. He flew straight past Toby and leaped over his first hurdle without a break in his stride.

"Holy shit, he's fast," Cartman gaped. Stan and Kenny nodded in agreement, their mouths slightly opened as well as he conquered his fourth with no problems.

Toby slowly started edging up on him, his longer legs giving him a slight advantage.

"Come on, Ky!" Kenny cheered. The three of them grinned widely as Toby stumbled slightly after his fifth hurdle. He quickly recovered, and edged up once again on Kyle, but the little Jew still kept his lead. They continued to stare, and their grins slowly faded as they saw Toby reaching out towards their small friend.

"Ky, watch out!" Stan cried out quietly. As the boy started to leap off of the ground for his seventh hurdle, Toby grasped his shirt and gave a sharp tug back, causing him to fall forward. His head collided with the barrier and he dropped like a bag of rocks. Toby continued his run, finishing in just another hurdle. He turned back and smiled towards Kyle, who still hadn't moved.

"Oh my god!" Kenny cried out, leaping over the edge of the bleachers and running towards him. "Kyle?! Kyle!" he shouted as he neared him, the other two and the coach close in tow. He dropped to his knees once he got there, sliding slightly on the turf and skinning his knees. He could see that Kyle's eyes were closed, he was out like a light. He glanced up and saw a streak of red on the hurdle and looking down he could see a slight puddle starting under the boy's head.

"Don't touch him just yet," the coach murmured, kneeling down beside him and feeling his neck. "He's not hurt too bad, just knocked out." He shot his head up at Toby in fury. "Fischbach, what the hell do you think you were doing?!" he shouted, getting back on his feet.

"Didn't mean to, Coach," he replied calmly.

"Bullshit, we all saw it. Twenty laps around the school. GO," he ordered. Fischbach nodded and shot a sly grin at the three boys huddled around Kyle.

"And that's just the beginning," he mouthed before taking off to start his laps.

"Goddammit," the coach held his forehead in his hand and rubbed. "Will you three take him home or something? The nurse is gone. He's not broken or anything, just be careful."

They nodded and Kenny cautiously flipped him onto his back. He threw one of his small arms around his shoulder and hoisted him up. Damn the kid needed more in his diet...

"Don't forget his stuff in the locker room, guys," he nodded. "Tell him that he could have beaten his time by three seconds were it not for Toby," he grinned slightly. They nodded and took off towards the lockers.

"Goddammit," Stan muttered, looking at the unconscious kid with fury in his eyes. "I knew it! I fucking knew that douchebag would hurt him!"

Cartman looked from him to Kyle and nodded. "We all did. I personally say we just hunt him down and stab him repeatedly."

"As much as I'd love to," Stan commented, "I don't think that Kyle would appreciate us three behind bars."

Kenny sighed heavily. "I don't fucking care at this point. Something needs to be done. Otherwise he's gonna get to Kyle when none of us are around and he's going to get seriously hurt," he eyed the stream of blood beading from the Jew's head.

They stepped into the locker room, scanning for Kyle's school bag. "Over there," Kenny motioned his head towards Kyle's green messenger bag. Stan walked over and grabbed it, with a piece of notebook paper fluttering to the ground. He picked it up and scanned it, his eyes darkening as he read.

"Stan?" Kenny asked.

"What the hell's wrong with you, Jock-boy?"

"This is a letter to Kyle," Stan muttered.

"Who's it from?"

"I've got a pretty good idea," he replied.

"Read it," Cartman insisted.

Stan took a shaky breath:

_Listen to me Kike and listen well._

_You're not welcome here. Perhaps it would be best for you to leave this place._

_The news of your death overwhelmed this school with happiness. People started to talk freely once more, ideals of obtaining a better way of life became prominent. As soon as you were out of the picture, it seemed that no more could go wrong._

_However, upon this return of yours, I must say that I notice that the mood has once more become somber and quiet. Our hopes once again demolished. Our dreams for our futures completely destroyed in the wake of your 'miraculous' return to the land of the living._

_Tell me, Kyle. How does it feel to be so hated? How does it feel to know that there are thousands of people whom walk amongst you that wish for your demise? To know that your parents feel the same? Tell me._

_You may live in the shadows of protection from the ones you call your 'friends': Stan, Kenny, and Cartman, however, they will not always be beside you. When the time is right, I will be able to find you and finish you off myself for the good of the people within the walls of this establishment. Your friends are merely people who are desperate to have someone as a backup to their other 'friends'. Even they will eventually disregard you as the pathetic person that you've brought yourself up to be._

_When that time comes, I'll be waiting to step in. My finger is on the trigger, Kyle. You choose whether or not I pull._

Kenny and Cartman stared at Stan, whose hands were shaking as he finished off the last part of the letter, their mouths gaping in shock.

"THAT FUCKER IS GOING TO GET IT!" Kenny screeched through clenched teeth, he grasped Kyle tighter in his arms.

"I say we take it to the office or something, let them handle it," Stan interjected.

"Or we just kill Toby," Cartman opted.

"I agree with Cartman. I say we just take the fucker down," Kenny nodded.

Stan rubbed his temple with his right hand. "Look, we're pretty sure it's him, but we have no solid evidence about it. We need to be absolutely positive before we run off beating people up."

"I'm pretty damn sure," Kenny insisted. "Who else would do that to him?!"

Stan looked at him with tired eyes. "Kenny, you heard Craig and Token this morning. There are a lot of people who weren't too...happy about Kyle still being around. We need to make sure that we're right. Let's take it to police."

"Fine, Marsh," Cartman folded his arms. "We'll wait and show it to Kahl when he wakes up. How about that? Think your Super Best Buttbuddy over there will react well?"

"And let's say that, just for the sake of argument, they do arrest Fischbach or something. Kyle would have to stand trial. Or if there's no real evidence against him, he goes free and he'd be even angrier with him! You really think that'd be good for him?" Stan asked. "Look. I say we just stay with Kyle at all times. We don't let Fischbach anywhere near him. Alright? We'll work on this letter later. Right now, let's get him home."

Kenny and Cartman nodded reluctantly and followed him out towards the parking lot. Kenny looked at Kyle's angelic face and gently nuzzled into his hair. He had no idea that it'd be like this...if he'd known any of this...that deal would have been out of the question. He loved the kid, and this pain was just getting to be too much.

"Nn-nngh," Kyle shook his head softly, starting to stir. They all stopped and stared at him as Stan took the letter and shoved it into his pocket. He slowly opened his eyes, trying to adjust to his surroundings.

"W-what...what ha..happened?" he managed to stammer out, his head listlessly falling to the side as he tried to regain balance.

"You okay, Dude?" Stan asked softly.

He blinked a few times at him before slamming his palm up and grasping at his skull. "Jesus Christ, my head!" he hissed.

Kenny kissed his cheek gently, "you hit your head on a hurdle and blacked out," he explained.

Kyle looked up at him. "Jesus, I've never tripped before," he muttered quietly. The other three looked at each other, their eyes all marred with torn feelings of pity and fury. Kyle sighed, still massaging his scalp. "You can put me down, Ken," he said softly.

"Not a chance," he replied firmly, continuing the walk towards Stan's car.

Kyle just sighed again and rested his throbbing head against Kenny's shoulder. "So did my shoe catch or what?" he asked. "I was ahead, I remember that, and I fell...but then it all just kinda went black."

"Yeah, shoe," Stan mumbled. Kenny saw him stick his hand into the pocket holding the letter and clench his fist. They reached the Mustang and Stan opened the door for him.

"Dude, I can get in on my own," Kyle insisted. Kenny ignored his plea and gently placed him in the front seat and shut the door.

"So...we're just letting him buy it?" Cartman asked.

"Why upset him?" Stan shrugged. "He's been through enough today."

"How's our little ginger pussy doing?" a sickeningly familiar voice sneered towards them. "His little head broken?"

"Shouldn't you be running laps, Asshole?" Kenny growled.

"Takin' a break," he smirked.

The passenger door slowly opened and Kyle emerged into the outside once again. "Guys, what's taking so...oh," he noticed Toby and narrowed his eyes. He slammed the door behind him, wincing slightly from the noise.

"Well damn. Guess ya didn't hit it hard enough. Better luck next time," Toby grinned sinisterly.

"Somehow I knew I didn't just trip," he muttered. Kenny and Stan cringed guiltily when he glared at them.

"You guys just don't know when to quit, do ya?" Toby asked, surveying each member of their party. "When will you learn that I am going to win in the end? I always win...," he turned his direction fully onto Stan and grinned wider. "Speaking of which, how's the finger there, Buddy?"

Kyle's eyes widened with realization, "YOU SON OF A BITCH!" he yelled, taking a step towards him. Stan grasped his shoulder before he could go any further and shook his head.

"Dude, no," he said sternly.

"What the hell do you mean no?!" he shouted, cringing slightly at his own voice. "He fucking broke your finger!"

"I know. Come on, we're taking you home," he tried to pull him back towards the car. Kyle kept his slender legs planted, not taking his furious eyes off of Toby.

"What's the matter, Ginge? Did I strike a nerve?" he challenged.

"You have a fucking problem, you take it up with me, Fatass!" Kyle screeched. "Don't fuck around with them!" he gestured sharply at the three surrounding him.

"Lot of talk coming from someone three feet shorter than all of us," he quirked his brow. "Don't think even your pansy-ass girlfriend over there would appreciate that kind of protection," he motioned towards Kenny.

Kyle's eyebrow twitched and he started to advance towards him. Kenny lunged forward and clasped his arms around his waist. "Kyle, don't," he begged, yanking him back. Kyle tried to push himself out of his arms, reaching out towards Toby.

"Come get me if you can," the menacing teen taunted.

Kyle tried to oblige, thrashing away from Kenny. Stan stepped in got in front of him, holding his arms back. "Kyle, stop!" he yelled, trying to push him back. Kenny bit his lip, not believing how much trouble the two larger boys were having trying to calm down the little redhead.

"Jew, get in the damn car!" Cartman shouted. Kyle ignored him, gritting his teeth and trying to pull away from Stan and Kenny. Toby just looked on, laughing at their struggle.

"That's it," Cartman growled, ripping Kenny away from his stance. He took his elbow and slammed it straight into the back of Kyle's neck. The young Jew blinked before his eyelids dropped shut and he began to fall forward. Stan held out his arms and caught him, holding him protectively and glaring at Cartman.

"Get him in the car," Cartman stated, opening the back door for him. Stan nodded, picking up Kyle and placing him in the backseat. He ducked out of the car and turned to sneer at Toby with the other two.

"Great friendship skills there, Fatso," Toby saluted. "I suspect that's how your first date went as well. Oh well. The ginger's better off silent, anyways. Good job."

Kenny bit his lip hard, tasting a familiar coppery sensation filling his mouth. He dug his hand into his pocket and whipped out his knife once more, pointing the blade towards Toby. "Listen to me and listen to me well," he said menacingly. "Don't you fucking **ever** touch Kyle again. Otherwise I will not stop stabbing you until I'm damn well sure you're dead. You understand me, you fat fuck?"

Toby snorted, "yeah. I'm sure your peace-loving boyfriend in there would be all over that. Have fun taking care of his head trauma," he smiled as he walked off to begin his jogging again. Kenny stared after him, his teeth bared in fury.

Stan placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Dude. Let's just go." Kenny gave one last angry glare at Toby and turned to get into the car. He lifted up Kyle's head as he slid in, placing his head back down on his lap after he was situated. Cartman and Stan sat themselves down in the front and Stan started up the car, pulling out of the lot.

He looked in the rearview mirror, able to see Kyle's unconscious form, and he sighed heavily. "Goddamn it, Cartman. Why would you knock him out?"

"It's not like you two were doing anything. You know once the Jew wants something he doesn't stop until he gets it. It was either knock him out or kill him. I would have been fine either way, personally."

"What if you hurt him?" Kenny snapped.

"He breathing?"

"Yeah..."

"Then he's fine. The Jew has a fucking thick head, he'll come out of it."

"People aren't supposed to be knocked unconscious, Cartman! Especially not twice!" Stan growled, his fingers tightening around the steering wheel.

"Look, Marsh. If you just let him attack Fischbach like he was intending on doing, he would have had a lot more issues than just a headache. I know where to hit someone so they don't suffer any real trauma."

"How?" Kenny raised his brow.

Cartman turned and looked at him. "Red made me go with her to her stupid self-defense classes. I learned how to knock a person out. Pretty sweet, I must say. Maybe you should enroll Kahl in one," he nodded towards the young boy. "He seems to be a magnet for trouble."

Kenny opened his mouth to shout a retort, but found none. He was right. Kyle just seemed to be getting the short end of the stick no matter where he went.

"Kyle's capable of defending himself," Stan stated. "Toby just seems to have a knack for catching him off guard."

"Stan, you and I both know that's bullcrap. Kahl doesn't have the means to fight for himself. What if us three weren't there on Saturday when Fischbach whipped out the knife, huh? Then what? He can't beat someone three times his damn size."

"Kyle's not as weak as you make him out to be, Cartman," Kenny growled. "He lives through shit like this day in and day out...and he regrets the one time that he took himself away from the pain and jumped right back into routine. I don't know many people who would be able to do that."

Cartman sighed impatiently. "Believe what you want, Poor-boy. But one day, he's gonna go off on his own somewhere and you'll get a call that he's back in Intensive Care because he was beaten senseless. When that day comes, don't come crying to me about it."

Kenny and Stan caught eyes in the rearview mirror, each of them silently asking, was that a true statement? Kenny sighed quietly, looking at the boy resting upon his lap. He took his fingers and ran the back of them across the beautiful face time and again. The rest of the ride consisted of a heavy silence, aside from the radio that Stan had switched on in a desperate attempt to fill the air with something other than tension. They pulled into the complex lot and sat there for a moment before Kenny finally spoke up again.

"You really think he's in that much danger?" he asked softly.

"...yeah." Stan muttered. Cartman nodded with him.

"He may be mentally strong, but the Jew can't raise his fists and win if his life depended on it...and I think that it does," Cartman muttered. "Face it, he's got an entire school against him."

Kenny sighed, looking down at his Jew with glistening eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Stan staring at him sympathetically. "Look," he started gently, "we all care about Kyle, and we're all going to do everything we can to protect him. But you above all of us need to be there. Kyle and you are closer than he and I."

Kenny nodded. "I know."

Stan patted his shoulder and turned back around to get out of the car. He opened the back door and Kenny handed off the young boy into his arms, turning to get out of the car himself.

"Goddamn, he's light," Stan muttered as he joined Cartman and Kenny on the other side of the Mustang.

Kenny chuckled, "Yea, he keeps wondering why I carry him around. It's like lifting up my bookbag, I swear. Want me to take him?"

Stan grinned sheepishly, "nah, I got him. I'm sure you'll carry him sometime tonight. Let's get him upstairs." Cartman and Kenny followed his lead, opening the door as he approached.

"Hello bo- What happened?!" Sally shrieked, jumping from her desk.

"Ky hit his head," Kenny informed her. "He'll be alright."

"Jesus Christ, what'd he do?" Joel asked, going over and examining the dried blood on his scalp.

"Hit his head on a hurdle," Cartman said quietly. "Stupid klutz didn't tie his shoes and down he went."

"Let me clean it up," Sally insisted. "Take him up to his room and I'll get the first aid kit."

Stan and the others nodded and headed up the stairs while she bustled around towards the other side of the lobby. Kenny reached the door first and unlocked it, letting the others pass before stepping in himself. Stan walked over and set Kyle gently down on the couch.

"Okay boys, Sal isn't here," Joel started. "What really happened?"

"We told you, he hit his head on a hurdle," Kenny said.

"I'm sure there's more to the story than just that," he crossed his arms. "You look too upset for it to just be a simple fall."

"Well, wouldn't you be upset?" Kenny asked.

"Yes, but not to the point where I'd look like you three do right now. So what happened?" He demanded.

The three looked at each other, then back at Joel tiredly. "He's...he's in some trouble with a kid at school," Stan muttered quietly.

"I thought so. What'd he do to make him mad?"

"He's smart," Kenny muttered, sitting down on the chair and placing his face in his palms.

"What?" Joel quirked his brow.

"The Jew's too damn nerdy and he raised the class curve," Cartman explained. "The jackass failed his classes and got kicked out of the house and he wants revenge in Kahl's blood."

"Jesus Christ," he whispered, shaking his head at the unconscious boy. He looked back towards the others again. "Is this the first time he's actually attacked Kyle?"

"The third," Stan said guiltily. "And once again, we didn't really stop it before Ky got hurt."

"Well, sometimes you can't," Joel shrugged.

"But all three times?!" Kenny shot his head up, his eyes welling with tears. "Goddammit, what if we really can't get to him next time? What if he...what if that freak actually...," he slammed down his face again, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.

"Kenny, you just have to be there for him," Joel said soothingly. "Look, Kyle will be okay as long as he's near one of you at all times. You just have to be calm about it."

"Show him the letter, Stan," Kenny muttered.

"What? Kenny I-"

"Show him the goddamn letter!" he screeched, looking at Stan with blazing eyes. Stan sighed in defeat and handed Joel the crumpled paper. He sat down on the loveseat and read it over, his jaw dropping slightly as he continued on.

"I'm here," Sally called out, opening the door with a first aid kit in hand. The three boys smiled at her, but Joel would not remove his eyes from the paper in front of him. "Joel, what are you reading?" she asked, placing the kit on the coffee table.

"N-nothing," he stammered, still not looking up.

She frowned at him. "You're lying, let me see." she went and sat next to him, gazing at the letter. A few moments of silence passed before she looked back up at the boys, then towards Kyle. "Oh my God...," she whispered. She stood and moved over towards Kyle to kneel in front of him, opening the kit on the floor. She sniffed a few times and ran her finger over his wound in a motherly way.

"You need to take this to the police," Joel finally muttered. "If this guy's serious, Kyle could be in a lot of trouble."

"We have no proof that it was him, though!" Stan insisted.

Joel looked thoughtful for a moment. "Then you really can't do much, can you?" he murmured. "Well...just stand by Kyle for a while. If this guy does anything that resembles what's said in the letter, then take it to police and give your reason."

"How about the reason that he held down Kahl and threatened him with a knife?" Cartman jumped. "Isn't that reason enough to believe that he did it?!"

Joel sighed heavily, "you know the dumbass policemen in this town. Just saying something won't be enough to get them off their lazy asses." Kenny clenched his fists and watched them as they shook with rage. He was right, anything that didn't result in immediate press or payment was left untouched by the South Park police until deemed 'absolutely necessary' to address. Fucking lowbrows.

He heard a gentle humming coming from Sally and looked over towards her. She was cleaning off Kyle's face like it was made of porcelain, humming him a lullaby even though he probably couldn't hear it. This affection made Kenny's eyes well up again as he thought of Kyle's real mother, who probably cursed his name if it ever flowed through their household. As she finished cleaning him up, she got up and sat him upright, bringing his head down onto her legs and gently stroking his hair, continuing her song.

He turned and noticed that the other three were watching as well in silence, taking in the soft moment with a gleam of peace in their eyes. To see the good of people in just one woman, the tender, loving embrace of a single soul reaching out to one in turmoil, it was enough to melt even the hardest of hearts.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Four hours.

Four agonizing hours. And Kyle still hadn't waken up. It was playing heavily upon Kenny's nerves, watching the steady rise and fall of the boy's chest, but not being able to see those beautiful green eyes...it was almost too much to bear. He sighed and looked at Cartman and Stan, who were passed out on the love seat and the chair. Kenny gently lifted Kyle off of his lap and stood, pacing in front of the coffee table in worry. He felt like a father-to-be waiting for his wife in labor. It was exhausting his mind, watching his Jew as so fragile. To think of all that could happen. To think of every horrible outcome that could derive from such a number of things...it was difficult to say the least.

"I need to get out of here," he murmured. He grabbed a piece of paper from his bag and jotted down a quick note:

_Kyle, Stan, or Cartman...or whoever. I needed to get out for awhile, I'll be back soon._

_Ky, if you're reading this, I love you. Stan or Cartman, if you're reading this...stop laughing at what I said or I'll kill you both twice over._

_Ken_

He threw the note on the table and threw one quick glance back at his slumbering redhead, then proceeded to walk out of the room. Sally and Joel had left about an hour ago, so the commons were eerily quiet. He sauntered out into the fairly warm night air, turning to walk towards downtown, millions of thoughts filling his blonde head.

He thought back to how everything used to seem, just a constant party. He'd always just go out, score a few drinks, smoke a few things that he didn't even know what they were, and he'd fuck anybody he pleased. Everything he did was unscheduled, unmanned. Aside from his dying escapades, of course, where the devil had been a bastard, pulling the strings on his frail human life.

And how the tables had turned in such a short amount of time. He was now the puppeteer, playing with human emotions, forcing people to crack under the pressure and meet their fate at last. And now he had a co-pilot in his endeavors. He never would have imagined the life of his partner, though. Never in a million years.

He thought back to the laughs that they shared before hand, where it seemed like they were two invincible kids, just telling the world to give them whatever the fuck it could dole out. Now the world was, and at full throttle, no less. He'd always seen Kyle as the strong one, the smart one, the lucky one.

Sure, he wasn't brimming with the 'god-like' stance of Stan Marsh. He wasn't enjoying a relationship as Eric Cartman was, and he wasn't as socially accepted as himself...but he always seemed to be comfortable with who he was. He took insults to his vibrant hair and his innocence in strides, never seeming to truly let it get under his skin. He seemed fairly accepted, he just chose not to indulge himself in actually enjoying the status he had obtained. He was brilliant, far too smart to be seen in the presence of derelicts like Kenny McCormick. He'd worked far too long and far too hard to get to where he was. It was a shame that no one actually knew just how hard it was for him.

Now Kenny knew his secrets, the reality hiding behind those black rimmed glasses and shining emerald eyes. Deceiving little bastards...they always seemed so full of hope. But now, it seemed as though they were shining as a cry for help from an unwanted boy. A boy who's parents pushed him towards some unknown goal, leading into his complete questioning of who he was and what he wanted to do with his life. He was a boy apparently tortured by the day-to-day brutality of his peers, all jealous of his ability to thrive despite the fact that he was so unlike the rest of them. He was a nerd. A loser. And he had his secrets. He had a lust for a boy he thought he could never have and it drove him to the brink of insanity between conflicting with his religion and the fact that this boy was so close to him already that revealing his secret might drive them apart. He lived his life in the shadow of his best friend: the glowing, ever-loved jock who could light up a room with his perfect smile and his strong physique. His other so-called friend beat on him and insulted his heritage; everything that made him who he was.

He was nothing more than an outcast in his world.

Kenny felt tears stemming, but didn't try to stop them. A few slowly rolled down his cheeks and he focused his attention at the hot liquid falling down his face. He was in love with a boy who couldn't love himself, and it was tearing Kenny apart. He wanted Kyle to feel the happiness that he felt as soon as his and Kyle's lips touched for the first time. He wanted that smile to always be on his pale face, his eyes sparkling with that of a true joy and not merely a farce. He knew that Kyle loved him back, there was no denying that, but still...to know that he was still enduring so much pain. And all for the mere idea of standing by Kenny's side...truly romantic, indeed. But only to the viewer. The boy was in pain, and the boy that he was enduring it for was torn to pieces by his misery.

Kenny sniffed and tried to shake the now constant stream of tears from his cheeks. He looked around at the town, viewing each flashing light with some degree of disdain. On. Off. On. Off. The repetitive motion was enough to nauseate him, seeing the same pattern repeating, although it could seem like a brand new cycle, depending on your perspective. But it all was the same. Live. Die. Live. Die. And now his live was going to be nothing but this, watching the souls of the living die as he continued on with Kyle, leading the souls to their final rest, only to find themselves at the beginning again with a new soul.

Was it right for him to be doing this? To lead people to believe that he's there to help them...only to lead them into the bowels of Hell? What kind of good hearted person would do that? If Satan was a fallen angel, what did that make him? Was he an angel as well? Was he human? If neither, then what?!

He bit his lip, moving to continue his walk. He stared at his feet as he moved, watching them fall into a pattern and sighing heavily. He heard someone behind him, but payed little mind, lost in his own thoughts and confusion.

"_Hey there, Blondie."_

He froze and his eyes widened as he turned to face the figure behind him. He reached into his pocket for his knife, but couldn't find it. He panicked and remembered he'd left it at home.

Well, shit.

He backed up from the dark figure, unable to figure out exactly who was stalking him. Suddenly, another figure came up from behind and grabbed him across his chest, slamming a damp rag over his face. His eyes widened as he struggled to get away, inhaling a heavy alcoholic scent.

"_Kyle...," _he thought as he sank into darkness, his last vision being that of a pale, smiling Jew.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: I was considering not cutting it off just yet, but I did just to piss you off =D_

_Who watched the mid-season premiere of SP last night?! -raises hand-_

_Anyways, this chap was mainly for delving into Kenny's subconscious, exploring his feelings on the whole spirit thing and Kyle's knack for getting into trouble. _

_(Little does he know that the trouble merely derives from a Kyle fan girl who drools at the idea of the Jew being threatened...and more, mwahaha.)_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!!!_

_Oh, and just so we're on the same page, I do hope that you know this isn't a mere sex story, guys, haha. A bunch of people want more lemons and limes...stupid ass terms, but whatever. Anyways, this story is to go a little further than just smexiness...it's a psychological type of thing, guys. Dealing with the frustrations of two boys who might have taken on more than they can handle._

_But I promise you, there will be more and more smex...eventually. It'll pick up, I swear =)....Thankies, Dears._


	21. Sacrifical

_A/N: Drama all around, haha. _

_Velvet Black Rose, I dedicate this chapter to you...it's to make up for my previous deception, haha._

_Some of you will like it, some will hate it, and I'm sure some of you are desperate for this damn story to end._

_Well, we'll just have to see how it goes =)_

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He slowly peeled his eyelids back, opening his glazed eyes to more darkness. He groaned softly, his head pulsating with pain. He could feel he was sitting on a heavy metal chair, the back chilly against his bare arms. He tried to make a move to stand, but was pulled back by his arms tightly secured behind his back. He tugged experimentally at his binding, feeling the cold rawness of handcuffs biting into his wrists.

"Fuck," he muttered. He looked around the room squinting, trying desperately to adjust his eyes to his surroundings.

"Welcome back," a voice echoed throughout the space. A row of overhead lights flew on, sending Kenny's eyes into violent spasms. He slammed them shut and threw his head down, trying to block out as much light as possible.

"Something wrong, Blondes?"

_Goddamn it, no._

Kenny opened his eyes and winced in the direction of his attackers. His vision cleared slightly and he could make out the two forms of Mitch and Barney staring at him with evil smiles set upon their faces.

He felt his heart stop and he pulled at his wrists harder, trying to thrash away. He quickly fell dizzy and stopped, hanging his head down and trying to breathe evenly. He felt woozy enough to throw up, starting to try to gasp in enough air to keep himself from doing just that.

"Stop squirming, Boy," Mitch chuckled. "Inhaling chloroform isn't exactly going to keep your well being at top-notch," he waved a bottle of it in his hand. Kenny listened to the gentle swish of the liquid and stared at the ground in terror. He could tell that he was in a shack of some kind, the walls rotting and disgusting, the floor a cold, cold cement. Nothing was in the room that he could see aside from the chair and lights, along with the two assailants standing there.

"What the hell do you want?" he croaked out, his throat sore and scratchy.

"Is it so bad to want to see you again?" Barney asked sweetly, walking over to kneel in front of him. Kenny tried to kick out at him, but realized that his legs were cuffed to the chair as well. Great.

"Let me go," he demanded, looking into his dark eyes.

Barney smirked and hit him across the face, leaving him with a throbbing sensation in his cheek. "You don't get to give orders here, Kenny," he hissed, leaning in and touching noses with the blonde.

Mitch came up and stood closer to them. "So little buddy," he started. "Heard that you gave Barney some troubles with Red lately. That wasn't cool of you, you know."

"What the...," Kenny stared at Barney. "We...we fucking told you that Morgan loved you! You want revenge for that?! Just what kind of twisted fuck are you?!"

Barney chuckled. "I'm the kind of twisted fuck who wants to teach you your place, little Kenny," he cupped his chin and stroked his face with his thumb.

"W-what?" He stuttered, trying to pull back from the man's grasp.

"You should know better than to go delving into other people's business," Mitch said. "After all, there are just some secrets that shouldn't be exposed...someone may get hurt," he ran the back of his fingers smoothly up Kenny's face.

"I-I...Let me go!" he repeated, trying to pry himself away from the chair.

"How come? You've learned so much about me...and yet I know so little about you," he smirked. "I think that a nice chat is in order. In fact, why don't we get Kyle over here to...chat as well?" Kenny's eyes widened.

"Y-you don't know where he is," he stammered. "You can't fucking touch him," he insisted, trying desperately to convince himself that this was a true statement.

Mitch laughed. "You're right. We don't know where he is. However...," he took Kenny's cell phone from out his pocket. "This has dear Kylie's number right there. Getting a hold of him is no problem," he raised his brow in amusement at Kenny's horrified expression.

"P-please don't," he begged. "Leave him alone, please!"

"And why should we?" Barney asked. "He's just a much a part of this as you are, if not more."

"More?" Kenny asked confusedly.

"That little fucker attacked us and we haven't exacted revenge just yet," Mitch explained. "We don't leave things unfinished, Blondes. That's just not the way things are done around here."

Kenny felt himself beginning to hyperventilate as he took the phone and started scrolling through his contact list. "Don't!" he pled again. Barney slammed his fist into his stomach, sending him into a coughing fit and desperately wanting to curl up in pain. He looked up and saw Mitch holding the phone away from his ear and grinning at him.

"Let's put it on speaker, shall we?" he asked, pushing the call button.

"_Please don't be up. Please don't be up,"_ Kenny begged through the tears welling in his eyes.

He bit his lip as he heard a click on the other end. _"Oh thank God," _Kyle's voice rang clearly and echoed throughout the room._ "Dude, you've been gone for hours, where the fuck are you?"_

Kenny stared at the phone, terrified to make even the smallest sound. Barney, however, seemed to have no problem finding his voice. "Well, hello, Kyle. How are you doing this fine evening?"

There was silence at the end of the line. _"Who the hell is is this?"_ Kyle asked quietly.

"Well is that any way to treat us, Red?" Mitch asked with a smirk. "Surely you remember us of all people."

A few moments of quietness passed before Kyle apparently hit realization: "_YOU FUCKING BASTARDS!"_ he belted out. _"What did you do to Kenny?!"_

"Aw, don't worry, Red," Barney said. "Kenny's right here with us, listening to you panic. He's flattered by your devotion I'm sure," he patted the blonde's head gingerly.

"_Kenny? Kenny can you hear me?!_" Kyle asked desperately.

"K-Kyle," Kenny stammered softly, trying to mentally make the phone lose connection. He didn't want Kyle to know he was there, but the kid would be worse off he thought he was hidden away or something.

"_Where the fuck are you?! Let him go!_" Kyle screeched.

Mitch and Barney smirked at each other before looking at Kenny. Kenny, in return, looked back at them in terror. "Meet us at fifty-third and Grape in one hour, and make sure that you're alone," Barney directed. "Don't worry, we won't hurt him severely if you just cooperate once you get here...You'll see your love soon enough, little Kyle."

"Kyle, don't!" Kenny begged, finally finding his voice. "Don't do it! I'll get out on my own! Stay home!"

"_I'll be there_," Kyle said. "_Kenny...I love you._" And with that, his end of the line went dead.

"Kyle?! Kyle, no!" Kenny begged still. "No, no, no," he whispered, shaking his head with quiet sobs.

"Aww, don't cry, Blondie. You should be happy," Barney stated, grasping his chin and pulling him up. "After all..." he stroked the tear stains on his cheeks. "If they're willing to die for you, it means they love you."

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There had only been one other time in his life when he'd felt this. His heart clenched in fear, his mind racing desperately, his willingness to do anything to get out of the situation at hand. Merely a week ago he'd been stuck in this situation, and the feeling was settling heavily at the bottom of his stomach as his mind flashed back towards _him_. Bleeding, suffering, dying. Nothing but stillness. It was too overwhelming as the minutes passed.

He sat still, his gaze fixated on the ground. Barney sat across from him, occasionally pacing in front of him or touching his face. How badly he wanted to bite those fat fingers of his off his whole damn hand. Those kinds of caresses were for Kyle and Kyle alone, not some fat perverted fucker.

"He here yet?" Barney called out towards Mitch. Kenny followed his gaze, staring exhaustedly at the older man.

"Not yet, but I'm sure he's running his little heart out to get here," Mitch smiled sinisterly at Kenny. Kenny scowled back, wincing at the sharp pain in his jaw. An hour alone with two maniacs had gotten him beaten black and blue, bleeding from his scalp down. He tried to heal himself, but couldn't seem to do it.

"_I must have to actually touch the wound with my hand_," he bit his lip angrily. He was in a lot of fucking pain. He tried once more to pull himself off the chair, clenching his teeth when he failed once again.

He looked at the light fixtures on the ceiling and blinked back tears. This was all Satan's fault! If he hadn't of made him take this job, none of this would have happened! He shook with anger, letting this idea fill his thoughts for a few hate-filled moments before snapping back to reality. Maybe Satan had played a part in this, but he had also helped Kenny out immensely.

After all, he'd broken the boy's curse. He'd made it so he could be with Kyle...even brought Kyle back to life for him! True, it was for his own benefit, but he could have just as easily either kept Kyle with him or sent him back with a mortal existence, leaving Kenny to mourn his passing if he'd continued on living. He was destined to be like he was, always cursed in one way or another. But now he had a bright side to that damning disease: he had Kyle. He gritted his teeth, realizing how selfish he sounded. Kyle said he wanted to stay with him for eternity, but was it really the truth? Was his Jew just saying that, not realizing the repercussions of such a decision?!

No. No, Kyle wouldn't do that. There was no doubt that he didn't. He thought everything through always, there was no way that it was merely on a whim that he'd thrown himself into this horrid lifestyle. He really wanted to stay with Kenny, despite everything that he was going through to do it. This made Kenny's heart swell with a mixture of not only love and happiness, but guilt as well. He was the reason behind Kyle's wounds. He was the reason behind Kyle once again confronting society. And he was the reason that he was on his way here, probably scared to death for his safety and not paying any mind to his own.

"_Goddammit, why us?"_ Kenny thought, shutting his eyes and trembling. _"Why couldn't we just be normal?! Why are we stuck in this? What did we do to deserve it?!"_

"Well, there you are," Mitch's voice piped up. Kenny shot his eyes open and gazed at the door fearfully. "We were beginning to think you weren't coming."

"_Fuck off and give me back Kenny,_" Kyle growled.

"All in time, Red. All in time. Come on in," he could hear the sinister grin in his voice. They walked in, with Kyle's arms secured by the larger man's.

As soon as his sights set on Kenny, his eyes widened and he tried to break away from his grasp to get to him.

"Ah ah ah," Barney taunted, stepping towards him. "Not smart there, Kyle."

"Shut the fuck up you sick freak," Kyle spit out, trying to reel back and punch him. Mitch kept a firm grip on his small arms and he thrashed around a bit. "Let him go!" he demanded.

"He's fine," Barney shrugged. "Aren't ya, Kenny?" he called over towards the boy.

"Leave Kyle alone!" he shouted.

"Aw, isn't that sweet," Mitch cooed. "They're both so concerned for each other. It tears my heart apart, I tell ya."

Barney grasped Kyle's chin and forced him to look into his brown eyes. "Look, Kyle. I told you if your cooperated, Kenny wouldn't be severely hurt. You're a smart kid, you know that you can't take us both down when we're holding the cards. So why don't you just do as we say and we'll let you both off alive, hm?"

Kyle turned his eyes towards Kenny, who just looked back at him fearfully, mouthing for him to run. Just run and never look back. Kyle turned back and sighed. "Fine. What do you want?"

"I think you know, Kyle," Barney sneered, fingering the button on the Jew's jeans.

"NO!" Kenny shouted, trying again to break free from the chair. "Don't do it, Kyle! Just run, damn it!" he pleaded. Barney smirked and walked over towards him. He took a scarf from behind his chair and secured it tightly around Kenny's mouth.

"Now if Kyle's willing to do this, you should be willing to let him. He had the choice. He made his. Promise that you two are free just as soon as we're done. Now, be a good little boy and you just sit tight," he patted his head twice and walked back towards the door, locking it tight.

"You ready, Red?" Mitch asked. Kyle just stared at the ground in defeat.

"Good," Barney said, strolling back towards him and yanking his chin up again. "Now, are you going to cooperate or am I going to have to hurt Kenny?"

"Don't," he whispered. "I-I'll do what you say," he said trembling.

"Good boy," Mitch smiled. Barney released his face and walked back behind Kenny again, this time with a long strand of rope in his hand.

"On your knees," he commanded.

Kenny started to protest wildly into his gag. Kyle just gave him a small glance and shook his head softly. He had made up his mind. He wasn't going anywhere. Kenny felt tears pricking the side of his eyes, knowing that it was his fault that Kyle was in this position.

Mitch released Kyle's arms, letting him drop slowly towards the ground on his knees, shaking slightly. Barney came up behind him and secured his wrists behind his back with a tight knot. Kyle just stared at the floor in front of him, biting his lip a bit and trembling. Mitch pet his curls lightly, treating him as though he were some sort of dog. "There ya go. See? It's not too hard to listen to us now, is it?"

Kyle just continued to stare off into nothingness. Kenny tried to slip his hands through his cuffs, but couldn't do it. He let out a frustrated groan, desperate to rip out of his imprisonment and rescue Kyle.

"You have such a beautiful face," Barney commented, caressing Kyle's reddened cheeks gingerly.

"Say thank you, Kyle," Mitch sneered.

"Thank you," Kyle whispered, Kenny feeling the self-loathing emanating from the boy.

"You are being very cooperative, Kyle," Barney commented. "I'm impressed. I didn't think that all it'd take is for me to threaten to kick lover-boy around," he motioned towards Kenny. Kenny scowled at him, though he couldn't see it past the damn scarf. "I think you two deserve a reward for being so good."

Kyle and Kenny looked at each other, eyebrows quirked in confusion. Mitch ripped Kyle up by his hair and prompted a throaty yelp out of the boy. He pulled him over to Kenny and slammed him back down on his knees. Barney followed close behind, smiling wickedly.

"Now then," he started. "Why don't we make Kenny a happy boy?" He reached for Kenny's pants and Kenny tried to squirm away.

"What are you doing?!" Kyle yelled, resulting in a loud whack on the head by Mitch's hand.

"Quiet, Red," he commanded as Barney undid the blonde's jeans.

"Instead of using that beautiful mouth for talking, why don't you use it on your boyfriend here?" Barney smiled at him.

Kenny and Kyle's eyes both widened in horror. "Y-you...what?" Kyle asked, softly shaking his head back and forth.

"You heard him. Suck him off," Mitch replied bluntly, grabbing Kyle's neck and pushing him centimeters from Kenny's cock.

Kenny gulped and looked down at Kyle, who was looking back at him with desperation in his eyes. "Pretend we're alone," he mouthed. Kenny nodded before Kyle took his member into his mouth, sending a shiver through his body.

He hated the situation, he hated that Kyle was being forced to do this, that he had to watch his boyfriend suffer, but he couldn't control the natural reactions of his body. He mentally cursed himself as his cock grew harder in the young Jew's mouth, twitching as his tongue caressed the length gently, with love despite their situation.

"Feels good, hm Kenny?" Mitch laughed as he and Barney stood back to watch their show. Kenny merely shuddered as Kyle increased his pace, lapping at his flaming skin with vigor. He closed one eye and watched Kyle's head as it bobbed up and down his member. He let out an involuntary moan as Kyle started to gently graze the skin with his teeth, prompting a new wave of pressure and feeling. He felt disgusted with himself, able to actually get a boner while they were doing this in a hostage situation? What kind of level minded person could get hot from that?!

After several minutes, he felt himself nearing his peak and bit his lip, his hips jerking slightly deeper into the young boy's mouth. He took the jerks with ease, however, accepting Kenny further into his throat without so much as a gag. Kenny shot his eyes towards the two onlookers, both of them licking their lips as they watched Kyle work his little mouth.

Kenny felt himself right on the edge, looking back at Kyle and meeting eyes with him. He felt a surge of overwhelming passion as he looked into the orbs of the young boy sacrificing his dignity for his safety and couldn't hold back his release. Kyle's eyes widened slightly as he took in Kenny's load, swallowing all that he could before coughing up a bit at the unexpected moment. Kenny panted and looked at him guiltily as he laid his head down on Kenny's lap. He looked back up towards him and gave him a meek smile.

"I love you," he mumbled into the gag before Kyle was ripped away from him by Barney's strong hand.

"Good job, Kyle," he said, dragging him away by his hair and throwing him onto the ground once more. Kyle groaned as he placed his foot atop his back and leaned his body weight on top of the little form. "You're just a little slut aren't you?" he smirked.

Kyle remained silent, biting his lip to keep from crying out in pain as he was continually pressed on. "He asked you a question, Red," Mitch said, walking over and kicking the back of his head.

Kyle whimpered softly, his head now throbbing heavily. He just nodded for them, not dignifying their attacks with a verbal response. Mitch reached down and yanked him off the floor with an evil grin.

"Well, if you are," he started, breathing right into the Jew's face, "then you're just gonna love this next part. I suggest you hold still and...try not to tense up. It may hurt more," he chuckled. He reached for Kyle's pantline but was smacked away by Barney.

"Let's do this properly," he smiled, gesturing towards the floor. Mitch threw down the redhead onto his back and Barney straddled his hips as he was groaning in pain. "So, Kyle, are you ready, Love?" Kyle just looked to his side towards Kenny's feet and started shuddering violently.

Kenny began screaming into the scarf, begging them to just leave him alone. His efforts went unheeded as Barney slowly began unbuttoning Kyle's shirt as Mitch bent down and stroked his scarlet cheek. Kyle shut his eyes, biting his lip to try to ward off any things that he so badly wanted to scream out. Kenny felt tears streaming down his face as Kyle's torso was exposed to the chilly air in the room. He let out another bout of screams, meeting Mitch's gaze with fiery eyes.

"Stop squealing over there." He took Kyle's head and lifted it off the ground, slamming it hard back into the concrete. Kyle groaned as the gray floor became stained with a small puddle of crimson. Mitch looked back into Kenny's furious eyes and said, "or else. Do you really want Kyle to fall into a coma, Ken? That wouldn't be a very loving thing to do. Look at what he's doing to protect you, and yet you keep making us want to hurt him more? What kind of boyfriend are you?" he smiled evilly, a gesture that destroyed Kenny's fury and made him quiver in fear. "Good," he said. "Now. Don't make any more noise, you understand?"

Kenny made no move and Mitch turned back towards their young hostage. Barney lifted himself off of the boy, unbuttoning his jeans as he moved to kneel beside his legs. "Kyle, sit up," he commanded.

Kyle slowly peeled himself off the ground, blood dripping still from his scalp. He had trouble finding his balance but finally made it upright after a bit. Barney nodded at Mitch, who went back behind Kenny and produced yet another scarf. He came up and tightly secured it around Kyle's beautiful eyes, showing only his lips curled in a terrified manner.

Kenny looked at his boyfriend and found himself reduced to tears again. Sitting on a cold, unforgiving floor. Tied up and blinded, his shirt and pants undone, at the hands of two men determined to make him theirs. He threw his head down, too afraid to look back up towards them, and he silently sobbed, his tears starting to dampen the scarf around his mouth.

"_Goddammit,"_ he cursed to himself. _"It should have been me! Kyle didn't do anything! He doesn't deserve this!"_ he cried out in his head.

"It's no wonder Blondie's with you, Kyle," Barney said. Kenny looked up and saw him stroking the young boy's heaving chest with his fingertips. He looked up towards Kyle's face and saw stray tears falling from underneath the scarf.

"Aw, don't cry," Mitch said, roughly wiping tears from Kyle's narrow cheeks. "It's not like we're gonna kill ya," he smiled maliciously.

"I'd rather you would," Kyle muttered. Kenny's heart stopped. Images of torn skin and hospital beds filled his mind.

Barney and Mitch broke into vicious laughter. "Now why would we kill such a pretty little thing like you?" Barney asked, cupping Kyle's chin and stroking his face. "Why don't we just go right ahead, hm?"

Kyle remained silent, shaking violently.

"On your knees again," Mitch directed. Kyle did as he was told, breathing as evenly as he could. Kenny could recognize that breathing. It was what he did when he was angry or upset and was ready to blow at any second, either resulting in violence or crying. Kenny guessed the latter was his motivation.

Kyle turned his head towards Kenny's direction, and Kenny could feel his emerald iris' staring into his own through the fabric. "I love you, too," he mouthed. Kenny felt the tears cascading once again, but he couldn't manage so much as a sniffle, afraid to put Kyle in more harms way.

Barney took his fingers and gently worked them under Kyle's waistband. Kyle shuddered as he turned his head back to face his front, directed towards a decaying wall. The older man suddenly ripped down his jeans and boxers, and Kenny felt his temperature rise with anger as he and Mitch ogled Kyle's body.

"Well aren't you a big boy," Barney chuckled, staring openly at Kyle's limp cock. He grabbed it in his hand, prompting a small gasp out of Kyle as he trembled. He soon released it, stroking Kyle's face once more. "Mitch," he stated softly, "turn him around." Mitch grabbed him and yanked him around, and Barney stood, unzipping his pants. Kenny's eyes widened and he shook his head in disbelief. They were actually going to...and Kyle was letting them! He bit his lip in fury at himself, letting himself get caught off guard and kidnapped like he was a child! He should have fucking brought his knife! Or invested in a handgun or something, anything to save Kyle!

Barney's erect cock practically jumped out of the zipper of his slacks and he grinned. "Kyle, bend down."

"_No, no, no,"_ Kenny pleaded silently. _"Just stand and run, please. I'll forgive you and I'll be fine, just please don't,"_ he cried consistent tears. Kyle let out a wavering breath and lowered his front half to the ground, his toned ass held up in the air towards Barney. Barney ran his hand lovingly against his skin, suddenly removing his hand and slamming it back down on Kyle's left cheek with a loud smack.

Kyle yelped after the impact, shaking with fear. "You have a pretty face and a nice ass," Barney commented. "What don't you have, little Kyle?" Kyle just stayed silent, the side of his head pressed against the floor and his clothed eyes staring towards Kenny.

"Come on, Barn," Mitch urged him. "I wanna hear the little bitch scream." Barney smirked at him.

"Alrighty, if you insist. Ready Kyle?" Kyle just bit his lip, cringing from the idea. He released his lip, however and let out a shrill scream as Barney thrust his entire length into him in one swift motion. Kenny turned his head away in horror and guilt as he listened to Kyle whimper. These weren't the whimpers that he'd let out when he and Kenny were making love. No, these were yelps of pure agony escaping from his little mouth. He listened to Barney grunt as he slowly thrust in and out of Kyle's little body, making the poor boy continue to let out throaty yells of pain. Kenny looked back up, trying to mentally pull Barney away from his Kyle. He straightened up and his eyes widened with horror as he saw Barney's cock streaked with blood.

"God, you have a tight little ass," he grunted in-between pants. The visible portion of Kyle's face was bright red and streaming with tears. His mouth was continually open in pain, his features distorted by what he was enduring. With every thrust that Barney made, his scream became all the more unbearable for Kenny. His tears were burning hotly against his face as he watched his boyfriend's body rock back and forth with a madman behind his movements.

He couldn't fucking take it anymore, and he screamed. He screamed in anger and frustration towards the men abusing his Jew. He screamed for Kyle to get away, and most of all, he screamed at himself for letting it happen. He let all of his thoughts pour out in menacing screeches, completely mumbled by the damning scarf. Barney ignored him, continuing to thrust into the young boy relentlessly, listening to his groans and shouts and licking his lips in delight. Mitch however, turned towards the raging blonde and grinned ferociously. He stopped watching Kyle and walked over towards Kenny, his expression never faltering.

"So," he bent down so he was level with Kenny, "how do you like watching this, hmm? To know that he's taking this as a showing of his love for you? To know that he's sacrificing himself just so you don't get hurt anymore? Feels pretty shitty from your end, I'm sure."

Kenny screamed profanities at him from beyond his gag. Mitch just continued to smile, looking back and forth between the two boys. "You know, you've got yourself a pretty little boyfriend there, Kenny. You're pretty damn lucky." As if Kenny didn't already know this. "I mean, just look at his little body," he continued, taunting Kenny evilly. "He's bleeding like a stuck pig from Barney. And I'm even bigger," he smiled at the blonde. Kenny screeched at him and tried to wriggle out of his bondage once more, desperate to punch this fucker in the face and turn on Barney with any sharp object he could find.

"You make too much noise," Mitch said quietly. "I think that we need to change that." He suddenly brought his fist up and slammed it into the back of Kenny's head. Kenny felt dizzy, his vision suddenly blurring severely. He turned back towards the direction of his Kyle...no, his three Kyles...and felt the room begin to darken. He found himself fading off with a violent and terrified scream from his love, calling his name in desperation.

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_A/N: I'm so fucking mean to Kyle. But still. Mmmm, Kyle rape =)_

_Anyways, yea. Short chapter. But the next event needs to be on its own I've decided. Think I pulled off a rape scene well enough here? I think I did alright =)_

_As I said, some of you will love this little development, and some may only like the aftermath. Dunno._

_Thanks for R&R-ing_

_PS: Velvet Black Rose, have I earned forgiveness for my deception a few chaps back?_

_PPS: Did you all notice the line 'who could get hot from a hostage situation?'? I was laughing so fucking hard as I wrote that. Omg, the irony XD_


	22. Angel

**_A/N: Next next next_**

**Enjoy :D**

* * *

_He heard the screams. they seemed to echo on for eternity. Pain and fear, melted into his cry for help. It hurt to listen. He tried to reach the caller, only to be held against the wall by chains. The garbled shouts soon melded, forming coherent words. Someone was calling for him. He continued to try to rip himself free of his confinement, reaching out towards the victim. But there was no one around; merely sounds bouncing off invisible walls, taunting him. He tried to call back, but his throat closed as he heard demonic laughter joining the cries. A faint light appeared across from him and he squinted at it, catching a shock of red, unruly hair. He gasped, pulling as far from his wall as possible to see more. He looked closer, seeing a young boy on his knees, blindfolded and gagged. His breath caught in his throat as he watched him struggle to stand himself upright. _

_Suddenly, two shadows came and grabbed the frail form, pulling him away from the light. The young boy shook his head violently as he tried to thrash away. The blindfold fell loose, revealing shocking green eyes, gazing straight at the blonde prisoner. He knew those eyes...so young. So full of kindness...and fear...he gasped as the shadows dragged him further away and he heard the boy call his name through his gag._

_He found his voice, finding it long enough to scream at the top of his lungs: "KYLE!"_

Kenny slowly found his eyes opening towards a bright light in front of him, he groaned softly, his husky voice co-mingling with as series of beeps within the room. He tried to sit up, finding his arms held down by straps on either side, a long IV tube sticking out of his left arm.

"What the hell?" he whispered, still trying to adjust his throbbing eyes to the light.

"Hey, Kenny," a voice greeted him next to his right side.

"Kyle?" He whispered, trying to make out the form beside him.

"No, it's Cartman," the voice responded softly. Kenny's eyes were finally able to make out the larger form, looking towards him with exhausted eyes.

"W-what the hell?" he repeated, finally able to take in his surroundings. He was in a room at Hell's Pass, the entire decor a blinding white to his darkened views. The window was opened, allowing a cool breeze to pass through the room, giving Kenny a slight chill, though he welcomed it; his body was burning from his nightmare, still shaken and a bit scared.

Cartman reached over and unstrapped his arms for him, and helped prop him up on the bed. Kenny rubbed where the straps had been, they were raw and red.

"You kept thrashing around," Cartman said, apparently reading his mind. "You woke up during your surgery and you were screaming. They had to put you on a really heavy sedative to calm you down."

"How long..."

"Two days," Cartman answered. "You had a lot of head wounds and such, so they wanted to make sure that you were able to stay still long enough to let them start healing."

"O-oh," Kenny said shakily. "Where's Kyle?"

"Right here," a voice called from the doorway. Stan stood there with a sleeping Kyle in his arms and a small grin on his face. "You doing okay?"

"Who cares? Is _he_ okay? What the fuck happened?" Kenny asked, his memories starting to flood back at an alarming rate. Stan sighed and laid the young Jew down onto the couch at the end of the room, then moved to walk down and sit beside Cartman.

"Why did you go out alone, Kenny?" Stan asked quietly.

"I-I needed to think for awhile."

"Well, it nearly got you both killed, you do realize this?" he responded curtly.

"It's not like I planned it! Now fucking answer me! Is Kyle alright? How the hell did we get here?"

Stan sighed and rubbed his temples, then stopped and looked Kenny in the eye. "Kyle called us after everything happened. He was telling me how I had to get to where he was because you needed a doctor...but he was...different about it."

"Whaddya mean?" Kenny quirked his brow.

"Well, you'd expect him to be panicking, right?" Cartman started. Kenny nodded at him slowly. "Well, he wasn't...he was...monotone and just fucking creepy sounding. He sounded like he was some kind of drone or something."

"Well, that confused the living hell out of us," Stan continued, "but we sped down to where you were as fast as we could. We got there and he was standing outside, supporting you on his body...you were pretty beaten up. Apparently you were knocked out."

Kenny raised his hand and rubbed where Mitch had struck him, finding a rather large bump. "Y-yea, he hit me pretty good, I guess."

"Anyways, we got you in the car, but Kyle was still just standing there, and I told him to get in. He started to walk...and he couldn't," Stan's voice cracked. "He...he hurt so badly that Cartman had to pick him up...and when he did grab him...I saw that the back of his jeans were completely soaked with blood...," he let a stray tear escape his oceanic eye.

Cartman put a hand on his shoulder in a somewhat half-hearted gesture of comfort, but didn't take his eyes off of the blonde. Kenny looked over towards Kyle's sleeping form curled up on the couch. Stan and Cartman followed his gaze and stared at the redhead.

"Kyle said that they just left afterwards," Cartman said. "We've told the police, but they won't fucking do anything because they don't really have a lead."

"What are you talking about? We know their names and what they look like!" Kenny protested.

"But Kyle won't talk," Stan finished quietly. "He wouldn't let the doctors look at him, he wouldn't leave your side."

Kenny's mouth dropped slightly as he continued to stare at his little Jew. "He...he wouldn't get any..." he stammered.

"He felt humiliated," Cartman sighed. "He wasn't about to go promoting the fact that he was...well, you know. And he was overly concerned about you having head trauma or something."

"I just now got him to sleep. He hasn't at all since you two got here."

"Oh my god...," Kenny said softly, shaking his head.

"And I was only able to do that because I threw some sleeping pills in his drink," Stan continued. "You can tell it's not exactly the best sleep of his life," he nodded towards his wrinkled forehead and little occasional twitches.

"Kyle didn't tell us what happened," Cartman said. "Will you?"

Kenny took a shaky breath and looked at the ceiling with tears speckling his lashes. "I went out for a walk after you two passed out," he started. "And...those two fuckers knocked me out with that chloroform stuff. They took me to that place you probably met Kyle at in some shitty shack and they had me fucking cuffed to a chair. And...and they took my cell phone and called Kyle...told him to get over there and all that. I told him not to, but he wouldn't listen."

"Sounds like Kyle," Stan inputted quietly, his gaze fixated on the blonde.

Kenny sniffed and nodded, bringing his head down to look at the sleeping Jew. "A-and he got there...and they said if he didn't do what they said, they'd hurt me. So...he just...," he bit his lip.

"Keep talking, Kenny," Cartman urged.

Kenny felt tears streaming down his cheeks and slammed his face into his palms, letting out heavy sobs. "They fucking raped him! T-they fucked him dry...and he just let them so that I wouldn't be hurt! And I just sat there and watched! I...I couldn't save him!" he cried. Stan and Cartman looked at him sympathetically as he continued to bawl. "I...I wish it would've been me," he said, shaking his head into his palms. "God, I can't protect him at all!"

"Kenny, he chose to do it," Stan said quietly. "He let them because he cares about you. You know that."

"And you were cuffed to a chair, Dude," Cartman added. "You couldn't really do much tied up like that."

"I...I know," he sniffled, trying to calm himself down. "But it's just...this...and Toby...and last week...goddammit, what did he do?" he shouted into his hands. "Why does nothing go right for him? Of all of us, he should be getting the most out of life, and yet somehow he just keeps getting hurt! I don't fucking get it!" He finished in a muffled screech.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to find Cartman staring at him with pity in his eyes. "I don't know, Kenny. But this won't happen anymore. We're not leaving him alone again. We'll stay with him until this is all over." Kenny felt a new layer of tears coat his eyes and he threw himself into Cartman's broad shoulder and continued to cry. Cartman let him, gently rubbing his back and coaxing out his tears as Stan watched, awed by the sudden humanity of Eric Cartman.

"Kenny?" a weak voice croaked out.

The three boys shot their heads towards their young friend, coming across a very terrified and very exhausted looking Kyle.

"Kyle..." Kenny breathed out, feeling a flutter in his chest at the sight of those eyes again.

Kyle was able to get up off of the couch, but ended up falling down on his front onto the floor and slamming a hand over his mouth to conceal his groan of pain after trying to step towards his boyfriend. Kenny felt tears scrolling down his face again as Kyle looked back up towards him sadly. Stan stood and went over to Kyle, kneeling down to help him up.

"Come on, Dude," he whispered quietly, gently pulling the young boy onto his feet. He tried to coax a few steps out of the struggling Jew, but couldn't stand his small whimpers. He grabbed Kyle and swooped him into his arms, carrying him over and setting him down on Kenny's bed beside him. The two victims stared at each other silently, trying to find what to say.

Kenny gave up looking for words and raised his hand to Kyle's face, gently stroking his cheek with his thumb. Kyle leaned into his touch, giving him a small smile as he caressed the pale face. Kenny brought his other hand to his head and pulled him towards him, locking lips on him gently, though eagerly. Stan and Cartman gave them small grins as they continued to kiss, tasting each other's lips as though it were all that mattered in their lives, and for them, it was. They were back together, they had made it out, they were still in love.

Kenny pulled back slowly for a breath, locked into Kyle's eyes. They looked so tired, so defeated, and it broke his heart. "Kyle..." he started. "I...I don't...I can't..." he stumbled, fresh tears trekking down his face.

Kyle raised his fingers and gingerly wiped away Kenny's tears. "Then don't," he whispered, leaning in and kissing the blonde yet again. Kenny took his hands off of Kyle's face, taking his arms and wrapping them around the weak form, terrified to let him go. They broke apart once more, Kyle still secure in Kenny's grasp. The young redhead nuzzled his face into Kenny's shoulder, looking towards Cartman and Stan, and took a wavering breath. Kenny gave him gentle kisses on his neck, soaking the poor boy's skin with his tears.

"Kyle, I love you," he sobbed.

"I love you, too, Kenny," he whispered, clutching onto the larger boy's hospital gown.

"I'm so sorry...," Kenny shook his head against his shirt.

Stan and Cartman stood simultaneously. "We'll let you guys talk," Stan said quietly. "We'll be back eventually, we promise."

"Don't hurt yourselves any worse," Cartman muttered, starting to walk out of the room with Stan in tow. The huddled-up boys waited until the door shut behind them to finally break away slightly and look at each other with shining eyes.

"Why would you be sorry?" Kyle asked, his voice cracking slightly.

Kenny bit his lip and looked down at his blanket. "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have been put in that situation. You...you wouldn't have had to do that," he sniffed.

Kyle grasped his chin and pulled it up to stare into his eyes. "Kenny," he began. "If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be here right now period. Kenny, you said it yourself, you went to the depths of Hell to rescue me...you really think that I regret making that choice?"

"But...it wasn't fair," Kenny croaked out hoarsely. "You...you got so hurt...and just because of me!"

"And I'd do it again," Kyle said softly, brushing some of Kenny's disheveled hair out of his face. "You got hurt, too. I'm not the one lying in a hospital bed."

"But you can't walk!" he replied.

Kyle actually let out a little chuckle. "Yea...but I'll heal fine. It'll just take a few days, no biggie," he shrugged.

"No biggie?" Kenny shrieked, his mouth hanging open with shock. "Kyle! They...they fucking...oh my god, they..." he started to become hysterical. Kyle gently leaned his upper body forward and kissed his forehead.

"Kenny, I said it already, but I'll say it again: I'd do it all over again if you were in danger. All that mattered to me at that point was getting you out of there with minimal damage. I know you would have done the same for me," he smiled softly.

"I wish I could have," Kenny fought back more tears.

"It would have been worse for you," Kyle stated.

"Worse? Why?"

Kyle gave him a playful smirk. "You've never bottomed. At least I have."

Kenny stared at him in horror. "Did...did it hurt you that much? Did I hurt you?" he whispered.

"Oh God, Kenny, no!" Kyle stated and grabbed his hand. "My point was just...okay, there was no real point, I was just trying to make you feel a little better. Guess it didn't work too well, huh?" he winced a bit.

"Answer my question," Kenny said firmly.

Kyle looked at him confusedly. "What question?"

"Did I hurt you when we had sex?"

"Sex hurts. Making love doesn't," Kyle said matter-of-factly. "Was it uncomfortable at first? Sure. You try having something that big fly in and out of your ass," he chuckled. "But it didn't hurt because you were so careful not to hurt me...just like you are with no matter what we do." He played with a bit of Kenny's hair. "Whether we're in school, hanging out at home, or facing some twisted fucker with too big of an agenda, you always look out for me. Kenny, I needed to show you that I cared for you like that, too. Because I do. I always have and I always will."

Kenny grabbed the hand teasing his hair and gently kissed it. "Kyle, you didn't need to show me anything, I've always known that you care about me. Who was the one who toted my sorry drunken ass three miles home just so I could break their finger? Who was the one who lied and said that joint in my textbook was theirs and took detentions so I wouldn't be suspended?... Who told me to start wearing condoms?" he smirked. "Everything we've done, even before this whole mess started, we always had each other. I never had anyone else treat me like a human being before. And even now, when I'm not sure what I am, you treat me like I matter...Goddammit, Kyle, how do you manage it?"

"Manage what?" Kyle smiled softly. "You make it sound like caring about you is a chore. Dude, caring about anyone close to me is like breathing. I care about Stan and Ike and sometimes, rarely mind you, but even Cartman's fat ass with no issues or anything like that. But caring about you is even easier because you mean so damn much to me. Sure, you're a total idiot sometimes and you make stupid mistakes, but who doesn't?" he paused for a moment, "and what do you mean you don't know what you are?" he questioned.

"I...I mean, have you thought about it?" Kenny asked. "I mean. we can't die...but we can still get really hurt...what the hell are we, Kyle?"

Kyle looked thoughtful for a moment, then looked back at Kenny and grinned. "Well, I have no idea what I am, but I know what you are."

Kenny blinked at him. "You...you do?"

He nodded softly. "You're the reason I'm still alive, you're everything that I only wish that I could be," he combed his fingers gently through Kenny's hair. "I guess you could say that you're my angel," he grinned sheepishly. "You've saved me from fates that no mortal could ever save anyone from. You've become a beacon in my previously dark and dreary world. And I sound so corny right now I want to go run to Mrs. Troyer and ask if I can publish my thoughts in a poetry book."

Kenny let out a little laugh, but couldn't manage much of one as his heart swelled with feeling. "Kyle...I don't think you understand just how much you mean to me."

Kyle blushed as Kenny leaned in and brushed lips with him. He let out a soft sigh and looked into Kenny's eyes. "If it's anything like how much you mean to me, then I'm the luckiest damn kid in the world." Kenny grinned and wrapped his arms around the boy and pulled him forward, laying him pulled in close to his own body. The little hospital bed made for a tight squeeze, but they didn't mind being so close to each other. Kenny felt his eyelids grow heavy and watched as Kyle's began to sag as well.

"_Finally,"_ he thought, leaning in and kissing the Jew's forehead lightly. "I love you, Kyle."

"You, too, Kenny...you, too..."

-(2 Days Later)-

Kenny stretched towards the golden sun with a small yawn. It felt amazing to be back out in the open air again. Kyle stood beside him smiling gently, his hands dug in his pockets as he turned towards the street and surveyed around.

"Where the hell is Stan?" he asked.

"Who the hell knows? Probably got caught up with Cartman or something," Kenny shrugged.

"Speaking of which, you think he'll be back to normal soon?"

Kenny raised his brow. "Whaddya mean?"

"Well, he hasn't really ripped on me for days...to be honest it's a bit...weird."

"Well...he kinda woulda felt bad about that, Ky."

Kyle scoffed. "Since when does Cartman feel for anything? Besides Red apparently," he added.

"Cartman's a dick but he did promise to help protect you," Kenny threw his arms around Kyle's shoulders.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I don't need protection, Ken. Especially not from someone who I've needed the protection **from** for most of my lifetime!"

Kenny drew him in closer and rested his head atop his. "Look, you do need protection. I know you can defend yourself, but only in small doses. I'll make sure no one ever hurts you again."

Kyle chuckled lightly. "Kenny, don't make such big promises. Things do tend to happen that we can't control."

"Very smart advice, Broflovski," they heard. They turned their heads to see Damien give a sympathetic grin at them. "Making a speedy recovery you two?" he asked softly.

"Hi, Damien," Kyle greeted with a small smile.

Kenny frowned. "Hey, you're supposed to be able to sense when something big happens to us, aren't you?"

Damien shrugged. "Well if I'm paying attention and nothing's interfering with our communication I can...why?"

"Why the hell didn't you come rescue us when we were getting attacked, you fucking asshole?" Kenny screeched, ripping away from Kyle to completely face the demon-child.

Damien merely chuckled, not intimidated by Kenny's disposition. "Well, where would the fun have been in that?"

Kenny's eyebrow twitched and he leaped forward, tackling the red-eyed boy.

"Kenny, stop!" Kyle cried out, watching the two of them roll back and forth on the ground.

"You could have stopped them!" Kenny shrieked, trying to grab Damien's neck and strangle him. "Kyle could have not gotten hurt! Why the fuck didn't you come help us?"

Damien's eyes glowed red and Kenny went flying backwards into the air, crashing down on the ground with a loud thud. He stood up and dusted himself off, glaring at the groaning blonde. "Don't make me put you back in that hospital, McCormick," Damien warned. "I didn't come help you because you two needed to fucking be put into that position."

"What position?" Kenny screamed as Kyle helped him onto his feet. "Hands behind your back, on your knees?" Kyle cringed slightly at that, sending Kenny into a spiral of guilt. "S-sorry, Kyle."

Kyle merely looked at him and smiled meekly. He knew Ken didn't mean it like that.

"No, a position where you had to know your limits, you retard," Damien retorted. "The fact is that Kyle pretty much sacrificed himself for you, just as you almost did when striking the deal with my father. Pops had to know that the feeling was mutual."

"Wait, wait, wait," Kyle waved his hands in front of him. "Are you telling us that your father planned for us to be attacked?"

Damien smirked. "You think my father is cunning enough for that? Please, it was just a nice little coincidence that happened to fit the description of what he needed to see."

"So, we're a sideshow," Kenny crossed his arms and stared vengefully at Damien. "Tell me, was he happy watching Kyle go through the worst experience of his life? Did he enjoy watching me fucking chained to a chair?"

Damien sighed irritably. "Look, I'm not saying that what he did was right, but the ends do justify the means."

"Well Kyle's end sure as hell doesn't feel like it does!" Kenny shouted, pointing at Kyle's ass.

"Oh Jesus Christ, Ken," Kyle slammed his face into his palm in embarrassment.

Damien let out a bout of quiet laughter. "That's not what I meant," he shook his head, his black hair flowing around his head. "Look, Kyle, I really do feel bad for you, and I wish that I would have been able to step in...but my father just wouldn't allow it."

"Shouldn't it have been obvious the moment that Kyle let them tie him up that he was willing to do anything?" Kenny spit.

"That's what I thought, too," Damien nodded. "But Pops insisted that we make sure that he went through the entire thing..."

"That's because your dad's about as flaming as me and Kenny and has a pain fetish," Kyle looked away and scowled towards the street.

Damien gave a small sigh. "No, Kyle. Trust me, he wished that you hadn't of gone through that, too...but we needed to see just how far you could be pushed. Kenny we already had a general idea," he gestured towards the blonde. "But you...well, we didn't know just how strong you were because of...well..."

"I killed myself," Kyle finished, looking back and glowering into Damien's ruby gaze.

"Y-yea. Suicidal people...aren't too healthy in their minds, Kyle. You could be a loose cannon for all we know. Who knew just how much you could take before you snapped?"

Kenny growled at him, "Well, do you have your damn answer now? Can you promise that if this happens again, you won't just sit and watch?"

Damien frowned at him, "actually, no. I don't have the answer I need," he turned back to Kyle. "Broflovski, look. I won't let anything that severe happen to you again."

"Oh thank you, gracious Dark Lord," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"However, you need to learn to have better control of yourself," Damien finished.

Kyle blinked at him. "Wait...what?"

"Have you noticed that your mood has been flying fucking everywhere lately?" Damien demanded.

"So I'm kinda bipolar, so what?" Kyle asked, his hands on his hips.

"Well, this bipolar shit of yours is interfering with your duties. Kyle, your abilities waver with your emotion. If you're pissed off, you block off all your communications with the dead, you won't be able to sense them."

"How nice of you to inform me of this now!" Kyle shouted.

"See? Emotional problems," Damien smirked. "Go see a doctor or a therapist or something, Kyle. Your jobs and ultimately your soul depend on it."

"Kyle doesn't need help!" Kenny exclaimed.

"Yes he does," Damien insisted. His eyes glowed red and Kenny flew towards him. Damien caught his wrist and pulled him down, whispering into his ear, "wake the fuck up, McCormick. That kid is in a lot more trouble than you seem to be able to comprehend. I suggest you get him help before he hurts himself again." Damien threw him down on the ground and started to fade away.

"I am sorry, you two. What you went through was terrible, but necessary for your assignments to continue together. Harbor no ill will towards my father. He's a bit retarded, but it was for your own good...oh and before I forget, Kyle, come here."

Kyle scowled and very gingerly moved over towards the opaque figure, his face twisted in pain. As soon as he reached Damien, the demon smirked at him. "You're short, Dude."

"Shut up. At least my house isn't constantly on fire, Asshole."

Damien smiled and grabbed his arm tightly.

"Um, what are you doing?" Kyle asked, trying to yank his arm away, but failing miserably. Damien spun him around and smacked his ass hard. "OW!" Kyle yelled, hopping around holding his ass and wincing.

"Bye, boys," Damien laughed as he vanished altogether.

"That fucking bastard," Kenny muttered, pulling himself up onto his feet and running to Kyle's aide. "Dude, stop hopping," he tried to calm him down.

"Jesus Christ, what the hell is his problem?" Kyle asked, slowly easing down on his movements. He stopped and blinked for a moment, then took a few steps. "Hey!" he grinned. "I don't hurt anymore!"

Kenny blinked at him. "Really? Damien actually helped someone? Damn. The apocalypse approaches. So, let's go out in style," he grinned devilishly, grabbing Kyle and dipping him downwards.

"How romantic," Kyle chuckled.

"Oh my dear you have no idea just how romantic I can be," Kenny raised a brow in amusement.

"Oh really?" Kyle challenged. "You really think you're a Casanova?"

"Hell yes, my precious little Jew. After all, who better to waste mushy love songs on than you?" he leaned in and kissed Kyle on the lips.

A loud horn sounded behind them, followed by a "Hey! You two wanna get going or just make out in a parking lot all day?" Stan's voice called towards them.

Kenny broke off and smirked, never taking his eyes off of Kyle's. "Dunno," he shouted back. "Pretty close call if you ask me." Kyle rolled his eyes with a smile and stood himself up.

"Come on, Dude. Let's go home," he grabbed Kenny's hand and led him towards Stan's car.

"You sure know how to interrupt a moment, Marsh," Kenny commented as they reached the car.

"Moment?" Cartman laughed. "You were just inhaling the Jew's face, it couldn't have been that special."

"Oh, who asked you?" Kenny stuck out his tongue and Kyle let out a small snicker. He sat himself in the front seat and Kenny slid into the seat behind him and playfully flicked Cartman's arm.

"You two ready to get home?" Stan smiled at them before pulling out at of the lot.

"God, yes," Kenny sighed in exasperation.

"Too bad," Stan laughed. "We're taking you out to eat first."

"Oh come on, Stan," Kyle sighed. "You're spending too much money on food and stuff for us."

"Hey, thirty bucks isn't going to break the bank, Dude. You need some real grub on your stomach," he poked Kyle's abs pointedly.

"Hey, I'm always willing to accept a free meal," Kenny grinned.

"Fine." Kyle said. "But you're letting me pay you back this time," he crossed his arms firmly.

Stan chuckled, "No deal, Bud. So, Ken, you feeling alright?"

Kenny smiled softly. "Hell yes. I don't have those nurses fucking smothering me anymore. Air is a good thing every now and then."

"Well, if you weren't so notorious for flirting, they probably would have let you be," Stan pointed out.

"I can't help my charms," he grinned goofily. Kyle let out a small sigh and leaned against the car door. Kenny reached past the seat and played with some of Kyle's curls. "Of course," he continued, "they're nothing compared to the charms of my beautiful little Kosher boy."

"Yeah, they seem to have brought him such wonderful luck lately," Cartman muttered.

A small silence passed over the seats. Kenny stopped teasing the Jews curls and reclined his seat back a bit, taking his hands and rubbing is back as soothingly as he could muster.

"Kyle, are you gonna be okay?" Stan asked softly.

Kyle let out a small laugh. "Dude, you have _got_ to be getting tired of saying that all the time."

"Not really. How many times have you asked me the same thing when I had problems with Wendy? Now answer me."

"I'll be fine," he shrugged. "You need to stop being so worked up over this...well, over everything going on actually."

"We're concerned, that's all," he shrugged back.

"I don't mind the concern, Stan, but you're obsessing. I'll be alright, I promise."

Kenny stopped rubbing his back and wrapped his arms around the seat and his shoulders. "I...I don't think you will, Kyle." he said slowly. "I think you should consider...talking to someone."

Kyle tensed up and looked back towards him. "You think I'm crazy or something?"

"No, I don't. I care about you. I think that you might be repressing your emotions just so we don't worry so much."

"Don't think just because your in psychology that you're qualified to give me a full psychoanalysis, Kenny," Kyle frowned.

"I'm not, Kyle," he frowned back. "I'm just saying that it wouldn't hurt to talk to someone."

"I don't need help, Ken. Back off."

Kenny sighed heavily and tightened around him. "Fine. But if you feel like you do..."

"You'll be the first to know," Kyle assured him. Kenny gave him a small smile back, then turned back to look at Stan.

"So, where will you be taking us?"

"I'm thinking Shakey's just for old times sake," he smiled back. "But we need to make a quick stop first. That okay with you?"

Kyle shrugged. "You're the one driving, Dude. Not like we have much say in it or anything."

"Well good. Doesn't matter 'cause we're already here." he motioned past the windshield. Kenny and Kyle looked and their jaws dropped. Barn's Burgers? Of all the places in the fucking world, he took them here?

"Stan, get us the fuck out of here, now." Kenny growled.

"Not yet, Poor-boy," Cartman inputted. "We're here for a reason," he started to get out of the car, Stan following his lead.

"You two don't have to come along," Stan said. "Just hang out here."

"What are you doing, Stan?" Kyle cried out.

Stan pointed towards a parked police car on the opposite end of the lot. "I called the police and told them I'll identify the fucker who attacked you."

"Do you know what the other one looks like?" Kenny asked.

Stan shook his head. "No, I don't."

Kyle looked at him for a minute, then furrowed his brow. "I'm coming with you," he decided, starting to get out of the car. Kenny grabbed his arm.

"No," he said. "You're not. Not with that deranged fucker in there."

"I have Stan and Fatass. I'm fine," he retorted, yanking his arm out of Kenny's grasp and stepping out of the Mustang. Kenny clambered out behind him and ran to the front of the vehicle where the other three stood. Kenny walked over to Cartman and ripped off his cherry-red zip-up hoodie.

"Ay! Steal someone else's clothes!" Cartman shouted.

"Shut up, Cartman," he muttered, walking over towards Kyle. "Kyle, wear this," he directed.

"Why?"

"Will you please just put it on?" he said, starting to slid it up his arms. Once it was fully on, Kyle looked like he was in a tunic.

"Dude! Seven of me could fit in this!" He exclaimed.

"Good," Kenny said softly, pulling the hood up over his lover's head. "Maybe that'll keep him from noticing it's you."

"Ken..." Kyle started, reaching up to pull the hood back.

Kenny grabbed his hand. "Kyle, please. Do this for me, okay?"

Kyle sighed, "Fine." Kenny smiled at him and pulled up his own hood, then looked towards the other two.

"Let's go," he nodded, following their lead towards the building. They looked into the police car as they passed it, finding no officer in sight.

"Where the fuck are they?" Cartman muttered.

"Dunno. Let's go 'talk' to this guy," Stan growled, starting through the doors.

"Hello, and welcome to Barn's Burgers," a new hostess called to them. "Four?"

"Actually," Cartman plastered on his great lying grin and raised into his sickly-sweet voice, "we're here because we need to talk to your manager. You see, we're from the 'Give-Help-Everywhere-to-the-Oppressed, or GHETTO, if you will." Kenny couldn't hold back his smirk. Kyle may have been the smartest among them, but if anyone could pull a lie out of their ass in record time, it was Eric Cartman. "And as you can see," he gestured towards the hood-clad duo, "we have two unfortunates who we'd like him to sponsor. We need more supporters to our organization to feed these poor desolate creatures. Just look at this one," he grabbed Kyle's arm and pulled down his sleeve to expose his puny wrist for emphasis, "his sweater's far too large! Or...is he just far too small?" he asked pathetically.

The hostess looked at Kenny and Kyle sympathetically. "Well, I'll take you back there, boys. This is a wonderful thing you're doing. Follow me," she started walking towards the back.

"Dude, we're going in there without the police?" Kenny hissed at Stan.

"I sent the leading officer a text and he texted me back saying they'd be over as soon as possible. We're just supposed to stall him," he whispered.

"Why can't our fucking police do anything in this goddamn town?" he glanced over fearfully towards Kyle, walking alongside Cartman.

"Don't worry. I won't let anyone touch him," Stan promised, noticing where Ken was looking as the hostess walked towards the door to Barney's office.

"Sir?" She asked. "Some boys are here for a charity organization."

"Send 'em in," he called out cheerfully. Kenny saw Kyle shake slightly and kissed the top of the hoodie.

"You can leave," he whispered to the small form.

"N-no." he responded, straightening up as the woman walked back out.

"He'll see you," she smiled. She patted Kenny and Kyle on the head. "You boys are so brave," she said before strolling away.

_Lady, you have no idea..._

"Hello, Lads, what can I do for you?" Barney called out from behind his desk.

"Well...," Cartman started, motioning for Stan to close the door. "We're here for our GHETTO organization...," he trailed off as the door fully shut. His bright expression quickly dropped into a menacing scowl. "We're here to fucking kill you, you sick freak."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard him, you fat bastard. You fucking attacked our friends," Stan added.

Barney blinked at him for a moment before breaking out into a demonic grin. "Oh, that's right. You're friends with Kyle and Kenny, aren't you? I remember you from a few days ago...oh, that was a fun time, wasn't it?"

"Don't play with us, Asshole," Stan growled. "The police are here and they're ready to arrest you."

Barney smirked. "I said it to the other two and I'll tell all of you, I have the best lawyers that money can buy. I have Smith, Demetri...and Broflovski," he grinned wider.

"Kyle's dad will fucking drop you if he figures out what you did to him, you twisted fuck," Stan interjected.

"Oh please. I'm so sick of repeating myself," Barney waved dismissively. "I'm not stupid, I mentioned to your little redheaded friend that his dad didn't love him because he was fag and the little dear's disposition said it all."

"Well, he'd drop you because you're a faggot, too, Asshole," Cartman snarled.

Barney shrugged. "Believe what you want, Chubs. Money can buy a lot of things. Justice included," he directed his attention towards Kenny and Kyle and the blonde held his breath. "Who are these two? Little hood rats to beat me down or something?"

_You got that right you fucking douchebag..._

"Friends of ours, too," Stan said.

"Hm. Well, I'm not gonna lie boys, I ain't scared. After all, Kenny was not really an issue. And Kyle...well Kyle was like a bull versus a paralyzed kitten. Not much of a contest there. Shame you two weren't there to see," he smiled at Stan and Cartman maliciously.

"Watch it, Dude," Stan clenched his fist. Kyle nudged him with his foot subtly, trying to keep him calm.

"Oh, it was loads of fun, though. You should have seen your little 'Jew' as you call him. I've never seen anyone so submissive before. A little threat and he just crumbled. Made him all the more prettier and it made fucking him all the more delicious," he grinned evilly.

"I'll fucking kill you!" Cartman yelled, launching himself towards the man. He pushed away from the desk and Cartman fell to the ground in a clumsy pile.

"Can't if you can't keep up, Fatboy," he sneered.

"I can!" Stan yelled, trying the same tactic as Cartman. Barney pushed him back beside Cartman and laughed.

"Really? Is this the offensive? Because this is just fucking hilarious," he chortled, looking up towards Kenny and Kyle. "Well? Aren't you going to try, too?"

Kenny took it as an invitation and leapt towards him. Barney grabbed the front of his sweater and swung him around, sending him flying back into the wall. His hood fell as he slid down the wall, groaning at his once-again throbbing head as he landed atop Cartman's back.

"Well, if it isn't Kenny," the voice taunted. "Which means...," he turned back around. "This must be little Kyle," he smiled evilly and started to step towards him. The other three shot their eyes wide open and reached for the man's foot as he tried to move towards their Jew. He stepped over them and reached down, swiftly securing Cartman and Kenny to a file cabinet bolted to the floor beside them.

"_Oh god, not again!" _Kenny screamed in his head, pulling at their metal bindings. He looked up and saw Kyle backed up against the wall. _"Fuck fuck fuck!"_ he continued to mentally screech. Stan was still free and shot up, jumping onto the man and trying to bring him down to the ground. Barney spun out of his grip and grabbed the ebon-haired boy in a headlock, reaching into his jacket with his free hand and pulling out a small gun.

_...Fuck._

"Well, Kyle," Barney said sweetly. "This looks like a rather familiar position, doesn't it?" Kyle just shook, not taking his eyes off of Stan. "Put down your hood, let me see that pretty face." Kyle shakily pulled the hood back, his red curls bouncing into view.

"Kyle. Don't." Stan ordered. "Just fucking run. Right now! GO!"

Kenny bit his lip. He knew where this was going. Kenny was _immortal_ and Kyle wouldn't leave him by himself. There was no way in hell he was letting Stan be threatened with a gun and just back away. Kyle stayed in place, true to character. Barney smirked.

"Didn't think you'd be silly enough to do that. Admit it, you just want me to fuck you again, dontcha? You loved my hot cock slamming in and out of your tiny ass, didn't you?" Kyle slammed his eyes shut and trembled.

"Damn it, Jew!" Cartman yelled, pulling roughly at his chains. "Just get the fuck out!"

"Don't do it, Kyle." Barney smiled and pressed the gun to Stan's head. "Now. I think you know what I want." Kyle looked at him with quivering lips. "You heard me. Jacket and shirt off. Now."

"NO! Kyle, don't do it again! Don't try to be a goddamn hero!" Stan shouted.

"It's not about being a hero, Stan," he whispered.

"It's all about love for your friends and all that other faggotry," Barney rolled his eyes. "Now, strip."

Kyle let out a shuddery breath and began to unzip Cartman's hoodie, letting it fall to the ground with a soft thud. He began to hastily unbutton his shirt.

"_He wants it to just be over with,"_ Kenny thought sadly, shaking his head and dropping it in defeat. "_Where the fuck is Damien?"_

"Ah ah ah," Barney said. "Slower." Kyle started to leisurely unbutton the rest of his top and slowly slid it off his small arms, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.

"Now, come here." he commanded. The young boy slowly walked over to him and he turned the gun towards his face. "You," he said at Stan. "Go sit over there or I blow his pretty face to bits," he motioned towards the wall by Kenny and Cartman. He slowly released Stan and watched as the boy stepped backwards, watching Kyle with a torn expression upon his face. He kneeled down beside Kenny, never taking his eyes away from the younger redhead.

The man turned back towards Kyle and smiled, turning the gun and running it along his jugular, making him shudder with fear. "Tell me," he asked huskily. "Why is it I just can't seem to get enough of you?"

"Aside from the fact that you're a sick pervert?" Kyle muttered. Barney smirked and grabbed the boy in one of his arms, keeping the gun aimed at his neck.

"Perhaps. Or maybe I just have a thing for pretty little damsels in distress," he shrugged. "Now then. On your knees, Princess," he gestured towards the ground with his gun. Kyle fell to the ground in defeat. Barney turned his pistol so it was pointing straight down onto his head. He unzipped and unbuttoned his slacks and allowed his cock to pop out into exposure and licked his lips as Kyle shuddered in disgust. "lick it," he commanded, prodding his head with the weapon.

"Kyle!" Kenny half-shouted. "Not again...please...please just leave him alone." he begged.

"No room for arguments, Kid. Now, Kyle. Do it." Kyle swallowed whatever dignity he had left and tongued the length of his cock reluctantly. Barney let out a soft moan and grabbed Kyle's curls and tugged sharply and listened to his little yelps with delight. "Now suck me," he ordered. Kyle pulled back slightly and bit his lip in humiliation.

"NOW." Kyle let out a wavering breath and took Barney's full length into his mouth. He sucked as hard as he could, trying desperately to make this moment just pass already. Stan, Cartman, and Kenny looked on with horror, unbelieving that Kyle would really sink so low just to protect them. Barney's eyes were closed, he was lost in complete euphoria as the little Jew continued to suck him off. Kyle looked up at his attacker and raised his brow, taking in the sight of him looking away from him.

The young boy decided to amp it up to make sure that he stayed looking like that, taking his right hand and fondling the man's balls. "Oh Jesus," Barney breathed out. "What a good little sex slave I have," he licked his lips. Kyle continued his work, rising slightly higher on his knees and reaching out towards the gun in Barney's hand.

"What is he doing?" Stan whispered.

"He's trying to grab the gun," Cartman responded. "He's gonna get himself killed!"

"God, Ky, be careful," Kenny prayed.

Kyle's free hand rested just beside the gun, which was slowly slipping out of the older man's grasp. "Mmm, come on Kyle, I know you can do more," Barney commanded. "Moan or do something!"

Kyle started to pump the end of the man's cock vigorously as the man's grip tightened in his hair. He let out a few sharp yelps as his scalp was pulled on. Kyle started to speed up his wrist and the gun dangled loosely from the man's finger. Kyle yanked it away and pushed himself off of the man, holding the gun pointed towards him, breathing heavily.

"On the floor," he ordered, standing himself up and holding the gun towards him. Barney just blinked at him. "I said on the floor!" he shouted, thrusting the gun towards him slightly.

Barney scoffed. "You don't have the guts." Kyle raised his eyebrow.

"You kidnapped my boyfriend, tied him to a chair, and beat him. You threatened him more and raped me. Then you threaten my best friend with a gun and try to rape me again. You really think that I'd have any qualms with shooting you, you twisted fuck? Now get on the fucking ground!"

Barney scowled. "I'm not listening to a fucking pussy, give me the gun before I do something drastic."

"Like what? This?" Kyle shot the gun and hit his assailant in the knee. He fell to the ground holding his wounded leg and screaming expletives. "Thank you for cooperating," Kyle smiled. "Now where's the key for the cuffs?" Barney looked up at him and pointed towards the desk, shivering in pain. Kyle nodded towards Stan. The ebon boy got up, an astonished look upon his features as he crossed the room and opened the desk drawer. He found the key and released the other two, who were staring at Kyle in awe as well.

Who knew he had it in him?

"FREEZE!" A loud voice bellowed as the door flew open. Kyle whipped around and found himself staring down three cops. "Put the weapon down, Son," the lead cop nodded. Kyle nodded back and gently set the gun on the ground, raising his hands after kicking it to the side, and backing up a bit.

"Barney Johanson, you're under arrest," the cop said at the fat man. Barney looked up at him in shock for a moment before redirecting his gaze towards Kyle above him. He growled and grabbed Kyle's foot, yanking him and sending him crashing onto the floor. He climbed atop the young boy and laughed as he grasped the boy's face in his hand.

"You wanna take me? Shoot me. But watch out. You might end up hitting pretty boy instead," he pressed down on Kyle forcefully and the boy let out a small yell of pain.

"Release the boy, Barney," the cop persisted. "You're only digging a deeper grave for yourself."

"Nonsense," he chuckled. "I'm not afraid of getting in any sort of trouble. Because I'll be right back on the streets in no time, and I'll find this pretty little thing and make him mine again," he stroked Kyle's cheek. Kenny grabbed the gun and pointed it towards his head.

"Let go of him. Now," he breathed out heavily. "I swear to God, I will NOT hesitate to shoot you. One."

"Don't do it, Kenny," Barney shook his head with a small smile. "You might hit Kyle."

"Two."

"Johanson, let the boy go!" the cop screamed at him.

A heavy silence filled the air for a brief moment, time seemed to stand still as everything fell onto the shoulders of the young blonde.

"...Three."

Kenny and Kyle walked side by side down the parkway, making their way through the rows of trees standing along their sides. They maintained a silence throughout their journey, neither one sure of what to say. Kenny looked up, seeing the birds chirping away at each other. How come birds never seem to have any conversational problems? Most of 'em don't even know when to fucking stop talking. But as he walked by his Jew, the silence seemed all the more fitting for the day.

They continued to stroll, veering off the marked path and into a lush, green section of land. They came to a stop at a pair of crude stones set amidst the grass.

Kyle placed a rose gently onto one as Kenny threw another carelessly at the stared at them in silence for a while before Kenny sighed heavily.

"I...I didn't mean to, you know."

"I know."

"It just...I couldn't stop myself...I didn't think that it'd actually..." he bit his lip and trembled. Kyle turned him and clasped his arms around his larger frame swaying him softly.

"I know you didn't," he stroked his blonde hair. "What's done is done. Everything will be okay."

"But...but I killed someone, Kyle!" he sobbed into the boy's shoulder.

"No, he did himself in the moment he decided to take our lives into his hands. Don't worry. You're not in trouble, we're both okay. Life goes on."

"I just feel so...so guilty...the-the blood wouldn't come off!" he started to shake.

"It's okay, Kenny," he rubbed his back soothingly.

"No, it's not!" Kenny pulled back and looked at him. "I...how can I feel guilty about that after what that twisted fuck did to you?"

Kyle pulled him down and met lips with him. "Because. You're a good being. You have emotions. You feel guilt and love and pain just like the rest of us. You're a bringer of peace. I told you. You're my angel," he smiled.

Kenny sniffed and smiled slightly back at him. Kyle turned to look at the markers one last time and let out a heavy sigh. "Well. We should get back home. Let's let these two rest for a while, hm?"

Kenny nodded and grabbed Kyle's hand leading him out back towards their home. They paused as they caught a green glow in the distance. They ran up towards it and found an old man kneeling beside a tree. They approached him slowly.

"Hello?" Kyle said softly.

The man shot his head up and looked at them with a slight tinge of fear in his eyes. "H-how..."

"We can talk to the dead," Kenny grinned. "You wanna talk to us about some stuff? We can help you, I'm sure."

The old man looked at them uncertainly for a moment, but looked back towards the tree and sighed softly. He turned back to look at the boys and smiled softly. "Alright. If you two think you can help me."

They nodded and motioned for him to follow as they walked back towards the path they had began on and started their journey home. Kenny looked back towards where they had stopped one last time before looking back at Kyle and smiling at his love.

They left behind two stones, leaving them to weather out the rest of eternity for themselves. The two dis-colorings in an otherwise clean world, refused to be together by the laws of society, but bound to each other for all of time through matter of life and death.

* * *

_A/N:  
_

_More plot holes to fill in next chapter and a new case! I'm thinkin' after that, it's fast-forwarding to the next month. Dunno. We'll see._

_Thanks for R&R-ing! (we're gonna hit 100!)_


	23. Sunflowers

_A/N: Hello, all. I feel the need to apologize for blowing up last A/N. My life has kinda been spiraling downwards lately and all of the yelling about my chapter was just the last straw and I just fucking lost it. I'm really sorry especially that everyone who __**didn't **__insult me thought that they did. Trust me, those that really pissed me off aren't reading anymore. _

_It's kinda depressing that I made that happen, but ya know. Life goes on. Thanks a bunch for last chapter's comments though, they made me feel a lot better about this whole story =)_

_Just so you're well aware, Kyle's rape was (probably) the last huge dramatic event for awhile. We're going back to the cases, Kyle's depression, and a few other elements that may or may not be totally new. Who knows? Most of you are aware that this goes on a whim for the most part =)_

_Enjoy this case! (Though it's mostly just a filler, haha)_

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Kenny groaned and slammed his pillow over his head. He peeked out under it and glanced at the clock, it was reading 3:56 AM.

"Goddammit, Kyle, come to bed!" he growled from his hiding spot.

Kyle looked up at him from his laptop as he sat in a chair across the room. "Why? I'm not tired and it's not like we have to go to school."

"But it's a been a fucking long week, Dude. You can help Charlie tomorrow...just please come to bed? I'm exhausted!"

Kyle sighed and stood up. "Alright, go to sleep. I'll go work in the living room," he paused and leaned down to kiss Kenny's forehead softly. "Goodnight." He walked out of the bedroom and left the door open a crack.

Kenny sighed softly and turned onto his back, staring up towards the ceiling. He felt so damn tired, but everything going on lately left his mind racing and he couldn't make himself doze off. His wounds had finally healed after awhile, after he had been discharged from the hospital. Kyle had convinced him to not heal himself or his own wounds for fear that Cartman or Stan might notice something peculiar. He looked at his hand, making out it's faint silhouette in the dark lighting. He watched the gentle, curving movement of his fingers with wonder, trying to figure out just what was going on with his body.

He still didn't feel any different, despite the fact that he was basically a miracle worker of sorts. He kind of wished that he could feel some sort of revitalizing energy coursing through his fingertips or something. He wondered if Kyle felt any different, he doubted it though, he would have been bound to mention it. He heard the faint sound of coffee brewing and snickered softly. Ever since they'd gotten back from the park a few days back, Kyle had really been hitting the caffeine like it was going out of style. He claimed that it helped calm his nerves a bit, and since he was still on edge about the whole incident, he was trying to do everything he could to settle himself down. Kenny briefly wondered if he'd end up like Tweek someday. Always jittery and freaking out at the slightest motion.

He could hear Kyle typing and his mind wandered to the old man sleeping on the couch. Charlie Summers was his name, a Korean War veteran. Luckily for Kyle and Kenny, his case for why he'd been stuck had not been too difficult to figure out. When they had seen him in the park, he had been looking around at various gravestones. He told the boys that he was looking for where his wife may have been buried. He wasn't aware of whether or not she had died, but he was pretty damn sure. Kyle had been working almost nonstop trying to find where she might have been buried and looking through old records to see if he could find her whereabouts. He had came up empty for three days straight and was starting to get a bit edgy about it, but he had plenty of time on his hands.

Both he and Kenny had fallen so far behind in their classes from their frequent hospital trips that they had applied to quit actually going to the school and just studying from home and only going to take their finals before graduation. Kyle, being at the top of the list for valedictorian, had had no problem securing this privilege. Kenny, on the other hand, had to do some pretty damn good convincing. Kyle had spent an hour in the office with Principal Howard trying to persuade him to let him be a personal tutor for Kenny. Kyle had thought up the lie that he wanted to one day become a teacher, and teaching one 'problem student' could give him some good experience.

Damn good thing principals are suckers. It didn't hurt that the student just happened to earn the school grants for extraordinary academic accomplishments.

Kenny smiled at this. He was holding hands with the smartest fucking kid in the whole damn town. How could he have ended up so lucky? Usually smart people stick with other smart people, right? So what about him was so attractive to Kyle? Maybe it was just his looks...or that he gave some damn good head, perhaps. He shook his head and chuckled. He didn't need to know exactly why, because he still didn't know why he cared about Kyle so much either. He'd given several reasons, but none of them felt like they were the right words to express how he felt.

Goddamn, he was starting to sound like a chick.

He heard the door creak open and close and watched Kyle as he walked back into the room.

"Givin' up finally?" he asked.

Kyle sighed and fell face first on the bed. "Yeah. You can only stay on one subject for so long before your IQ starts dropping. I thought you were 'exhausted'."

"I am. I just can't really sleep. I'm thinkin' too much."

"Oh?" Kyle turned and sat up. "You okay?"

He chuckled softly. "Yeah, I'm fine," he sat up as well and took Kyle into his arms. "I'm even better now," he kissed the top of his head.

"You're so damn corny," Kyle laughed.

"But you love that about me, right?"

"There isn't much about you that I don't love," Kyle pecked his cheek sweetly. Kenny nuzzled their faces together and sighed happily.

"So, what's the game plan for tomorrow, then?"

Kyle leant his head back against Kenny's shoulder thoughtfully and sighed. "I guess working on Charlie's case some more. I really wish that I could find his wife easier. No records that I've looked up have her listed at all."

"Well...is there a different method?"

"Wanted posters," Kyle muttered. Kenny laughed and hugged him tighter.

"Ky, it'll all come together. It always does."

"Yea...," Kyle trailed off.

Kenny pulled back a little. "You okay, Kyle?"

"Hm? Oh, I'm fine," he smiled. "Just totally spaced out. Sorry bout that."

"I forgive you, I suppose. Bedtime?"

"Yeah sure." They slid under the covers and huddled together.

Kenny let out a loud yawn. "Love ya, Ky," he said sleepily, his eyelids starting to droop.

"Same to you," Kyle kissed his nose and nuzzled into his broad chest. Kenny smiled and squeezed his arms around him tighter, finding himself drifting off into a nice comfortable slumber.

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"Kenny, for god's sake, get up!" Kyle shouted, throwing a pillow at the blonde.

"Go away...five more min..." he began snoring again.

Kyle rolled his eyes and walked over towards the bed, leaning over Kenny's form. "Oh Ken...," he whispered lowly. "how are you feeling?"

"Ti...red," he mumbled.

"Mm," Kyle smirked. "Couldn't tell."

"I'm mumblgetting up...,' he said. "Just don't eat...me..."

Kyle let out a chuckle. "Who are you talking to?"

"You...nymph...," he half raised his arm and pointed at Kyle. "You...sexy...sex...y nymph," he snored.

Kyle placed a hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter. He leaned closer, right by Kenny's ear. "Why would I eat someone so damn sexy as yourself?" he whispered hotly.

"I...I don't...take off...shirt."

"My clothes are already off. Are yours?"

Kenny nodded against his pillow, a small trail of drool forming on a line on the case.

"Well, do you like what you see?"

"Mmm..."

Kyle snorted a bit and bent down further to nibble softly on Kenny's earlobe. "You like that?" Kenny let out a soft shudder and moaned quietly. Kyle smiled wider. This was a fun game. "What do you want now?"

"Y-you...meadow...pants..."

"Okay, whatever you say," Kyle ran his fingers lightly across Kenny's side.

"You...me?" Kenny half-asked.

"Yes. Right here. Right now. Take me. Make me yours." Kyle challenged to the dreaming boy, barely able to suppress his laughter.

"Mmkay," he mumbled, rather unromantically.

"But hurry, oh dear lover. For Aphrodite, whom you've given your hand to in favor of her bed, she may find us."

"Oh no..."

"Hurry, my love. Make love to me quickly."

"...okay. If you insist, Kyle," Kenny shot his eyes open and grabbed the young boy and pulled him down on the bed. He rolled over on top of him and burst out laughing along with the redhead. "Damn, you're good at roleplaying," Kenny chuckled. "For what I was awake for, anyways."

Kyle giggled, "and just when did you finally wake up, oh dear Greek warrior?"

"About the time you started chewing on me," Kenny smirked, leaning down and kissing Kyle softly on the lips.

"Well, just for future reference, nymphs didn't eat people," Kyle quirked an amused brow.

"Hey, it was my dream. They could do whatever the hell they wanted," Kenny retorted, leaning back and sitting astride Kyle's hips.

Kyle let out a small chuckle. "No, they do whatever **you** want," he pointed towards the slight rise in Kenny's shorts.

Kenny smiled. "Well it's not my fault that I happened to stumble upon the hottest Jewish nymph around."

"I'm the only Jewish nymph around," Kyle raised his brow.

"Right. You're my one and only," Kenny wriggled his eyebrows.

Kyle grinned at him, then looked towards the bedroom door. "Come on, Dude. We got work to do."

"Aww," Kenny whined. "What good is not having to go to school if you spend it working?"

"How about getting the house back to being for ourselves? Is that enough motivation for you?"

Kenny considered this for a moment then nodded. "Yeah, that would be nice. Charlie's cool and all...but I want you to myself for awhile."

"And if you're a good little Greek, I may just let you."

"Yay," Kenny grinned, removing himself from atop the small form and helping him sit up. "So," he stretched. "what's goin' on with Charles out there?" he jerked his thumb towards the door.

Kyle shrugged, "same as always. Trying to figure out where Betty would be and constantly reminding me to be wary of the Commies."

Kenny chuckled, "I know he's dead, but he seriously needs to catch up with the program."

"Oh well, can't really blame him. If I were killed by a Nazi, I'd be warning people about 'em, too once I passed on."

"You do on a regular basis. You warn people about Cartman."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "That fatass only wishes he could be a full-blown Nazi. He doesn't have the stomach for it. He'd wanna kill me and that'd be the end of that."

Kenny shook his head as he started pulling on his clothes. "Nah, he knows that he needs you to rip on."

"Speaking of which, him and Stan are stopping by after school."

"Jesus Christ, can't they leave us alone? What if we get Charlie out of here? When will it be sexy Jew time again?" Kenny pouted.

Kyle laughed softly. "Well, first things first. Getting him out. Now are you actually gonna help me today or just eat again?"

"Not my fault your cooking's fucking amazing. Where'd you learn how to make stuff anyways?"

"My mom...we used to cook stuff together every Saturday after going to the synagogue. That way it was considered more fun than work, so we didn't disobey the Sabbath quite as severely," he said with a sad smile.

"Oh...," Kenny winced.

"Anyways," Kyle brightened up, "if you're ready, can we please start work?"

"Yeah, sure. You making the grub?"

"Well I'm sure as hell not putting you in charge of anything flammable," Kyle grinned as he started out the door with Kenny close behind.

"Mornin', Kenny," Charlie greeted from the couch, surrounded by piles of newspaper.

"'Sup, Charlie?" he smiled.

"Boy, why are you sleeping so late?"

Kenny glanced up at the clock above the television. "Dude, it's like, nine! That's early for me!"

"Well Kyle was up at five, maybe you should follow example," he pointed a pen at him accusingly.

"Five?" Kenny blinked and turned to Kyle. "Dude, you only slept an hour?"

"Not even," Kyle grumbled, shuffling towards the kitchen. Kenny and Charlie exchanged glances before following the redhead.

"Boy, you told me you got yourself a full six hours last night."

"I lied," he shrugged, turning towards the coffee pot.

Kenny frowned. "No wonder you can't sleep. You're drinking way too much coffee, Dude."

"What is this, an intervention?"

"Boy, go get some sleep," Charlie commanded.

"Don't you think that I would if I wanted to? I'm too focused on finding your wife," he poured himself a steaming mug. "I don't sleep when I'm focused. I never have."

"Running on less than an hour's sleep is gonna make you severely unfocused," Kenny lectured.

"Dude," he pointed towards himself, "this is me during finals, okay?" he took a long sip and sighed. "I have a lifetime to sleep. I'll catch back up once we find Betty."

Charlie shook his head disapprovingly. "Boy, you need to learn to listen to your elders."

"Well, the 'elders' throughout my life have all fucked me over. Why the hell should I trust any others?" he snapped. Charlie and Kenny blinked at him, surprised by his sudden tone. His expression fell guiltily. "Um, sorry," he mumbled, staring at the coffee swishing around in his mug.

Kenny walked up and wrapped his arms around him. "Ky, you need sleep," he swayed him back and forth soothingly.

"Ken, I'm **fine**. Stop freaking out."

"I'm not. But **you** are," he placed his finger on the Jew's nose.

"I'm sorry, okay? I just can't sleep when we're so behind on finding her."

"It's not top priority," Charlie crossed his arms.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I don't need babied, thank you. If I need sleep, I'll sleep. Now both of you back off and I mean it."

Kenny sighed and tightened his grip around him. "We're just concerned is all, Love."

"Jesus Christ, I am so sick of everyone being so goddamn concerned for me!" he growled, pushing away from Kenny and stomping off towards the living room.

Kenny and Charlie followed him, finding him plopped down on the chair with his legs curled up beside him and an frustrated expression across his face.

Kenny walked over and kneeled in front of him. "Is it really so bad to have people care, Ky?"

"There's caring and there's being way over-protective. You and Stan both have **got** to back off. I feel fucking smothered." he crossed his arms firmly.

"Smothered with love?"

"No, smothered with repetitive questions."

Kenny shrugged, "sorry, Dude. I'm not gonna stop asking, though. I worry."

Kyle sighed, "I know. Everyone does. I just hate being such a bother."

Kenny got up and sat back down on the arm of the chair, pulling Kyle into his frame and kissing his curls. "It's not a bother. If it was, we'd ignore you completely."

"Cartman's a bother and yet we constantly associate with him," Kyle pointed out moodily.

Kenny smirked, "He's not a bother, he's just an asshole. Big difference, Dear."

Kyle gave him a small smile and another sigh. "I know you mean well, I'm just a bit antsy."

"Couldn't tell," Charlie smirked.

"Who asked you?"

"Didn't need to. I'm older," he raised his brow.

Kenny waved dismissively. "Oh whatever. Dead for fifty-six years and you think you know everything."

"I know more than you do, Boy."

"Uh huh. Kyle, have you eaten yet?"

Kyle snorted softly, "are you kidding? I haven't left these damn reports since I went to wake you up," he gestured around at the scattered papers on the floor and furniture.

"Alrighty then, I'll make you something."

Kyle raised his brow. "You sure?"

Kenny shrugged. "I've seen cooking shows...it shouldn't be that hard right?"

"Oh Jesus, now we're all gonna be dead," Charlie smirked.

"You. Old man. Get your butt over there and read those papers," Kenny directed.

"Sir, yes, Sir," he responded, giving a half-salute.

"So, what exactly are you wanting to fix?" Kyle asked.

"I dunno. I'll figure something out," he kissed Kyle's cheek and started to saunter over towards the kitchen. "You want something, Charlie?" he called back over his shoulder.

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks."

"Not at all," he saluted, walking through the archway.

"Fire extinguisher's under the sink!" Kyle called out after him. Kenny snickered softly and opened the refrigerator. He looked around and bit his lip...what the hell could he make? He grabbed a carton of eggs and examined it. Omelettes. Omelettes were easy...right? He shrugged to himself and started pulling out various packages of meat and vegetables.

"You break anything yet?" Kyle called out towards him. He smirked and walked over towards the window and cocked his brow at the teasing Jew.

"Not yet, but I'll break you soon enough, my Love."

Kyle blushed and looked up from his papers. "You're a dick, Dude."

"I could make a crude remark directed at your word choice, but I'll choose not to."

"Good idea. Now go make us some food. Or something."

"Kay. All this stuff's good, right? All kosher and such?"

"Yep. Bebe and Wendy made damn good sure of it when they went shopping for us," he turned back down towards his reports.

"Excellent," he smiled, turning back towards the kitchen. He laid out all of his vegetables and stared at them. Knife. Knife would be good.

Oh goddamn, if he was stuck on how to cut vegetables, he really _would_ burn the place down.

He walked over to the knife holder and raised his brow. Why were there ten different ones?! He grabbed four of them out and laid them on the counter, contemplating what to do. He scratched his head, looking at each one confusedly.

"Um...Kyle?" he called nervously.

"What's wrong?" he shouted back.

"I...kinda need some help?"

He could hear Kyle chuckling as he walked back into the kitchen. "What's the matter?"

"Um...why are there so many knives?"

"Well, what are you trying to cut?"

"Vegetables..."

Kyle chuckled and grabbed the second largest knife off of the counter and displayed it in his hand for the blonde. "French knife," he stated. "Use it to slice, chop, mince, or do whatever to vegetables."

"What the...there's a difference?!"

"Of course there is. You thought that they were all the same term?"

"...sort of. What are the other knives for?" he motioned down towards the remaining three on the counter.

He grabbed a serrated blade and showed it to Kenny. "This is a bread knife. If you can't figure out what this is for now, I'm hurting you."

Kenny grinned sheepishly. "Okay, so I use that to spread the jam. What else?"

Kyle shook his head with a small grin on his face and grabbed another. "This is a paring knife. You can use it for peeling layers off of fruits and vegetables."

"So can't I use it to cut those things?" he motioned back towards his arrangement.

"I wouldn't suggest it. You have peppers and onions and other large vegetables. Your chef knife will make the job a bit easier."

"I thought it was a French knife."

"It's the same thing."

"Oh, so knives can have different names, but methods of cutting the damn food can't?!"

Kyle sighed irritably. "Dude, I don't make the damn rules, okay? Now...," he reached down for the last knife. "This is a butcher knife. It's for meat and meat alone, and I only mean like, full chickens. Do you understand?"

"Am I to get that you don't want me cutting anything with that knife, Kyle dear?"

"Damn straight. If you don't know what knife is for what, I don't want you using the most dangerous one. Anything else you need?"

"I think I'm good," he smiled.

"Alright. Call me if you need me," he turned and walked back out. Kenny stared after and laughed to himself. "Don't forget to use a cutting board!" Kyle yelled out.

"Yes, Dear," Kenny laughed, rummaging through the cabinet. He found his board and laid out his food. He took his knife and started slicing...or was it chopping...his vegetables. When they looked decent enough, he slid them all into a large bowl and walked over to the stove with eggs in hand.

"Crap...now what?" he muttered. He tried to think back to those damn cooking shows his mom used to watch. Wasn't easy to make out all the pictures on a black and white 12 inch screen, but it was better than nothing. He grabbed a bowl and threw the eggs in there with some milk. He whisked them together, ending up splashing a good deal onto the counter.

This was totally his omelette. He heated up a frying pan and dumped in half of his contents, waiting for it to start solidifying. He walked back over towards the window and stared at Kyle, who was comparing internet articles to the paper articles he'd found at the library. Kenny leaned his head into his hand and smiled goofily at the oblivious boy. He looked so cute when he was concentrating. His brows furrowed, his nose slightly wrinkled, his eyes darting from subject to subject with his glasses delicately perched on the end of his nose. Total focus.

That was one of the many things that Kenny couldn't get enough of from Kyle: his absolute attention. Kyle's scrutinizing eyes were always a pleasure to have looking up and down his face, trying to be there for him and understand what was going on in his usually-empty head. It was so amazing to have grabbed that type of focus.

As he stared, he watched as Kyle lifted his nose and smelled the air, turning to find Kenny staring at him. "Um, Ken. As much as I am flattered that you're so intrigued in watching me...I think your eggs are burning."

"Huh?" Kenny whipped around. "Oh shit," he muttered, running towards his pan and sliding the egg out onto a plate, folding it in half as he went. "Aw, man," he groaned, staring at the blackened egg. He sighed and threw in the contents of the second omelette, not taking his eyes off of it as it cooked.

Once it was done, he slid it out, admiring it's yellow and brown coloring. Definitely Kyle's omelette. He brought out both plates and some silverware with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Bon appetit," he bowed as he handed Kyle off his food.

"Wow, I'm impressed," he grinned. "Smells awesome...," he looked at Kenny's pathetic omelette and frowned. "I'll trade you if you want," he suggested.

"No way. I'm fine with this. Eat that," Kenny sat down on the chair.

"But that's not fair to you..."

"Is too! I cooked the damn food!"

"I know, but I feel bad about it."

"Why would you feel bad? I'm cool with it!"

"I heard you cussing it out, Ken. You're not cool with it."

"Kyle. Seriously. Eat your goddamn food."

"Okay, you know what? I have a simple solution." Kyle grabbed Kenny's plate and cut his omelette in half, doing the same to his own and trading off halves. "There," he finished, handing the plate back to Kenny. "Now neither of us feels bad."

Kenny chuckled. "I was fine, ya know."

"Mhm. Sure you were," Kyle took a bite of the bad side of his omelette. Kenny watched as he chewed and swallowed. "Pretty damn good, even if it is burnt," he complimented.

"Aw, thank you...you're making lunch, though."

Kyle chuckled. "Of course," he turned back to look at the papers in front of him on the table.

"So, have we any idea of where she may be?"

"No," Charlie sighed. "I looked all over her hometown and through here...I don't know where else she could be."

"Was there anywhere she talked about going when you were together?" Kyle asked. "Anyplace special or anything like that?"

He shook his head. "Nah, Betty was the kind of girl who liked to stay where she was. She had enough problems when we moved out here."

"Why did you move out here?" Kenny asked, taking another bite. "I mean, this is a shit-hole of a town."

"Didn't used to be," he retorted. "Used to be a great, clean place. Then people started messin' with the system and low and behold, you have the wreck that it is today."

"Hm. I personally like it as a shit-hole," Kyle leaned back into the couch. "I mean, not too many tourists or anything...so it's kinda nice."

"True. Before the war, it was a lot more populated. Everyone wanted a little piece of mountain air, ya know?"

"Now people just wanna live in the city. We're too poor of a town to rope in anyone very big," Kenny pointed out.

"So, what was Betty like, Charlie?"

"Aw, she was an angel in disguise, I swear. She had blonde hair and blue eyes...my God she was beautiful... I used to call her my sunflower. She always made everything around her seem brighter...I miss her so much." Kenny noticed how Kyle's eyes glanced over towards him and his gentle smile.

"She upset that you went to war?" Kenny asked, barely able to contain his grin as Kyle continued to look at him.

"Sort of," he shrugged. "She didn't want me to leave, but she always told me how proud of me she was that I was doing something to help my country. So she was on the fence, I suppose."

"She your age?"

"Nah, I was 40 when I went into the war, she was 34."

"Well, close enough," Kyle shrugged.

"What's her hometown?"

"Sugar City, Idaho," he laughed quietly. "I was there on a interning trip when I was nineteen and I saw her in a restaurant. I spilt coffee all over the both of us and the rest writes itself."

"Gee, how romantic," Kenny chuckled.

"Eh, maybe not to the two of you, but for us it was great. It was a great conversation starter."

"Kyle, if I spill coffee on you, will you talk to me for hours?"

"Kenny, if you spill coffee on me, I'm going to hurt you."

"Ooh, so coffee makes you frisky?"

"Kenny, shut up," Kyle rolled his eyes and started finishing off his omelette.

Kenny chuckled, "you wish that I could."

"Anyways, Charlie, are you sure that she's dead? I mean...she'd be ninety right now...maybe she's still alive."

Charlie shook her head. "I doubt it, though. She always had a pretty weak immune system and it'd knock her off her feet for weeks at a time. Her health always put me on the rope's end."

"She have a disease or anything like that?" Kenny asked.

"Not as far as I knew. I mean, a lot can happen in fifty-six years, though. You never know."

Kyle sighed. "Well, we haven't had any luck looking through all these death records...maybe we should just go to the library and look at the files they have on the people in this place."

"Can we do that?"

"If we can get my computer to hook up to the library files, yeah. It's a library, so their file security isn't really that tight. Hacking into it shouldn't be a problem."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Charlie blinked.

"Future stuff," Kenny smirked. "Ky, are you sure that you can find her records? Or anything useful for us?"

Kyle smirked at him. "You think I've never hacked the library's system before? Hell, Gloria watched me do it once."

"Gloria?"

"Head librarian. She's the chick with the blonde hair that's always back in a bun."

"Um, you really expect me to know who the hell that is? When the hell was the last time that I went to the library?"

"How would I know? Anyways, it shouldn't be too hard. And it should be a hell of a lot quicker than going through these damn papers for hours on end."

"Alrighty," he stood up and stretched. "We wanna go ahead and hit it so we can get it over with soon?"

"Works for me," Kyle responded, grabbing Kenny and his plates and taking them to the kitchen.

"You cool with that, Charlie?"

He shrugged, "sure. I have no idea what the hell you two are jabberin' about, but it sounds like you have some sort of idea."

"We're gonna look at Betty's records in the computer," Kyle explained. "We'll see if she's alive or not and if she is or was still in the South Park area. I'm pretty damn sure that we'll be able to find everything." He swooped down and gathered up his laptop and a few papers.

"We ready?" Kenny asked.

"Yup. Charlie, you know we can't talk to you when we get there, right?"

"I'm fully aware, Kid. Let's go before you pass out from exhaustion, shall we?"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Dude." Kenny walked up and grabbed his free hand.

"Come on, let's kick it," he smiled, leading him out the door.

"Hey, guys," Sally called out.

"Hey," they responded.

"Where are you headin'?"

"Library. We're looking stuff up for school," Kyle replied.

"I thought you two were doing the at-home thing."

"Well, yeah, but we still need to study for finals and stuff," Kenny shrugged.

"Ah. Well, have fun, boys."

"As much as we can in a library," he rolled his eyes as they walked through the door and out onto the sidewalk.

"A library can be fun," Kyle retorted.

"There a Playboy section?"

"Um, no."

"Well then I don't see the fun in it," he stuck his tongue out playfully.

"Oh, I see. It's not enough that you have me, but you need a magazine section full of naked girls. That makes me feel just wonderful."

Kenny burst out laughing. "Dude, I wouldn't touch those chicks with a twenty foot pole. You, however, I can't get enough of being close to," he pecked his cheek gently.

"You two remind me way too much of me and Betty...minding the gender difference, of course," Charlie smiled gently.

Kenny let out a short laugh. "She was a short, nerdy Jew and you were a filthy hood rat?"

Charlie chuckled, "nah, but you act like there's no one else around you and your affections are all that matter to each other. I envy that. Me and Betty were like that up until the day I left for the war....," he sighed.

"Ya really miss her, huh?" Kyle asked softly.

"Oh, more than you can imagine. To think that someone that you love is gone from your life forever...I hope you boys don't have to live through that for a long, long time."

Kenny draped his arm around Kyle's shoulders and pulled him close. "We already have," he said quietly. Kyle leaned his head on his shoulder and sighed.

"Well, I'm sorry boys...was it someone you were close to?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Kenny muttered.

"Did they make it out alright...or...I'm sorry. I'm delving into your life a bit too much."

"No, it's fine," Kyle interjected. "They made it out okay."

"They could be better, but I think they're hanging on pretty well considering the circumstances," Kenny added.

"Well, you can't expect them to just jump right back into it, ya know?"

"Right. But if they'd just talk to someone, I'm sure they'd feel better even sooner."

"You know that they don't like talking to strangers about their problems," Kyle argued.

"Well, if they'd let us, we could find someone that they knew who could talk to them."

"Like who, Kenny?"

"I dunno. I'm sure my psychology teacher knows someone. But you're right, they're just too damn stubborn to get the help."

Kyle shrugged, "It's the way they've always been. Can't expect anything more from 'em."

"Guess so," Kenny pulled him in closer and smirked.

"Sounds like you need to push this kid harder to get some help," Charlie said thoughtfully.

Kenny snickered lightly. "We're certainly gonna try, aren't we, Ky?"

"Ken, back off," he growled. Kenny pecked him on the lips and smiled. They continued walking for a good bit, mindlessly chatting about nothing and throwing half-melted snow at each other.

"Hey! Kyle! Ken!" They shot their heads up and looked to their side, seeing Stan, Cartman, and Butters walking up to them from the school courtyard.

"Hey Stan," Kyle smiled. "Butters, Cartman," he nodded.

"How goes life as freed prisoners from this damn place?" Stan asked.

"Lousy. Kyle's making me do more homework than I ever had to do at school," Kenny whined.

"Well excuse me for wanting you to have a decent high school education. You don't wanna go to college, so you need something to show for some work, Dude."

Stan smirked, "that's what you get for living with him, Ken. When I stayed at his place for that week my parents were out of town, we spent three hours a night studying."

"Jesus, Jewrat doesn't even know how to take a break from school right," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Shut up, Fatass. So why are you guys out here?"

"We're taking study hall out here because the cafeteria smells like fish and it's making us gag," Stan shrugged.

"How lovely," Kenny chuckled.

"W-well how's living together goin' for ya?" Butters asked.

"Pretty decently, actually. Kenny actually cooked this morning and the apartment still stands," Kyle jerked his thumb towards the blonde.

"Wow, didn't think that Poor-Boy would be the one playing housewife," Cartman snickered.

"Hey, shut up," Kenny frowned. "He needed food in those scrawny abs," he poked Kyle's stomach.

"Goddammit, I am not scrawny!"

"Oh come on, Kahl," Cartman replied. "Even Butters has more meat on his bones than you do."

"That's because Butters eats more sugar than I do, Cartman."

"And look at the difference," he gestured between the two.

"Well, it's not my fault I'm diabetic, you retard," he scowled.

"Stan! Leopold! Eric! Who are you talking to?!" A voice shouted out towards them. They glanced back and saw Principal Howard coming towards them in long strides with a scowl. As he saw Kyle and Kenny, however, his expression softened.

"Oh! Well, hello Kyle. Kenny."

"Hey Principal Howard," Kyle responded respectfully.

"'Sup Princy?" Kenny nodded. Howard raised his eyebrow at his greeting and Kyle elbowed him in the side.

"Shouldn't you two be studying?"

"We are. We're off to the library," Kyle replied. "We just saw these guys and wanted to talk since we aren't in class anymore."

"Yeah. And one of them left me alone in chemistry to suffer through the equations all by my lonesome," Stan rolled his eyes.

Kyle chuckled softly, "Sorry, Dude. You know where I live, it's not like you're completely alone. You know you can come get help whenever."

"Thata boy, Kyle," Howard smiled. "You keep up the good work. Kenny," he turned to the blonde. "Please, for the love of God, please pick up some of Kyle's study habits. Your last geometry test was atrocious."

Kenny chuckled nervously. "Sorry, Prince, dude. Geometry's just complicated."

Howard snorted a bit and leaned in closer to them. "Between you and me, I hated it like there was no tomorrow. I never saw the point. Still don't." He straightened back up and smiled. "Well, you boys behave yourselves. Kyle, don't forget that you're in line for something big, so don't fall behind. I let you have this privilage because of your accomplishments, don't let me down."

"Wouldn't dream of it," he smiled shyly. Howard ruffled the Jew's hair a bit before bidding them farewell and walking back towards the building. Kyle stared after him with annoyance across his face and tried to smooth out his curls.

"Little teacher's pet," Cartman laughed.

"Yea, well because of that, I get to stay home all day while you have to suffer here."

"Well aren't you just oh-so special?" he rolled his eyes.

"Yes. Yes he is," Kenny kissed Kyle's cheek gently.

"Aww," Butters cooed.

"Butters! Don't encourage them!" Cartman commanded.

Kenny scoffed. "Like I need encouragement to kiss my boyfriend." They shot their heads towards the school as the bell rang.

Stan sighed. "Oh goody. Off to geometry I go," he turned back to Kyle and smiled. "Still okay if me and Cartman hit your place after school?"

Kyle smiled back. "Of course, Dude. We'll catch ya later," he waved as they turned to start walking away.

"Bye guys. See ya later!" Stan waved back.

"Later, nerds," Cartman shouted.

"Same to you, Fatty," Kenny called back, starting to walk away with Kyle.

Charlie chuckled softly. "Close friends of yours, I'm supposing?"

"Two out of three of them anyway," Kyle rolled his eyes. Charlie looked at him confusedly and Kenny snickered.

"Cartman and Kyle have been 'enemies' since we were toddlers. They won't admit that they're friends even though it's so obvious that they are."

"I am NOT friends with him," Kyle said firmly. "He is merely the means by which I take out the majority of my inner rage."

Kenny laughed. "Yeah. Right. That's why you two defend each other when the other is threatened, right?"

"Hey, we are the only ones meant to cause the other pain. That is a well known fact and has been for years."

"Uh huh. You just keep telling yourself that. Just remember what they say: denial's a bitch."

"Oh, who asked you, McCormick?"

Kenny laughed and grabbed Kyle's hand once again, swinging their arms back and forth as they walked. "You know you love me and my opinions."

"Your opinions I can live without," he chuckled.

"Love you, too," he lifted his hand and pecked it gently.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Dude, are you done yet?" Kenny whined.

Kyle looked at him with a deadpan expression. "Does it look like I'm done? This computer takes awhile, it's a hell of a lot of files."

"But I'm so bored!"

"Go look at the videos and pick something for us to watch tonight," he waved him off, staring at his computer.

"Where are they?"

"Back left corner, row 52," he pointed.

Kenny chuckled, "cool. I have my own personal librarian."

"And that means that I can kick you out if you don't shut up and do what I tell you," he smirked.

Kenny snorted, "I'd like to see you try."

"Don't tempt me." Kenny chuckled and walked off towards the back of the building. He scanned the videos, though nothing seemed to be able to catch his eye and he sighed.

"Can I help you find something, Sir?" A voice called out. He turned and caught eyes with a short, old woman with her hair secured back tightly.

"You must be Gloria," he smiled.

She returned his expression. "I am. And you must be Kenny."

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

She walked up and laughed softly, "you're with Kyle. He always mentioned you when we'd talk."

Kenny's smile grew, "really?"

"She nodded, "yup. We used to talk for hours when he'd come in."

"I didn't even know he came here that often," he commented.

"Oh, at least twice a week. He hated studying at home so he'd come here."

"That sounds like Ky," he grinned.

She nodded, "I've been trying for two years to get that boy to apply for a job, but he never took any interest."

He shrugged and grabbed a DVD off the shelf, examining it's cover. "He spends too much time studying. He probably just doesn't think that he has the time to juggle it all."

"He knows that he can study here. It's not like this place is jumping," she gestured around the empty rows.

"I dunno. He's a complicated kid."

"That he is," she agreed. She looked at the DVD in his hand. "Gore fan, I see."

"Very much so," he smirked.

"Well, then I'd suggest these three," she grabbed them off the shelf and handed them off. Kenny looked at them and smiled gratefully.

"If you think they're good, I'll trust you." He felt his cell phone vibrate and whipped it out of his pocket.

'_Found her.'_

"Well, Kyle calls," he waved at Gloria and walked away back towards Kyle.

"Your legs broken, Love?" he asked as he reached him.

"No, but if I went over there, Gloria wouldn't stop telling me to apply."

"Maybe you should," he pulled up a chair and plopped down.

"With these cases? You really think that I have time to pull off a job?"

He shrugged, "You're a great multi-tasker. Besides, it'd give you an excuse to constantly access records without suspicion."

"Huh. That's...that's a good point, actually."

"I've had a few in my lifetime," Ken smirked.

Kyle stood from the table, "I'll be right back," he gestured towards the computer. "Here's her records. I think that this'll make it a hell of a lot easier to find her," he grabbed Kenny's movies and walked back over towards Gloria.

Kenny looked at Charlie, who was studying the screen of Kyle's laptop intently.

"So, you got any ideas where she is?" he asked, trying not to draw attention to himself.

"I...I'm not sure," Charlie said quietly. He turned and looked at the screen with him.

"Looks like she's still alive," Kenny commented quietly.

"I can't believe it," he murmured, shaking his head softly.

"Aren't you happy?"

"Well, of course," Charlie replied. "It's just a bit of a shock."

"Looks like she's living at the retirement home on Fir Street."

"My god. I have to go get her out!"

"What? Why?"

"She always said that she'd rather die before ending up like that!"

"Most people do," he shrugged. "They change their minds later on, though."

"Betty wouldn't."

"It's been like, 56 years, Dude. She's not gonna be exactly as you remember her."

"You didn't know her," he growled.

"Alright, alright," he held his hands up defensively. "We'll see, okay?"

Kyle walked back up with a bundle in his hands. "She practically threw the stupid vest at me," he grinned sheepishly.

"When do ya start?"

"Sunday. I have to fill out some forms, but then I'm a full-blown employee...yippie."

"Well, I'm happy for you."

Kyle scoffed, "I'm not. I have to go buy 'suitable attire', he rolled his eyes. "Anyways, Betty's in the Arbortree Assisted Living Facility. We need a story to get in there and talk to her."

"Grandkids?" Kenny suggested.

"Good luck, me and Betty never had kids," Charlie chuckled.

"Okay, plan B..." Kyle wrinkled his nose thoughtfully. "We have a school report on people involved in the collapse of the Communistic empire. We needed details from the wives of soldiers who fought for Democracy."

"Sounds convincing to me," Kenny grinned. Kyle shut his laptop and grinned back.

"Yeah, all we need to do is have you see her, right?" he asked Charlie.

"That'd make me the happiest damn man alive...dead....whatever," Charlie chuckled.

"Alrighty then," Kyle glanced at his watch. "It's about two...school ends at four. We should have plenty of time to take care of this and get back home before Stan and Cartman show up."

"Sweet," Kenny replied, standing and giving a small stretch. "How long will it take to get to the Home?"

"Eh, about I dunno...ten minutes? We can catch the bus if you want."

"Nah," Kenny shrugged. "I enjoy walking with you," he smiled.

Kyle smiled back warmly. "Walking it is then," he grasped Kenny's hand and his materials and they started to walk towards the doorway.

"Bye boys! Glad you're finally on the team, Kyle!" Gloria waved to them.

He nodded at her. "Yup, see ya Sunday."

"So long!" they walked out the door back into the bright sunlight. Kenny squinted and looked around.

"This place looks so different in actual sunlight," he muttered.

Kyle chuckled softly. "We need to enjoy it, it'll only last a little bit longer."

"They need to send some of that global warming our way," Kenny smirked. "Although I've reached a point where I personally can no longer stand a parka."

"What? Why? You always wear a parka," Kyle raised his brow.

"Well, the boy I'm holding hands with happens to make my temperature rise to dangerously high levels and the parka's a bit smothering," he smirked.

Kyle rolled his eyes with a smile. "There's no need to flirt, ya know," he chuckled. "You already have me."

"And I intend on keeping it that way." Kyle blushed lightly and looked towards their front. Kenny smiled and followed his direction.

He looked over towards Charlie, who was striding confidently with a large grin set upon his face. He seemed so excited to see her again. That sent Kenny's direction back towards his little redhead, who was bopping his head to imaginary music. He got to thinking about 50 years down the road for them. They had vowed to share eternity with each other...well, they didn't really vow, per se...but they had promised the Devil that they would abide by the rules of their trade. But would things be able to last that long?

They loved each other, they knew it. But would eternity just be too much? Would they be able to stay together for so long without tensions driving them to the brink of insanity? Kenny bit his lip softly.

"Something the matter?" Kyle asked.

"Not really," he smiled softly. "I'm just thinking."

"You seem to be doing that a lot lately. Something's obviously bugging you, I can tell. Now what's going on?" Kyle demanded.

He let out a sigh and looked back towards their front. "Do you...I dunno. Do you think that we'll actually be able to pull this off for eternity?"

Kyle was silent for a moment, still staring at his blonde lover. "You...you're regretting this, aren't you?"

Kenny shot his head back around to gaze into his jade eyes. "Not by a long shot. There's no way in hell I'd regret getting you back. I'm just saying, will we be able to tough it out? I mean...with everything that's happened lately...," he trailed off, trying to phrase his next words carefully.

"You're afraid that things can go just as bad now and throughout all time for us, right?"

"Y-yea. I mean...this job is getting us close to a lot of sick bastards...," he mind flashed back to Barney and Mitch and he could feel a heavy feeling of rage starting to rise in his gullet.

Kyle must of found himself thinking of the same people too, as he grasped Kenny's hand tighter and shook slightly. "Look," he breathed. "We've said it before, it just comes with the job. We...we can't expect everything to be perfect. This isn't exactly a fairy-tale scenario."

"Only a few elements," Kenny smiled and kissed his curls. Kyle blushed again and smiled back.

"Only time can tell what'll happen, Ken. I think that we'll be able to pull it off if we try."

"Well aren't we the little optimist all of a sudden?" Kenny smirked.

"Not really. My head keeps saying, 'stop, this isn't really going to work like you want it to'...," he paused.

"But your heart wants it to," Kenny's expression softened.

"Corny as hell, I know," he chuckled.

"Well, then we're in the same boat," Kenny took his hand from Kyle's grasp and wrapped it around his short frame. "I'm not nearly as farsighted as you, but I can see monstrous problems arising."

"There's always a bit of half-full, half-empty thoughts," Kyle said thoughtfully. "I mean, we can't prevent the courses of our lives, at least not anymore. They're gonna keep going. The only thing we really can do is stick together and try to weather out whatever insane schemes we find ourselves in the middle of."

"Just like when we were kids," Kenny laughed.

"Oh God, I try to not think about back then," he chuckled along with him. "I don't know what the fuck was going on."

"Didn't matter. We had each other," Kenny pulled him closer.

"Until you really died," Kyle said sadly. "Then things just kinda...fell."

"Hey, even if I'm not around, you know that Stan and Cartman are always right there."

"Did you seriously just say Cartman is an optional lifeline?"

Kenny smirked, "He has grown up, contrary to what you keep telling yourself."

Kyle rolled his eyes, "Yes, because throwing soup all over me at lunch is so mature of him."

"You threw salad at him the other day," Kenny quirked his brow.

"Well at least that didn't turn his face red for a week!"

"Ky, your face is always red. You and that cute little blush," he pinched his cheek lightly.

"Shut up, Kenny. Besides, if all goes well, I won't need the assistance of that fatass or Stan."

Kenny grinned. "You really plan on keeping me around that long?"

"Ken, even before all this, I figured I'd be stuck with you three for the rest of my life, boyfriend or not," he smiled. "It's not an entirely new concept to me."

"Oh boys?" Charlie called out behind them.

"What?" Kenny called back, rather annoyed at his interruption.

"I think you passed the Home," he pointed towards the sign beside him.

"Um...oops," Kyle blushed. Kenny rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as they turned to walk back towards the man.

"Well...sorry," Kenny said. "We happened to be in the middle of something."

"Undressing each other with your eyes isn't an excuse for missing a large building, Kids."

"W-we were not doing that!" Kyle spluttered, his face starting to glow ruby.

"Yeah," Kenny spouted, feigning indignity, "If I wanted Kyle's clothes off, he'd just let me take them off!"

"Dude!" Kyle exclaimed.

"Kidding, Love. Only kidding."

"Sure you were," he rolled his eyes, leading the way towards the door. Before they opened the entrance, Kenny shivered slightly.

"Bleck, it smells like old people," he commented, his tongue stuck out in disgust and opening the door for the other two.

"Kenny, behave," Kyle lectured, stepping through the archway, Kenny and Charlie close behind him. He led them up towards the secretary seated at a wrap-around desk in the middle of the lobby.

"Hello," Kyle said to her with a gentle smile upon his features. Kenny smirked. Kyle's acting at his best was always a treat.

"Can I help you, boys?" she asked, looking up at them past her large silver-rimmed glasses.

"Actually, yes. We're here to talk to someone for a project we need to do for school. We need a reliable resource to interview for a research paper," he gestured between himself and Kenny.

The woman grabbed a blue visitor sheet from her side and lifted her pen, starting to scribble down notes. "Alrighty. Are you here for someone in particular or is this just a general study type of thing?"

"We were wondering if we could perhaps talk to Betty Summers?"

The woman's pen halted in mid-scribble and she slowly lifted her eyes to meet Kyle's. "Betty? Why would you want to talk to Betty?"

"Her husband was in the Korean War, we were hoping for some insight," Kenny explained.

She set down her pen and slowly clasped her hands together. "Just how did you boys learn about Betty?"

"We looked up the soldiers of South Park. Her husband's name came up," he shrugged.

"But how did you learn about Betty?" she persisted.

Kyle jerked his thumb back towards Kenny. "Meet her grandson." Kenny blinked at him a few times before nodding his head at the secretary in agreement.

"Betty never had children...," she cocked her brow.

"With Charlie," Kyle finished. He leaned closer towards her and lowered his voice, "think about it. Her husband ran off to the war and never came home. There's no way she would have just stayed completely faithful for so long. Does the idea of an unknown lover seem even the least bit plausible to you?"

Kenny glanced over at Charlie, who looked like he was reeling on attacking Kyle. He caught eyes with the man and narrowed his blue orbs. Charlie's face stopped shaking, but his scowl remained prominent.

She studied Kyle's serious face for a moment, taking slow blinks. She shifted her gaze over towards Kenny and cocked her head. "Well, he does sort of look like her in the old pictures of hers," she said thoughtfully.

"Y-yea. I didn't know that she was my grandma until we searched around a bit. My dad, her son, raised me. He passed away a good while ago and I didn't learn much about his side of the family. So after we figured out that we were related, we thought it'd be easier to secure an interview."

"Well, I might as well tell you, don't expect much of a reaction out of Betty," she replied.

"Why?"

"You'll see," she grabbed her paper and continued to jot down notes. "Alright. First and last names please."

"Kyle Marsh and Kenny Summers," Kenny replied. Kyle looked at him with a quirked brow.

"Alright, here you are," she handed off their paper. "Room thirty-four. It's on your left," she gestured towards a long hallway to their side. They nodded their thanks and began walking down.

"So I'm related to Stan now?" Kyle asked as they walked.

Kenny smirked. "Why should I be the only one with an alias?"

"I don't think that my identity really plays a role in this, Ken."

"Sure it does. Although, I'm not gonna lie, I much prefer the name Kyle McCormick. Nice ring to it, dontcha think?"

"Why can't you be Kenny Broflovski?"

Kenny shrugged, "Because I'm not Jewish?"

"Would you convert for me?" he asked with a smirk.

"Babe, I'd do anything for you. And to you for that matter."

"Boys, focus," Charlie rolled his eyes. "Now, Kyle, what the hell were you thinking, tarnishing Betty's reputation like that?"

"I'm sorry, Charlie, but we needed a story. I just grabbed one out of the air and went with it."

"You could have thought of one less degrading towards my wife," he scowled.

"It was the first thing that came to mind," he shrugged. "Ken has the blonde/blue thing goin', so I just automatically went to that."

"Whatever," he gruffed, turning away from them.

"Charlie, I'm sorry. I know she probably was completely faithful to you, but we needed something to get past her questionnaire," Kyle pleaded his case.

"It's fine. At least I get to see her," he turned back and looked at Kyle with a gentle smile.

They approached the door and Kenny rapped on it gently. "Hello?" he called in. They listened, but heard no response.

"Ms. Summers?" Kyle called a bit louder. Still nothing. They shrugged at each other and pushed open the door. They came across a small, pale yellow room with sunflowers decorating in abundance. An elderly woman sat in a white rocking chair, staring out the window at the glowing sunlight.

"Ms. Summers?" Kenny asked softly, closing the door behind him.

"It's starting to be summer you know," her voice weakly croaked out.

Charlie's eyes watered with tears. "Oh gods, Betty...even now you're still beautiful," he whispered.

"Yes...yes it is almost summer," Kyle responded to her.

"He's coming back, you know."

The boys walked over and kneeled in front of her chair. "Who's coming back?" Kenny asked.

"My husband," she rocked back and forth, still staring out the window.

Kenny and Kyle exchanged confused glances before looking up at her once more. "Your husband?" Kyle asked.

"Yes. He left. But he promised he'd be back," she said, unblinking. "He's fighting for me. That's what he said." The boys looked over at Charlie, who was staring at his wife with wide eyes.

"She...she doesn't know...?" he shook his head softly.

"Who's your husband, Ms. Summers?" Kenny asked.

"My Charlie...my loving Charlie," her voice cracked slightly as she rocked. Kenny looked in her hand, noticing a clasped rag in her wrinkled hands. "_My love reveals objects...silken butterflies concealed in his fingers,_" she whispered.

"What the hell?" Charlie muttered.

"_His words, splash me with stars, night shines like lightening. Under the fingers of my love,"_ Kyle continued.

Kenny and Charlie blinked at each other as Betty slowly tore her head away from the window and looked at Kyle with shimmering eyes. _"My love invents worlds where Jeweled glittering serpents live."_

"_Worlds where music is the world, worlds where houses with open eyes contemplate the dawn."_

"_My love is a mad sunflower that forgets...," _a single tear rolled down her withered cheek.

"_Fragments of sun in the silence...,"_ Kyle finished, a small smile directed towards her. She reached down slowly and grasped his hand, trembling.

"He's...he's coming back, you know. He promised," she whispered, more tears pouring down her cheeks.

"He is. He loves you and he's coming home," he responded softly. She broke into a small smile and stroked the rag in her hand, and Kenny noticed a small sunflower in the corner, embroidered in a pale, worn yellow string.

Charlie began to glow a soft pink and Kenny and Kyle let out sighs of relief. He walked over and kissed her cheek gently. "Until we meet again," he whispered. He turned to the boys and saluted. They nodded at him as he faded off.

Kenny turned his attention back to the woman holding Kyle's hand with care. Fifty six years had gone by for this woman. Fifty six long, arduous years, waiting. Hoping. Praying. What could it be like to wait for so long? Who could stand so long of a time without knowing? Without believing in reality? Was it a problem with psyche? Or was it something else? He shifted his gaze towards the young redhead, who was stroking the woman's hand with comfort and watching her with soft, understanding eyes, and he smiled. Fifty years. One hundred years. Eternity. All in the end were merely numbers. Where is the point in counting? Why should it matter? So long as he had whom he wanted, whom he needed by his side, the numbers added up to nothing. So long as they were together, it was merely a matter of moments, not years, on the face of the eternal spectrum.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Writing this chapter made me feel a whole lot better. =)_

_Not much really happened, haha. We learned Kenny can't cook, Kyle's skilled in the art, he now has a job (which is important eventually, just not now, lol), he's a Jewish nymph, and I threw in a poem I love!_

_It's called 'My Love Reveals Objects' by Isabel Fraire. There's a lot of symbolism to the poem and Betty's belief of Charlie coming home. And a few more things, but they'll be revealed later on, Loves. Be patient._

_Btw, I've gotta ask an opinion: It has come to my attention that this story MUST end at some point in time. I have no idea how, or when. But I need to ask all of you: when does a story get too long? I'm already holding one of the top five spots for longest (rated M at least) South Park stories, so I've gotta know, when does it stop being good and just become too long?_

_Are any of you wanting this story to end? Do you want me to just continue throwing in fillers just for fun content while simultaneously moving the plot along? Or do you want me to hit the nitty-gritty and finish it up?_

_Opinions are lovely and highly needed, so thanks in advanced._

_And as always, thanks for R&R-ing. Love you all =)_


	24. Breakdown

_A/N: Well, so far, I've had most people tell me not to end it and to keep on going._

_So welcome to another filler!!!...this chapter was coming regardless of your opinions XD_

_Enjoy =)_

________________________________________________________________________

"_Go to sleeeeep, go to sleeeeeep, go to sleep my dear Kylie...."_

"Kenny, stop it," Kyle said, annoyed at the blonde's continuous attempts to get him to lie down.

"Dude, come on," Kenny pled, losing his sing-song voice. "You need to rest!"

"Stan and Cartman are on their way and I have food in the oven, Ken. I'm not about to go lie down."

"You said you'd catch back up as soon as we found Betty," he crossed his arms and leaned back further into the couch.

"Well I didn't mean I'd just drop to the floor and catch some Z's right there. God, Ken, stop worrying," he casually flipped through a book in his pale hand.

"You would be freaking out if were reversed and you know it."

He sighed exasperatedly and shot his eyes up to meet those of his boyfriend's. "Look," he started firmly, "I'll sleep tonight, okay? If I sleep now, my schedule will be out of whack and I'll never catch back up," he placed his book on the table and stood, running his fingers through his lush curls. "I've gotta check on the food," he stated, walking back towards the kitchen.

Kenny leaned his head back and sighed. He looked back up to stare at the notebook placed in front of him on the coffee table. He gingerly sat up and picked it up, opening it to the first page. Five names. Five souls that he'd condemned to Hell. He knew that this was how it was supposed to be. He knew that it was something he had to do, but he couldn't help but feel a heavy setting of guilt in his chest. He ran his finger smoothly over each name. Such a variety of people. Little children, old veterans, kids his age, it was all just so much to take in. The plights of the world were being laid out in front of him, and he was expected to take the sorrow in strides, placing his own feelings aside and stepping forth, despite any personal danger that may arise.

The doorbell rang and he sat himself up straight, sliding the notebook under the couch and walking up towards it. The faces of Stan and Cartman became visible and he smiled gently. "Hey, Dudes," he greeted.

"Hey," Stan replied as they stepped inside. "Where's Ky?"

"I'm in the kitchen!" Kyle called out.

Cartman snorted quietly, "right where your pansy Jew-ass belongs!"

Kyle's face appeared in the inlet, a small scowl darkening his features. "Fuck off, Fatass or you're not getting any damn food."

"Oh no, what will I do without your shitty kosher to Jew up my stomach?"

"Shut the fuck up, Cartman," Stan growled. He turned to Kyle and flashed him a smile, "need any help, Dude?"

Kyle shrugged, "Nah, I'm just about to get it out of the oven. You guys just chat or whatever." Stan nodded and walked towards the love seat to sit down. Kenny and Cartman plopped down on the couch and chair and they all three stared at each other.

"So," Stan started.

"So?" Kenny continued.

"How are things in your little Jewhole here?"

Kenny rolled his eyes. Tactful as always, Eric Cartman. "Pretty great. It's all working out really well, despite how much you keep saying it won't go as planned at all."

"It's only been a few weeks. Give it time, Poor-boy."

"Oh, because you're such an expert on relationships, right?" Kenny quirked his brow.

Cartman smiled smugly. "Remember that I am in fact in a relationship, Kenneh. Me and Red have fought before."

"Why Red?" Stan asked, placing his chin in his hand and resting his elbow on the arm of the love seat. "I mean, isn't she technically a daywalker in your eyes?"

Cartman chuckled, "yes, but Kahl's the only daywalker that truly repulses me."

Kenny smirked. "Alright, but why her? I mean, it seems like such a random person for you to form a relationship with."

"She wanted to get revenge on Wendy because she was being a total bitch per usual," he shrugged. "We got to talking about our mutual disgust for her and everything just sort of happened from there."

"Watch it, Dude," Stan growled. "Remember that I'm in the room." Kenny snickered lightly.

"Well Kenneh's right here and I don't hear him defending Kahl like that."

"Kyle doesn't need me to defend every insult you throw at him. You severely piss him off, then yea, I may be inclined to rip your face off, but if I hit you for every Jew joke you make, my arm's gonna get tired real fast," Kenny laughed softly.

"Why are you ogling Jewey all of a sudden?" Cartman asked, his eyebrow raised.

"Whaddya mean?"

"He means why are you all of a sudden in a relationship? We always expected some floozy to be your first girlfriend or whatever...no offense," Stan added hastily. "But you and Kyle...I mean, why Kyle?!"

"Because he's Kyle," he shrugged simply.

"That's not an answer," Cartman said.

"He's right. I mean...what drew you to him in the first place?"

Kenny couldn't hold back his laughter. "Next then you know we're gonna be lighting candles and giving each other makeovers," he guffawed.

"No, we're just curious," Stan started. "I mean, you two are like, polar opposites. Why would you find him attractive if you have nothing in common?"

Kenny shrugged again, "I can't explain it. But admit it, Dude, if you were gay, you'd totally be all over his Hebrew ass, too."

"Um, no," Stan laughed nervously.

"Don't deny it, Stan. In fact I'm fucking glad you're not gay because if you were, there's no way in hell I'd stand a chance with him," he leaned back into the couch and stared at him.

Stan started to tinge slightly. "Dude, he's my best friend, okay?"

"You'd just make the jump to buttbuddy," Cartman snickered.

"Shut up, Cartman," he rolled his eyes and settled them back onto Kenny. "Answer our question, though. Why Ky?"

Kenny stared at him for a moment and sighed. "He makes me feel like me, okay? That's something I've never gotten before. He puts me through this huge range of emotion that I didn't even know I had," he stared up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "I dunno. When we lost him...my entire world just fell apart. I didn't know he meant so damn much to me until it smacked me in the face. And when..._**it **_happened," he clenched his teeth as he heard Kyle's screams echoing through his mind once more, "I saw that he cares for me above just a friend, and I must feel the same because I would have given anything to trade spots with him...." He could feel Stan and Cartman staring at him in awe and he started to grow a bit uncomfortable, realizing he'd just spilled out his innermost thoughts. He looked back down and grinned at Stan. "That and he's one hell of a lay," he added with a smirk.

"Aw, Dude!" Stan turned away in disgust. Kenny and Cartman both chuckled lightly.

"What's so funny?" Kyle asked, a pizza tray in hand. He set it down on the table and threw plates at the other three, sitting down next to Kenny on the couch.

Kenny wrapped his arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. "We're just talking about you, Beautiful," he kissed his forehead gently. Kyle started to glow red and Kenny smirked at him.

"Alright, no making out when there's food present," Cartman interjected.

"There's always food around if you're here, Tubs," Kyle said as they all reached for a slice. Kenny took a bite and his eyes widened.

"Holy fucking shit this is amazing," he chewed. "What the hell did you put in this?"

"Usual stuff," Kyle shrugged. Cartman and Stan took a bite and they looked at him.

"No, seriouslah," Cartman said. "What'd you put in it?"

"Sauce and cheese and pepperoni stuff and vegetables...why?"

"It tastes so different from normal pizza...," Stan smirked lightly. "Decided to half and half the Kosher stuff, did ya?"

Kyle grinned sheepishly. "Yeah. I couldn't find everything I needed in the kosher section, so I just improvised."

"Soon we'll have you eating only real people food," Cartman commented.

"You don't seem to hate it very much," Kyle quirked his brow.

He shrugged back. "The real food overpowers the Jewfood."

"Uh huh, sure," Kyle rolled his eyes, settling them on Stan, and his grin faded slightly. "Stan?"

Stan looked up from his food, "hm?"

"Dude, what's wrong?"

Kenny and Cartman glanced at him as well. Kenny looked up and down his face, not finding any sign of him being upset. "Nothing, why?" Stan asked.

Kyle's face fell farther, "you're lying. You're upset about something. What's up?"

"I'm...I'm not upset," Stan stammered.

Kenny looked between the two, wondering just what they were saying to each other. "Stan," Kyle breathed. "stop lying, Dude."

"I-I'm not lying!" He protested.

"Yes, you are," Kyle insisted.

"Kyle, maybe he's not upset," Kenny said gently.

Kyle shot his head around and quirked his brow at the blonde. "You can't tell that he's upset about something?"

Stan laughed nervously, "why do you think there's something wrong with me? I'm fine."

Kyle turned back around and stared at him. "For one, you're antsy about answering me. For another, you've stuttered your way through your last few sentences. You don't do that unless your mad or sad or whatever. And lastly, your eyes are darker. They always do that when you're upset. Now. What the fuck is wrong?"

Stan and the others blinked at him slowly. "Am...am I really that easy to read?" Stan asked.

"Maybe only to me. Now freaking answer me!"

Stan set his food down and leaned back into the cushions, letting out a large sigh. "Dude, with the past few weeks of Hell you've went through, my problems are fucking nothing."

Kyle's eyes brightened slightly. "I knew there was something up," he nodded. "And who cares about my stupid problems right now? As of now, I'm fine. So, what's wrong?"

Stan looked at him carefully and bit his lip. "It's not a big deal."

Kyle sighed irritably and set his food down as well. Kenny and Cartman looked at each other in confusion. Apparently some great mental war was playing out and they had no idea what was going on.

"Please, Stan," Kyle urged. "Just tell us what's wrong. Is it Wendy again?"

"No."

"Then tell us. Come on, Dude."

Stan rubbed his temple and looked back into Kyle's eyes. How he could stare at those emerald orbs and not be reduced to a pile of jelly was beyond Kenny. "I...I failed that test," he muttered.

Kyle looked at him pityingly. "Dude, you'll catch it on the rebound. We'll study more and we'll get you back to passing. You shouldn't be so distraught over a test. You can get yourself back on track."

"I don't care about the damn test," he mumbled.

"Then why are you-," Kyle was silenced by Stan putting his hand up and sighed deeply once more.

"I got kicked off the team," he said softly, not making eye contact with Kyle anymore. Kyle, Kenny, and Cartman all exchange quick glances before looking back towards Stan.

"Why?" Cartman asked.

"Because you can't have a failing grade and still be on a sports team," Kyle answered softly. "Dude, we'll get you back up there and they'll let you back on the team, I promise," he flashed one of his most comforting smiles to Stan. Stan looked up at him and smiled back meekly.

"Um, Ky?" Kenny started softly. "You think you have time for that now?" Kyle looked at him and raised his brow and Kenny chuckled. "Kyle, where are you going on Sunday?" Kyle's eyes widened with realization.

"Oops, I totally forgot," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Where the hell are you going?" Stan asked.

"I kinda got a job," he shrugged.

Cartman's eyes widened with surprise. "Where? Knowing you it's just a job at the library," he laughed, Stan joining him. Kenny and Kyle just sat there, waiting for their laughter to subside as Stan quieted down.

"You...you really got a job at the library, didn't you?"

Kyle looked at him and smirked. "Wouldn't you take a job that they were practically throwing at you?"

"Jesus Christ, you're such a Jewnerd!" Cartman chortled.

Kenny frowned at him, "shut up, Cartman. At least he actually has a job unlike you, you lazy fatass."

"I don't need a job," he shrugged.

"Right. You've never had to work for anything in your damn life," Kyle rolled his eyes and grabbed his food to resume eating.

"You're just jealous," he smirked.

"Not really. At least I don't have to lug around four-hundred pounds of excess flab everyday," Kyle shrugged.

"Fuck off, Kahl," Cartman flipped him off. Stan and Kenny rolled their eyes and smiled.

"So, why'd you guys come over anyways?" Kenny asked, taking a long sip of his soda.

"Is it such a crime to come see you guys?" Stan asked innocently.

"Well, not for you. But Cartman willingly came, so something must be up," Kyle replied.

Stan and Cartman looked at each other, then directed their attention to the young redhead. Cartman set his empty plate down and leaned back in the chair. "We might have some reasons for being here."

"Thought so," Kyle smirked, picking some peppers off of his slice and popping them into his mouth.

Stan followed Cartman's example, setting down his plate and staring at Kyle. "Ky...," he started. "We need to know if you're gonna be okay."

Kyle sighed in aggravation and slammed his food down onto the table. "Yes, yes, yes, for the millionth fucking time YES!" he shouted. "Goddammit you three are worse than my mother was!"

"Well, after all that happened to you...," Stan started. Kyle held up his hand and stopped him.

"Look," he said firmly, glancing around towards all of them. "I'm going to say this one more time. And only once. I. Am. Fine. Yes, I've had a lot of shit happen to me. Yes, I've gotten hurt. And yes, I'm still mildly depressed. But listen to me: I will be okay, alright? I appreciate that you all care so much, I do. But you're taking things way too far. I can't have a normal conversation with any of you before someone breaks in and asks about my well-being. To be quite blunt, it's pissing me off. I just want things to finally fall back to normal. Why do you all have such a problem with that?!"

Stan, Kenny, and Cartman all exchanged glances. Kenny sighed and placed his hand on Kyle's knee. "We don't have a problem with things going back to normal. In a way, we want nothing more than for that to happen, minus a few exceptions of course," he squeezed his knee and winked. "But we've also figured out that things aren't going to just fall back into place. It doesn't work like that."

"If we try, things will just resume," Kyle shrugged.

"Kahl, you're being retarded. Tell me, will you ever look at sex the same way again?" Cartman asked bitterly.

"Cartman...," Stan warned gently.

"No, I'm dead serious," he retained his focus on the Jew. "Kyle, answer the question."

"Why wouldn't I?" Kyle asked, narrowing his eyes. "What happened to me is a little different than say me and Kenny together, Fatass."

Cartman leaned forward and stared deeper at him. "But will it ever feel the same? Will you ever be able to have sex without memories of forced intrusion flashing through your mind? Hell, can you even sleep at night without it haunting you? It's rather obvious you haven't slept in awhile, why is that?" Kenny shifted his gaze towards his love, who was staring at Cartman with a mixed expression of fury and desperation.

Stan got up off the love seat and went to sit down on the other side of Kyle. "Ky?" he asked softly. Kyle slowly tore his eyes away from the fatass and looked into Stan's gaze. "Is he right?" he questioned. Kyle just blinked slowly at him, not sure of how to respond.

Kenny's grip tightened on his knee and Kyle looked down at his hand, starting to shake slightly. Kenny removed his hand from the boy and wrapped his arms around him, swaying him back and forth softly. Kyle started to sniffle loudly, trying to stifle his sobs. "Shh...," Kenny said, reaching up and petting his hair lovingly. "You're gonna be okay...," he whispered. Kyle turned and threw his face into Kenny's chest and heaved heavy cries. "I won't let anything happen to you, I promise." He looked up at Stan, who looked back with pity and sorrow outlining his blue eyes. He turned to look at Cartman, who looked about the same, but also had anger set upon his features. They all three sat and watched Kyle cry, not sure of how to comfort him. The most Kenny could do was sway him back and forth, continuing to caress his head and back gently, whispering promises of protection to him.

He watched as Stan pulled a piece of notebook paper out of his jeans and glared at it. He recognized what it was. Stan's hands shook angrily as he continued to hold it. He looked from it to his sobbing friend and bit his lip madly. "We're not gonna let anything else happen to you, Kyle," he said softly. Kyle sniffed and looked away from Kenny's chest towards his best friend with red eyes.

"Wh-what is that?" he gestured towards the paper in his hand.

"Nothing of importance," Stan muttered.

"B-bullshit. You know I can read you better th-than anyone else," he sniffed. "What is it?" he broke away from Kenny's grasp as his tears started to clear up. He started to reach for it before Stan pulled it further from his reach.

"It's nothing," Stan insisted.

Kyle frowned and leaned further towards it. "It's making you upset, so it must be something." Stan continued to back it up. Kyle lunged for it, bringing him right down on top of the ebon boy.

"Hey, I thought I was your boyfriend," Kenny raised his brow. "How come you don't pounce on me like that?"

"I don't get the chance before you pounce me," Kyle replied, still trying to reach the paper as Stan held it back beyond his head.

"Kyle, stop!" Stan said.

"No! Give me the fucking paper!" he insisted.

"Stan, just give him the damn thing!" Cartman growled.

"Shut up, Cartman," Kenny and Stan responded together as Kenny tried to pull Kyle off of Stan.

"Obviously this is something about me," Kyle scowled as Kenny successfully pulled him off of the larger boy and into his lap. "Let me see it, Stan."

"I...I don't think so," he replied, sitting himself up.

Kyle lunged forward again and successfully snatched the paper out of Stan's hands and shot off of Kenny around the coffee table to read it. The other three stared as Kyle's face dropped with each passing moment. They looked at each other with worried glances before turning back to the redhead, who was shaking once again. He finished reading and looked at the other three before starting to tremble violently. Kenny stood, ready to catch him when he started crying again, but was taken aback when Kyle started laughing hysterically.

"Wow...," he laughed. "Just wow...could my life get any fucking better?!" The other three stared as he held his stomach, laughing harder. "I mean, geez! How many people fall into this all at once?! I mean, goddamn! Between, the dying and the...you know...and Toby and...goddamn!" He stared at Cartman and chuckled. "This must be like a wetdream for you, huh, Cartman?" Cartman just blinked at him slowly. "I mean, you love seeing me suffer, so this must be like, the best few weeks of your life, huh?!" His laughter started becoming separated, turning into choking sounds. "I...I don't even know what the hell this is about," he waved the paper around a bit in the air. "but I guess _someone_ just doesn't like me!" he gestured up towards the ceiling. He started to shed a few tears, still choking out a few laughs. "How...how many people have found themselves in this much luck all at once? I mean...I must be getting really special attention or something," he shook violently, his grin dropping into a miserable frown. "I...I must have done something to really piss someone off...I...I...," he dropped to his knees and slammed his palms over his face, letting out heavy sobs once more. Kenny ran over to his side and dove down beside him, grasping him in a tight embrace once more.

The note flew out of Kyle's hands as he threw it away from him and grasped Kenny back. "What did I fucking do?!" he screamed into his shirt. Kenny blinked back tears as he held him and recalled his breakdown in the hospital. Kyle shook his head into the blonde's shirt. "I don't know what I did!" he exclaimed.

"You didn't do anything, Kyle," Kenny assured him. "And we're not leaving your side anymore," he continued. "We'll protect you, I promise." Kyle pulled back and looked at Kenny with shining eyes and slowly shook his head.

"How can you protect someone from themselves?" he whispered. Kenny's jaw dropped slightly and he yanked Kyle into an even tighter hold.

Cartman and Stan stood and walked over to where they were on the ground. "Kyle," Stan started lowly. "We want you to tell us who the other freak was."

Kyle looked up at him and narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Wh-what?"

"Who was the other guy who raped you?!" Cartman insisted bluntly.

"He was a friend of Barney's," Kenny replied, still clasping onto Kyle.

"We know that much," Stan replied. "What's his name and what does he look like? If you know where he lives, that'd be helpful, too."

"What...what exactly are you planning to do?" Kyle sniffed, starting to stand himself back up. Kenny helped him and held him close as they got on their feet.

"What do you think Jew?" Cartman spit out.

Kyle's face darkened. "No, I'm not telling you anything."

"Why not?" Stan demanded.

"You two will do something stupid. I know you too well. You'll go after him and either get hurt or call me from prison on first-degree murder charges."

"Goddamn it, Kyle," Stan scolded him. "We're not letting this fucker off scot-free! I don't care if I end up in fucking prison, there's not way in hell I'm letting him get away with what he did to you!"

"Stan," Kyle straightened back up firmly. "I want the guy to suffer, too. Much more than you do, I assure you. But...who are we to take judgement into our own hands?"

"What?!" Stan asked, his mouth gaping in disbelief.

"We're just as human as he is. He'll pay for it when his time finally comes," Kyle looked away from them towards the wall. "I...I'm not about to go and place somebody's life on the line just because they hurt me." He snuck his arm under Kenny's and clasped it around his waist. "You think that you're getting revenge, but all you get in the end is heartache from your actions." Kenny tightened his grip around him and shuddered, hearing the sound of gunfire echoing through his mind.

"Cut the poetic shit, Kahl," Cartman muttered.

Kyle shot his head around and gazed fiercely at his chocolate eyes. "You want poetic?" he asked and took a deep sigh. "_'Something of vengeance I had tasted for the first time; as aromatic wine it seemed, on swallowing, warm and racy: its after-flavor, metallic and corroding, gave me a sensation as if I had been poisoned.'"_

They all three blinked at him. "How do you pull quotes out of the air like that?" Kenny asked.

He shrugged back. "Some people need strong words to live by. I've spent my life, as Token so eloquently phrased it, with my nose shoved into books. Sometimes things just stick out at you. But back to the topic at hand, please," he turned to Stan and Cartman. "Look, both of you...all of you," he looked at Kenny as well, though continued to hold him. "I just want this...I want it to go away. I really do. I know it won't....I know. But...taking revenge...it won't solve anything. I don't think that I could spend the rest of my time with blood on my hands."

Stan sighed heavily and put a hand on Kyle's shoulder. "Ky, please. Something needs to be done. I mean...look at you!" he gestured towards him. "You haven't had a breakdown like that since Cartman got a theme park!" he exclaimed. "You're not healthy, Dude."

Kyle looked from him to Kenny and sighed. "I...I know," he removed his arm from Kenny and hugged himself tightly. "Nothing seems to be going right right now...I...I just don't know what to do anymore. I used to be so good at solving my own problems...," he looked up at Stan and softly shook his head. "What the hell happened to me?"

"The world came crashing down on your shoulders, that's what happened to you," he replied softly. He placed both of his hands on the shorter boy's shoulders and smiled gently. "Look. I know that you don't think it'll help...but I think that you should talk to someone. Just once. Just go see what it's like...this isn't a question on religion forced on by your mother. This is something to save you as a whole...would you be willing to try that for us?"

Kyle looked at all three of the others and let out a wavering sigh before staring at Stan once more. "And what of the man you so desperately want to kill?" he asked lowly.

Stan and Cartman looked at each other and shrugged. "We won't go after him since we don't know anything about him...," Stan started.

"But we're not guaranteeing anything if we do get information," Cartman inputted.

"So...will you, Kyle?" Kenny asked, wrapping his arms around him once more. Kyle looked up at him then towards the floor.

"Fine," he muttered. He sighed and broke from Kenny's arms and walked towards the door.

"Kyle? Where are you going?" Stan asked.

Kyle looked at him with his hand on the handle and shrugged, "on a walk?"

"I'll come with you!" Kenny volunteered.

"No, Dude. I wanna be alone for awhile."

"Kyle!" Stan exclaimed, grabbing the note off the ground. "There's somebody after you!" he waved the paper around for emphasis.

"Dude, I'll be fine. There's still daylight, no one would be stupid enough to attack me in the open."

"Kahl, stop being a stubborn ass Jew!"

"I'm leaving now. I have my phone. Bye," he turned out of the apartment and slammed the door behind him. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman stared after it for awhile before Cartman cleared his throat.

"So...do we actually leave him be or do we follow him?"

"We should give him some space," Kenny sighed.

"What happened to not leaving him alone?" Stan demanded.

"Yeah, we said we wouldn't and we didn't and we fucking forced him into tears," Kenny shot back angrily. "I wouldn't be too fond of people breathing down my neck every second of the day either."

"What if Toby or somebody finds him?!" Cartman asked.

"He was right. It's broad daylight...and he knows better than to go somewhere secluded. We just need to back off a little. We'll stay close when we can, but at his okay, not our own judgement."

"That's been the problem this whole time, Kenneh!" Cartman argued. "We let the little Jewrat make decisions on his own and look where he is now!"

"Whaddya mean?" Stan asked.

"HE chose to slash his wrists. HE chose to stand up to Fischbach and encourage his attacks. HE chose to be raped. Are you two really that fucking blind?!"

Kenny pushed Cartman backwards, and he stumbled back and over the chair. Kenny glared at him and breathed heavily. "No. OUR choices influenced that you fucking retard," he hissed. "WE were the ones who drove him into depression that led to him 'slashing his wrists,' he mocked. "WE were the ones that actually fought Fischbach back. Kyle would have just walked away were it not for us. And...I was the one who chose to go out alone. I'M the reason he was raped. It wasn't him, it was us! All we've done is placed him in the back of our minds as we've followed our own lives. We forgot that were it not for him, NONE of us would still be talking to each other right now. Two-thirds of us would be in fucking prison, and one of us would be a depressed emo-wannabe with guyliner! Don't you get it Cartman?! He's the one always making the right choices, and the one time he hits a bad one, his life is sent spiraling out of control! And the whole cause behind it was US!" he panted, a few tears straying down his face.

Stan placed his hand on Kenny's shoulder cautiously, afraid to provoke another rant. "You're right, Ken. Kyle's perfectly capable of making his own choices. We need to be there for him, but not constantly. I say while he's gone, we do something for him, make him feel a bit better when he gets back, ya know?"

Kenny looked at him with a small smile. "What do you propose?"

"Big ass meal and a movie night," he smirked. "It's Friday, so we have the time to spend. Cartman, you gonna help?"

Cartman looked at him and blinked. "Um, sure. Why not?" he shrugged.

"I got three movies from the library, but you can go get more at the video store while me and Stan fix some more grub," Kenny suggested with a shrug.

Cartman stood and sighed. "Alright. I'll go grab some flicks."

"Nothing Nazi related," Stan warned with a quirked brow.

"Yea, yea, I know," he rolled his eyes and made way to the door. He let himself out and Kenny and Stan shook their heads after him.

"God, we sure know how to pick our friends, don't we?" Stan chuckled.

"Heh, yea. What are we fixing?"

"First things first," he gestured towards the pizza pan. "We put this in the fridge." Kenny nodded and retrieved some bags out of the kitchen and stuffed the food goods in them.

"Should we really try to stay within Kashrut or not?" Kenny asked.

"I don't think he really cares at this point, Dude," Stan chuckled softly. "I say we fix his favorite. It's a bit expensive, but we can pull it off."

"Filet Mignon?" Kenny guessed.

"Oh God no, Kyle hates steak," Stan chuckled and looked thoughtful for a moment. "He likes Italian food."

"He does?!"

"Yeah...you didn't know that?"

"Well...no..." Kenny winced. He felt a bit embarrassed. He knew how to make Kyle moan in bed but he had no idea what he liked to eat. That can't be healthy for a relationship.

Stan laughed softly and shook his head. "He likes fettucini alfredo, so I say we make him that and some salad thingy."

"Why salad?"

"So he has that healthy alternative he always insists he needs," Stan smirked. "We'll pick up some bread, too. I think this could really cheer him up."

"I hope to God you're right, Dude," Kenny said softly.

Stan nodded. "I'll go pick up the stuff. You stay here in case he comes back. That alright with you?"

"Yeah, sure. It'll give me some time to think."

"First time for everything I suppose," he smirked before starting towards the door.

Kenny threw a pillow at him, missing him as he quickly shut the door to avoid it. He reopened it and stuck his head back in, sticking his tongue out at the blonde and re-closing it. Kenny laughed and went to retrieve the pillow. He sighed and walked into the bedroom, plopping down on the bed. He stared up at the ceiling again, biting his lip.

His little passionate speech to Cartman and Stan started replaying in his mind. He'd never really though of it like that before, but it seemed all the more truthful the more he considered it. Who was really to blame for how Kyle was feeling? He sighed in aggravation and slammed Kyle's pillow over his face. He inhaled and savored the sweet scent of his Jew. He tossed the pillow back towards the side and rested his arms behind his head.

He wondered if Cartman was right about the sex thing. He certainly wasn't in the relationship with Kyle only for sex, but he'd kill to have it again. They'd gotten close multiple times the past few weeks, but Kyle always broke it off before things started getting too heated. Kenny had been upset, but he understood. If he'd went through what Kyle endured, he probably wouldn't be too keen on doing the deed either. But still...his hormones were driving him insane. He needed release, and not just a simple jerk off session. He needed and craved the taste of Kyle's skin again. He needed to hear those adorable moans filling his ears once more, and the sound of him screaming his name in ecstasy...goddamn he was whipped. He sat up in the bed and bit his lip. This wasn't just something he needed, it was something Kyle needed, too. Otherwise, he'd never be able to love like he had again. He'd never be able to feel a caress on his beautiful face without remember the calloused hands of those maniacs.

Kenny smiled devilishly. So much to do, so little time...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luckily for all three of the boy's nerves, Kyle had been courteous enough to let them know of his well-being by sending all three of them a text every half hour, claiming he was still alright. Seven o' clock rolled around before he finally walked back through the door. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman all gazed at him in concern as he rubbed his scabbed knuckles. He shrugged sheepishly, explaining he'd punched the side of a building in his anger.

"Jesus, Ky," Stan said as he dressed the wound. "You could have broken your hand, Dude."

"Heh, yeah, I know," Kyle looked to his side. "Anger management's never been my niche," he looked back at the blue eyed boy.

Stan smirked back. "Trust me, I know," he finished cleaning him up and pulled him up. Kenny walked up behind him and placed his hands over his eyes.

"What the hell?" Kyle asked.

"Just walk forward, Love," Kenny instructed. Kyle did as asked, following Kenny's guidance towards the kitchen. He sniffed the air and licked his lips.

"I don't know what's in there, but it smells fucking awesome!" he exclaimed. Kenny and Stan smiled at each other. Kenny removed his hands from the boy's eyes and he blinked towards the food laid out on the counter. "Holy fucking Moses, I love you guys," he said, staring at the treats with hungry eyes.

"Anything to make you feel better, Ky," Kenny grasped him from behind and kissed his cheek sweetly.

"Aw, you didn't have to do this much," Kyle stated. "I calmed down after trying to break my hand," he smirked.

"You deserve it, Dear. Shall we take it to the living room to watch some epic gory movies?"

"Jesus, you people are fucking determined to cheer me up, aren't you?" Kyle asked, slightly nuzzling into Kenny's warm frame.

"Shut up and get your food, you stupid Jew," Cartman muttered from behind them. Way to ruin a moment, Eric.

They grabbed the grub and headed into the family room. Kenny grabbed a random movie and popped it in. "What the hell is Deadly Ends?" Kyle asked as the credits rolled.

Cartman shrugged, "I dunno. I was just scourging the horror section and found this, so I figured why the hell not?"

They sat and ate their food in silence as the opening scene began, upon which they almost lost it. "Oh my god!" Stan exclaimed. "What the FUCK is he eating?!"

"Dude, sick!" Kenny added.

"Goddamn, Cartman, you sure know how to pick 'em," Kyle commented, shuddering at the images on the screen.

"Ay, you don't wanna watch it, then take it out of the damn player!"

"Let's stick it out...you already paid for it," Kyle responded.

"Right. And it's against Jewish law to waste any money, right Kahl?" A noodle came flying towards the larger boy and stuck to his forehead. "AY! Stupid Jew!" He picked a crouton out of his salad and flung it back. The dressing from it stuck to his cheek and he laughed lightly.

"Ky, you have dressing on your face," Kenny smirked. Kyle went to wipe it with his napkin and Kenny grabbed his arm to stop him. "Please, let me," he grinned, leaning up and gently licking the side of Kyle's face.

"AW DUDE!" Cartman and Stan turned away in disgust.

"I think I prefer the dude eating the stuff out of his skin," Stan gestured towards the TV erratically.

Kyle chuckled and looked at Kenny with a smirk. "You have something on you, too," he commented.

"Where?" he blinked.

Kyle leaned up, barely touching his lips and murmuring, "right here." he planted a passionate kiss on the older boy's mouth.

"Dude, seriously, STOP." Stan commanded. Kyle broke away from Kenny and fell back into the cushions laughing. Really laughing. Kenny smiled, it'd been awhile since Kyle had actually been happy like that. Releasing all of his frustration earlier must have really helped. He looked at Stan, who was smiling and shaking his head at the Jew. Cartman was rolling his eyes, but a look of relief could be seen heavily playing in his gaze.

It was good to hear him laugh again.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kenny and Kyle sat together on the couch, holding hands and talking after Stan and Cartman had departed. Kenny reached down and took the notebook from back down under the furniture. Kyle looked at it with interest.

"It's like...it's like a list of victims," he said quietly.

Kenny nodded. "That's pretty much my feelings on it. We haven't had any cases recently...but I keep feeling like I should be doing something....but I don't want to."

Kyle chuckled, "Well, I'm glad to know that the feeling's mutual. I mean, I understand that it needs to be done, that their lives have already passed...but you can't help but feel guilty for sending them down into the fire, ya know?"

"Exactly," Kenny agreed. "But at the same time, we're giving them peace. I mean...I don't know if we're hurting or helping more."

They let this idea set in for a few moments and sighed. "I...I don't know," Kyle replied softly. "I personally would rather be in Hell than stuck on Earth, where I couldn't talk to anyone or do anything...and I'd be so restless with why I'd be stuck."

"Why do you think you would be stuck?" Kenny asked.

"What?"

"Let's say that this didn't happen. This deal thing didn't go through....what would be a reason you think that you'd be stuck?"

Kyle looked towards the blank TV and pondered for a moment. "Unfinished business," he answered. "I think...I think that not talking to you about how I felt would have drove me apart." Kenny smirked. The kid had a lot more self-insight than one would have thought. "How about you?" Kyle asked.

"Hm?"

"What reason would you have to be stuck if you'd died for real?"

Kenny leaned back a bit and smiled at him. "If I were to die right now, I wouldn't be. Were this a few weeks ago, I think I would've been. I never had anyone with me and it drove me insane, I always felt so damn alone. But now I have you, so I don't feel like that anymore." Kyle gave him a sweet smile back and leaned in to brush his lips.

Kenny reached up and grasped the back of his hair lightly, pulling him in closer towards his eager lips. He gently pried Kyle's mouth open and dove his tongue in, relishing in the now-familiar crevices that met him. He let out a low moan as Kyle's tongue met his, engaging in their dance once again.

Kenny worked his hand around and gently slid it up under the back of Kyle's shirt, tracing the contours of his spine fluidly. He broke apart from the boy's mouth and nibbled gently on his neck.

Kyle gasped. "K-ken...I...I don't think..." he murmured, half-pushing Kenny away from him. Kenny sighed and pushed him back onto his back in the couch.

"Kyle," he said, brushing some of his fiery hair out of his face. "Do you trust me?" Kyle nodded softly. "Do you love me?"

"Y-yeah...," he stammered, giving Kenny a bit of a fearful look.

Kenny stroked his face gently. "Then you know that I would never hurt you. I love you, Kyle, I'll never give cause you any pain...unless you ask me to," he shrugged. "In which case, I'd be a little weirded out, but who doesn't like a kinky bed partner?" he smirked.

Kyle looked at him for a moment, obviously struggling to come up with a response. "Kenny...I...I'm...."

Kenny leaned down and brushed lips with him. "Don't be scared. You know that this whole relationship is built on us together. Not just your brains and not just my sex drive. You know that I love you. Please. Let me make you happy again. I want to see that smile on your face again. And to know that your mind is here and only here with me...please, Kyle."

Kyle looked up towards the ceiling and took a deep breath. "I...I trust you, Kenny," he looked deep into his blue eyes.

"And you know that if you're hurt, I'll stop, right?" He leaned down and nipped at his neck.

"Mhmm..." Kyle whimpered, his head falling back to give Kenny easier access to his sensitive skin. Kenny grazed his throat with his teeth, satisfied by the soft mewl escaping Kyle's vocal chords. He got off of him, standing to the side of the couch, still latched onto Kyle's neck. He gently slid his arms under him and lifted him off the couch, prompting Kyle to grasp around his neck and hold him close. He hesitantly starting nibbling back on Kenny's golden skin, receiving a husky moan in return.

Kenny leisurely carried him into their room and set him down on the bed, gingerly climbing atop him. He grabbed Kyle's hand and kissed it, working his way up his arm, and slowly unbuttoning his shirt. As he reached the top button, he could feel the fast speed of his heart, and couldn't figure out if it was arousal or fear. Unfortunately, he figured the latter was his problem. Kenny slid the shirt off his his scrawny frame and licked his lips at the sight. He bent down and slowly licked and nipped at his chest, Kyle whimpering all the while and working on getting Kenny's shirt off. Ken sat back and took it off himself, watching as Kyle's eyes darkened with unmistakable lust and he smiled to himself.

"_I was right, he needs this just as badly as I do," _he thought. "Ky?" he asked, brushing his lips once more.

"Hm?"

"Do you still trust me?"

"Of course I do," he said softly.

Kenny leaned back and stared at him with a soft expression plaguing his features. "Good. Then you'll be okay with this," he pulled a thin scarf from the drawer beside his side of the bed and held it for Kyle to see.

"W-what are you doing?" Kyle asked, his voice quavering a bit.

Kenny grasped his chin and kissed his forehead gently, pulling back to wrap the cloth around his eyes. "I'm showing you that the dark isn't as bad as it seems. If I'm here, you don't need to be afraid of it. I'll be right beside you the whole time." he ran his fingers up the boy's cheek as he bit his lip and shook. Kenny took his hand and gently pushed back on Kyle's chest, prompting him to lie down. He stood up next to the bed and grabbed another scarf and sighed. "Kyle, promise me you won't be afraid."

"I...I promise," he said quietly. Kenny gently grasped his wrists and bound them to the barred headboard. Kyle started shaking more and Kenny sat back down beside him on his knees.

"Shh...I'm right here," he promised, stroking his chest lightly. "I promise that I'm not going to hurt you."

Kyle sniffed and nodded. "I...I know. I'm sorry," he bit his lip.

"Don't be sorry, just relax." he commanded. He took his fingertips and lightly traced the boy's toned abs, following each dip in his skin with the utmost care. He wanted Kyle to feel absolutely everything. He watched as Kyle's erratic breathing started to slow, and he leaned in to tease his nipples. He ran his tongue over each gently and blew on it in a steady stream, watching as Kyle shivered slightly and the skin stood at attention. He kissed his way around the boys torso, sneaking a quick glance towards his jeans. It wasn't large, but there was definitely a bit of a rise down there, and he was determined to make it full. He suckled gently on the skin up above his waistband, and Kyle let out a small purr every now and then that made Kenny's ears ring with joy.

"I love you, Ken," Kyle whispered.

Kenny looked up and smiled at him. "And I you, my Dear. Are you still afraid? Be honest."

"I'm...I don't know...," he responded, biting his lip harshly.

Kenny leaned up and grasped his chin, pulling his lips out of his teeth's grasp. He leaned in and locked lips with the young boy, outlining the texture of his mouth and moaning softly along with Kyle. He pulled back slightly and played with one of his curls. "You're not afraid," he whispered, "you're just nervous. You know that I would never hurt you and you know that you want this. Just let go, Kyle. Just let go of your fears for a few moments and just be here with me."

"I am with you," Kyle promised, nuzzling into Kenny's touch.

"I'm going to move further. Are you okay with that?" Kenny asked.

Kyle took a wavering breath and nodded. "I trust you," he repeated.

Kenny kissed his forehead and worked his way down to nibble on his ear. He trailed his hand down his stomach and found the button on his jeans. He undid them and slid his hand down his shorts, curling his grasp around Kyle's hardening cock. Kyle's hips jerked up slightly and Kenny sighed with relief and happiness. He broke off of Kyle's ear and sat up, gingerly pulling his jeans and boxers down together. He threw them down beside the bed and looked up and down at his boyfriend, finding his own member growing harder by the moment. He leaned up and started suckling at his bellybutton.

"My sexy, sexy nymph," he murmured into his skin. He could hear Kyle's small giggle and moved down further. He took his tongue and traced down along Kyle's hips and on the inside of his thighs, listening to his throaty gasp with tingles running down his spine. He took his tongue and ran it up the length of Kyle's now fully-erect cock. Kyle meowed softly and Kenny took it as an invitation to move further.

He took one of Kyle's nuts into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the blazing flesh as Kyle shuddered violently. He grabbed the other and suckled gently, running his tongue back and forth between the two balls.

"Goddamn it," Kyle said quietly, his hips continuing to jerk upwards. Kenny smirked and removed his mouth from the boy's balls. He ran up his cock with gentle kisses, finally reaching the top and planting a small peck on the head as well. He opened his mouth and took the head of his shaft, suckling gently as Kyle tried to control his thrusting body.

"Don't hold back," Kenny commanded, letting his hot breath run over Kyle's pulsing member. "I want everything to be natural. Don't you dare try to control how you feel." He suddenly thrust his mouth down and engulfed Kyle all he could as Kyle let out a loud moan.

"Oh God, Kenny," he said lustfully. Kenny bobbed his head up and down, sucking hard on the Jew's shaft and running his fingertips around his balls.

"You taste so fucking good," Kenny panted, pulling slightly off of his cock for a moment to catch his breath. He attacked him again, sucking harder and faster than before. He relished in the sensation as Kyle's breathing increased once more, but not from fear. He once again had Kyle's undivided attention. And he fucking loved it. He felt Kyle tense up and smiled, increasing his pace and giving him all the last-second pleasure he could.

"K-kenny," he panted. "I'm...I'm gonna..."

"Don't hold back, he moaned into the burning skin. "Come for me, Kyle," he commanded huskily.

"Oh...oh god....KEN!" he shouted, his hips thrusting upwards once more, Kenny receiving his load eagerly. As soon as he was done, Kenny leaned back and licked escaping remnants from the side of his mouth, watching as his Jew tried to regain his breath.

"K-Ken..." he gasped out.

"Yes?"

"Un...untie me. Now," he ordered.

"How come?"

"I need to touch you and I mean NOW." he said, pulling at his bindings. Kenny smiled wickedly and leaned up towards him. He took the scarf covering his eyes off and stared into his green orbs.

"Are we still afraid?"

"Fuck no, let me out," he insisted, trying to yank out of the scarf. Kenny smirked as he struggled.

"Maybe this moment's all about you," he raised his brow.

Kyle looked down at the rise in his jeans and back at him. "Bullcrap. You want me as much as I want you, so let me go!" He tried to sit up, but slammed back onto the bed panting. Kenny couldn't hold back his excitement any longer. He reached up and leisurely undid Kyle's bindings. As soon as he was free, he leapt up atop Kenny.

Kenny chuckled. "I take it you're feeling a bit better about this situation?"

"Shut the fuck up," Kyle muttered, taking his mouth for his own. Kenny reached up and pulled Kyle closer as the Jew undid his pants and pushed them down his thighs. Kenny kicked them off, continuing to latch onto Kyle's head. Kyle broke his lips away momentarily and licked his hand, returning to Kenny's mouth as he grasped Kenny's stiff cock. Kenny gasped and squirmed as Kyle moved his hand up and down fluidly, tightening and loosening his grip at different intervals, sending Kenny's hormones into a skyrocket.

"Jesus Christ!" he moaned into Kyle's mouth. Kyle continued to kiss and work his wrist furiously, determined to give Kenny as much pleasure as he'd given him. It didn't take long for Kenny to start to tense up, and Kyle quickly broke from his mouth and moved his lips down towards his throbbing shaft. "Goddammit, Ky!" he shouted as he released, clinging onto the bedsheets for dear life as his body rocketed into an orgasm. Kyle sucked him dry, then sat up and ran his fingers through Kenny's hair as he calmed down.

"You know..." he panted. "This was...was supposed to be about you."

Kyle smirked and continued to tease his hair. "Well, I guess you had a change in plans, didn't you? Not like I heard you complaining or anything."

Kenny looked at him and chuckled. "Can't say much with your delicious tongue shoved down my throat."

"You could have bitten my tongue at any time. Trust me, that would have killed the mood because I would've kicked you square in the balls. I bet it hurts ten-fold when you've got a boner," he laughed.

Kenny shot up and tackled him, grinding his cock into his and beginning to grow hard once more. "So, can I get more or are we just playing 'suck me dry' all night?" he asked, nibbling the boy's bottom lip.

"You're not giving me much choice here," Kyle giggled as Kenny continued to grind into him.

"Hey, I told you we could stop whenever," he smirked.

"If I told you to stop, what the hell would you do?"

"Be severely depressed and spend an ample time in the bathroom," he shrugged.

"Well I guess that settles that," he replied, pulling him down and kissing him fiercely once more.

"Goddamn, I love your fucking lips," Kenny growled. Kyle sighed contentedly and continued to mash their mouths together in synchronization. Kenny backed up a little and reached over towards his side of the bed, pulling out a bottle of lotion. "I'm prepared this time," he smirked, waving the bottle in view. Kyle bit his lip, though Kenny couldn't tell if it was his nerves again or anticipation.

"Kyle? Are you sure about this?" Kenny asked.

"Y-yea. I'm fine," he smiled meekly. Kenny sighed and squirted some onto his fingertips.

"Kyle, I promise, you won't hurt." He trailed his freehand up his stomach and inserted his index finger into his entrance. He soon pushed in his second and watched as Kyle squirmed a bit, but obviously wasn't hating the situation too much. He scissored him gently, avoiding hitting the boy's prostate, and he could see it was driving him insane.

"Want more?" He asked saucily. Kyle looked at him and nodded softly. "I aim to please," he smirked. He watched as Kyle sat up and grabbed the lotion from beside him, squirting some onto his hand and looking at Kenny lustfully.

"Allow me," he smirked, slathering Kenny's cock in the cooled gel. Kenny shuddered and held back a blissful yelp as the familiar hands began caressing his hot skin. Kenny guided him back down after he was ready and leaned forward in-between the boy's legs.

"Ready?" he asked huskily. Kyle gave him a peck on the lips and Kenny drove into him. He watched Kyle's expression of nervousness calm down and hit a look of pleasure. He dove down and nibbled on his neck as he began to thrust in and out.

"Ah!" Kyle cried, grasping Kenny's shoulder's and digging his fingernails into his toned skin.

Kenny grunted as he continued to thrust, listening to Kyle's heavenly moans and finding himself practically drooling all over the boys skin. He pulled his head back and looked at Kyle's face, it was red, with his eyes shut and biting his lip as he continued to let out throaty moans of pleasure.

"Kyle, look at me," Kenny commanded. Kyle shot his eyes open and stared lustfully at his lover. Kenny gasped as he saw the beauty enveloping that innocent face and stopped thrusting. He leaned down to furiously lock lips with him, his throbbing cock still deep inside of Kyle. He kept his lips firm as he resumed his rhythm, swallowing each little whimper that Kyle made. Kyle moved and crossed his legs behind Kenny's back, willing to take in his full length. Kenny was happy to oblige as he deepened his jerks and made them fuller than ever before.

"Ah! Oh God!" Kyle cried out, flinging his head back into the bed. Kenny leaned down and suckled at his neck, leaving his mark upon the small Jew. Kyle's fingers dug more deeply into Kenny's broad shoulders as his pace increased. "Kenny...," he moaned.

"Nnn-nngh, Kyle..." he responded. He looked down at the small body beneath him, amazed that he hadn't broken the little boy in half by now. He looked so fragile and delicate, it was incredible he was able to stand so much.

"I l-love you," he stammered, looking back down at Kenny.

"You t-too," he swallowed air in his dry mouth and continued to thrust sturdily. Kyle's cock ribbed up and down his tight stomach, leaving a trail of pre-cum in it's wake. He shuddered as it cooled slightly and tingled on his abs. He changed his angle and thrust harder, just to hear Kyle's blissful yelp as he rubbed over his sweet spot.

Kenny felt himself hitting the edge and bent down for one final kiss as he drove himself as far as possible and exploded within the young boy. Kyle soon followed, leaving them covered in his cum and panting heavily. Kenny stayed within him for a few moments, kissing him gently and trying to regain his breath. He finally sat up and pulled his softening flesh out of his Jew, climbing over to collapse beside him. Kyle turned over on his side and smiled at him sweetly.

"You see?" Kenny smiled back. "I'd never hurt you." He snuck his arm around Kyle's waist and pulled him close, feeling the cum coating their stomachs sticking together in a goopy mess.

"I know you wouldn't, Kenny," he whispered, snuggling into his chest. "I think...I think I need some sleep," he chuckled.

Kenny sighed in relief and kissed his curls. "Good." Kyle reached over and turned off the lamp beside them. The light from the living room still shone brightly and Kenny could make out a peaceful feature upon the redhead's face as he closed his eyes and nuzzled back into his larger frame.

Kenny's eyes stayed open as he watched Kyle finally fall into a deep sleep. He couldn't hold back his smile as Kyle occasionally cuddled further into him. He held him there, afraid to make even the slightest movement for fear of waking him. His arm under Kyle was starting to tingle, but he couldn't care less. He wasn't stupid, this may have cheered Kyle up by a good bit, but his memories wouldn't die just because of it. He knew that Kyle was still depressed, that he still could have nightmares, that things still weren't in the best of situations.

He bit his lip as he thought of the letter. How dare somebody threaten **his** Kyle. He needed proof of the writer so he could beat the living shit out of them and feed them to Stan's gay dog. Kyle must have felt him tense up as he let out a little discontented moan in the back of his throat. Kenny sighed and relaxed his muscles, but tightened his grip around the boy protectively.

That was a job for another day, he supposed. As of now, all that mattered was getting Kyle's life back on track and continuing his duties. He was fully aware that neither would be an easy task, but the prospect of seeing Kyle happy again was well worth the effort. He gently planted a kiss on his pale cheek and snuggled in closer, feeling his eyes start to droop down, a feeling of calm finally washing over him.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: And this is what one does when they're contaminated with the swine flu, ladies and gentlemen!_

_Yays for breakdowns and smex!_

_...this was a lot less of a filler than I thought it would be, haha XD _

_This chap will be rather important in the long run._

_Next one's fast forwarding to May. So...yays!_

_PS: __**NEVER EVER EVER WATCH DEADLY ENDS!**__ Omg, me and my best friend watched it during one of our weekly horror nights and it was DISGUSTING and not in the least bit terrifying except for the fact that somebody actually wrote/acted in it! If you value whatever you ate beforehand, DON'T WATCH IT! PLEASE!!!!!_

_And that is your friendly neighborhood warning =)_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_


	25. Unified

_A/N: God, I feel fucking terrible and I should be sleeping, not writing. Oh well. Smut comes before Health._

_I believe that was an ancient Chinese Proverb. You love Jew-love long time?_

_I know I dooooooo =D_

_We've fast forwarded a month now, so enjoy! (Btw, this is __ABSOLUTE__ filler, haha. Only important stuff will happen in the beginning. From there on out it's just a way for me to pass time XD)_

________________________________________________________________________

Kenny opened his eyes and yawned, looking around for any object to fall into clear vision. His eyes landed and focused in on the clock, which in time read 11:30. He blinked and sat himself up, looking at the spot next to him. Seeing no sign of Kyle, he hopped out of the bed and stretched backwards, cracking his back and sighing contently. He walked out of the room and surveyed around for his Jew. He scratched his head in confusion when he once again saw no sign of him.

"Kyle?" he croaked out, his voice still scratchy from his long sleep. He shuffled towards the kitchen and found a note placed on the table, displaying Kyle's unmistakable handwriting.

_Sorry I had to work today, Dude. I'll be home by about five._

_I left you some pancakes in the fridge, just heat em up for about half a minute. Your syrup's on the counter. _

_Oh, and no, I didn't forget. Happy Birthday =)_

_Love ya, _

_Ky_

Kenny smiled warmly and stared at the note for a bit before he snapped back into reality. Kyle said pancakes. Damn he loved him some pancakes. He waltzed over to the fridge and opened the door, smiling even wider upon finding yet another note attached to a large plate of food.

_You really thought I'd only make you pancakes for your big day? Please. Give me some credit. Heat it up for about two minutes, Love._

Kenny burst out laughing and stole the plate out of the fridge, coming across a large serving of eggs, bacon, toast, and of course, his pancakes. He popped it in the microwave and walked back out towards the bedroom, grabbing some clothes to throw on. He slipped into a pair of baggy jeans and his favorite blue t-shirt. He sauntered back to the kitchen as his food was finished and grabbed the syrup, coating every inch of food in the sweet goodness. He looked at the bottle and was pleasantly surprised. Apparently Kyle had went out of his way and bought him syrup with sugar just for today. Oh the joys of having a boyfriend like him.

He plopped down on the couch and flipped on the TV, watching as the news came scrolling across the screen. His eyes drifted from the TV and down to his notebook on the table and he sighed. They'd only had a few different cases since Charlie's issue. Another abuse victim, two drunk drivers with a guilty conscious, and a clown who couldn't find his big shoes. Oh how Kenny hated that guy. He continued to chew and looked back at the screen, watching footage of a married couple being wheeled away on stretchers after being murdered by some jackass who wanted twenty bucks from the man's wallet.

"Disgusting how you humans are," a voice spoke.

Kenny turned his head and saw Damien sitting next to him on the couch, staring at him with a giant grin on his face. He rolled his eyes and swallowed his food. "What's up, Demon-boy?"

"Came to wish you a happy birthday, that's all," he shrugged.

"Bull. I know you better than that," he leaned back into the couch and took another bite.

Damien chuckled, "okay, so I do have some alternative motives. I'm just wondering how everything's going along. I haven't really been keeping an eye on you two, though my ears have been open, I assure you."

"Not too bad, I suppose. That clown from a week or so ago tried to scare me to death, but other than that it's been pretty clear-cut on what we've been doing," he said as he shut off the television.

"Well, that's good news," he replied, nodding his head. "How's the daywalker?"

"His name is Kyle," Kenny growled. "And I think he's doing a lot better."

"He going to talk to anyone?"

"No, he insisted that we give him a month to try to work things out for himself. And if that doesn't work, we have his permission to drag him off kicking and screaming to the psychologist."

"Hm. Well, I do hope he feels better," Damien shrugged. "I mean. I certainly wouldn't want to be him."

"I know," Kenny sighed. "I don't know how he's handling all of what happened in such strides."

"You told me about a month ago that he has a will tough enough to withstand anything...maybe he's finally proving that by working through this."

"Yeah...I think he's gonna be okay," Kenny smiled meekly.

"You're not sounding too confident," Damien commented, snagging a piece of bacon from his plate. "I thought Kyle was Jewish. Why'd he make bacon?"

Kenny chuckled, "just because he doesn't eat it doesn't mean he won't let me eat it. He doesn't make me follow Kashrut just like I don't make him say Hail Mary's."

Damien chuckled, "yes, because you practice your religion so well, Kenny."

"Shut up."

"Anyways, like I was saying, you don't seem to really believe that the kid's gonna be okay. You think this job is too much for him?"

"No, I think the fact that I can't figure out who sent him a death threat is too much!" Kenny exclaimed.

Damien blinked. "Death threat? Broflovski got a death threat?"

Kenny placed the food down on the table and walked into the bedroom as Damien stared after him. He soon emerged with the note in hand and threw it at the other boy. He read it while chewing on the strip of bacon in silence.

He looked up at Kenny and handed it back to him. "Wow. Someone's really got it out for him, huh?"

"You're telling me!" Kenny paced in front of the coffee table. "I'm pretty sure I know who it is, but I have no fucking proof!"

"Well, find proof."

"How? How the hell can I do that, Damien? I mean, it's a _death_ threat! Kyle can't die! That means that...that if they find him, they'll hurt him so freaking much...Damien, what the hell do I do?!" he pleaded.

Damien stood and sat Kenny back down on the couch. "Look, McCormick. I can't give you all the answers. Just be on the lookout and always be prepared to defend him. Remember, he belongs to you. You control what happens to him."

"He doesn't belong to me," Kenny scoffed. "He's not my property."

"Actually he is," Damien nodded. "When you made the deal with my father, you were told that should you not complete what you've been sent to do, you lose Kyle. Kenny, Kyle belongs to you in a very literal sense. He can't do much without you there to be with him."

Kenny blinked and let this sink in. "But...I...I don't want to own Kyle...I just want us to be together."

"Too bad, Kenny. You dug your own hole with this one. Listen, so long as you complete your duties, you're fine. Kyle will stay with you and he'll be none the wiser about his fate being completely in your hands. Just do your job." he stood and stared at the blonde. "As for this threat, as I said, just keep a lookout. He'll be alright so long as you're with him."

Kenny stared back as he started to fade away.

"Oh and before I forget," he smirked, "happy birthday once again." And with that, he vanished. Kenny blinked and looked towards his half-eaten food, suddenly losing his appetite.

...He owned Kyle. That just didn't seem to fit right with him. Kyle was his own person, he didn't need Kenny there all the time. Right? Kenny sighed and stood, taking his plate and dumping it in the trash. He'd have to make up the time Kyle spent on it later. As of now, he just needed to think. He grabbed the note from his pocket and stared at it with bleary eyes.

'_My finger is on the trigger, Kyle. You choose whether or not I pull.'_

Kenny reread this line time after time, each time feeling like his heart was being torn apart. Why Kyle? Had he really done anything so wrong? He was just the quiet little ginger nerd, right? He hadn't hurt anyone...he'd just stayed out of people's way! He didn't deserve for someone to threaten him like this! No one did! Kenny rubbed his temples in frustration and took the note back into his room, slamming it into the drawer and taking a shaky breath.

The doorbell rang and he shot his head around, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down. He slowly walked over and opened it, with Cartman, Stan, Butters, Bebe, and Wendy all bouncing in.

"Happy birthday!" they all said. He smirked and shut the door behind them.

"Well, what a pleasant surprise," he smiled at them.

"The first of us to become a full-fledged adult," Wendy commented. "How does it feel?"

"Babe, I've being doing adult stuff since I was twelve, I'm not feeling too different," he smirked. They all walked over and plopped down on the furniture.

"Where's Kyle?" Bebe asked, surveying the room.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but you can't ogle Kyle's ass right now, he's at work," he laughed.

"Well damn," she pouted, giving him a playful wink.

"Bebe, stop trying to steal Kyle away," Wendy lectured with a smile.

"Yeah, because Kyle would totally go for something lacking a dick," Cartman rolled his eyes. There's that tact again.

"Cartman, would you please just try and behave for once in your life?" Stan asked.

"Psh, why? Not like the Jew's here to hear me or anything."

"Well it's just not very nice, Eric," Butters inputted quietly.

"Butters, who asked you?!"

"Nobody," he mumbled, rubbing his knuckles together. Kenny couldn't hold back a little chuckle. Almost ten years and he still hadn't ditched that habit. Poor kid.

"Ken? You okay?" Stan asked.

Kenny looked at him. "I'm fine, why?"

"I dunno," he looked at him curiously. "You seem kinda down about something. You and Kyle fighting?"

"Ha, you wish. No, I was just...thinking I guess." he shrugged.

"About Kyle," Butters smiled.

"Of course. What else could I think about? That little Kosher boy won't get out of my head and a few other body parts of mine," he smirked.

"Dude, there's chicks in the room!" Stan protested.

"Chicks? Do I look like a bird to you, Stanley?" Wendy crossed her arms and looked at him angrily.

"Uh...N-no! I...I was just saying...g-girls in a sense of...their ability to spread wings and fly beyond the expectations of a man?" he winced.

Wendy chuckled. "Alright. I'll give you points for effort on that one."

"Are you and Ky like that, Ken?" Bebe asked.

"Like what?"

"So forgiving of each other even when the other's being a fucking retard?" she glanced at Stan who smiled sheepishly.

"Are you kidding me? Kyle's always forgiving me for being stupid. He just smacks me on the head, tells me to grow some brains, and we continue our lives."

"So he's the abusive type," Cartman snickered.

"Far from it and you know it. The only person he gets any pleasure out of hurting is you, Fatboy." Cartman just rolled his eyes in response.

"So...," Bebe looked around the room. "I'm not seeing condoms lying around. They in the bedroom?" she wiggled her brows.

"BEBE!" Stan, Cartman, and Butters shrieked. Bebe and Wendy burst into giggles as Kenny just looked at them amusedly.

"Who says we use condoms?" he shrugged.

"You...you seriously don't?!" Stan asked, his mouth dropped slightly.

Kenny laughed. "Well...I mean, we don't really have a chance of getting Kyle preggos or anything. Why would we?"

"Why are we discussing their sex life?!" Cartman pleaded, slamming his hands over his ears and looking towards the ceiling.

"Disease, Dude!" Stan said, waving his arms around for emphasis.

"We're clean, okay?"

"So...Kyle is the bottom then?" Bebe asked.

"Bebe, STOP!" Stan pleaded, mimicking Cartman's method of deafening himself.

"I always kinda figured he would be," she grinned, ignoring his cries.

"How so?" Kenny asked.

"He's just so sensitive, ya know? You'd expect him to be the more submissive type," she shrugged.

"But he's also strong-willed, so he could manage being on top," Wendy added with a devilish grin.

"Wendy, why are you encouraging this?!" Stan asked.

"Um...I totally think that sex between them would be hot?" she shrugged. Well, points for honesty go to her.

"Kenny, do you really think Kyle wants you discussing his role in sex?!" Stan hissed.

Kenny shrugged, "I dunno. I mean, you know where he stands, why shouldn't they?"

"I wasn't supposed to know!" he groaned.

"So?" Bebe insisted.

"You were right, he's on the bottom," he shrugged. "It's just how we're both comfortable, so we stick with it like that."

"Oh god, I wish I could see it," Bebe said, practically drooling into her palms.

Kenny chuckled. "I think that would be crossing the line there, Bebe. Though I don't blame you, he's fucking adorable in bed."

"Alright, that's enough!" Stan cried out, standing up and waving his arms frantically. "Dude, stop doing that! Kyle would fucking murder you if he heard you!"

Kenny fell into a bout of snickers, "you're probably right. Not much else I can tell you at this point except maybe our favorite positions."

"Ooh, would you?!" Wendy asked, licking her lips and breaking into a wicked grin.

"Fuck no," Cartman answered for him.

"You girls are impossible," Kenny shook his head and laughed softly.

"Well we can't help it," Bebe grinned.

"Wendy, you should be able to," Stan said sternly.

"How come?"

"You have a boyfriend!" he exclaimed.

"That doesn't mean I can't think about sex for other couples. God, Stan, I'm sure you watch porn every now and then, don't you act like you're better than me," she frowned.

"I didn't say that! But porn and people we know in real life are totally different!"

"You find some of those girls pretty, I'm sure. Well I happen to find Kyle rather attractive, so sue me," she crossed her arms.

"Did...did you just say you have the hots for Kyle?!" his jaw dropped slightly.

She sighed in aggravation. "Stan, no one compares to you. Besides, Kyle's _gay_. You really think he'd care if I proclaimed some attraction to him?"

"What the fuck?!" he cried out. "You have a crush on my best friend!!"

"No, I don't have a 'crush', you possessive bastard," she said through gritted teeth. "I said he's hot. The end. No sparks. No candlelit dinner ideas. I just think he's hot. Now stop being such a goddamn baby!"

Kenny, Cartman, and Bebe burst into laughter as Stan's face started to glow. "Jesus, Stan," Kenny chuckled. "You really know how to hit a nerve, dontcha?"

"Shut up, Ken," he muttered, crossing his arms and flopping into the back cushion of the couch.

"Can we please leave this topic?" Cartman asked quietly. "I quite honestly do not enjoy mental images of you two naked."

"Agreed," Stan and Butters nodded.

"Oh, you guys are no fun," Bebe waved dismissively. She turned back to Kenny and grinned, "So, how are you two holding up?"

"Fairly well," he shrugged. "We've had a few stupid-ass arguments, but considering everything he's been through lately, I couldn't ask for a better relationship."

Her smile dropped. "Yeah, Stan told us that you two were mugged. What'd they take?"

Kenny raised his brow at her and turned to Stan. "Mugged?" he repeated.

Stan nodded vigorously. "Yea, mugged," he raised his brows at Kenny.

"Dude, why would you tell them that we were mugged?" Kenny asked, biting his lip slightly in anger.

"Because, that was all the necessary detail."

"But that's not true in the least!" Cartman inputted. "Jesus Christ, Marsh, trying to protect your girlfriend's feelings or what?"

"Wait," Wendy waved her hands in front of her and looked at Stan. "You lied to us?" she gestured towards herself, Bebe, and Butters. "To me?"

"I didn't think that it was necessary for you to have the whole story," he mumbled, looking at his clasped hands.

"Well, what really happened?" Butters asked, looking at Kenny.

Kenny looked back into his turquoise eyes and sighed. "A lot."

"Like?" Bebe persisted.

"Cartman, you're great at telling stories like this, why don't you take it?" Kenny suggested, really not wanting to revisit it himself.

Cartman blinked before he caught his meaning and nodded. He leaned back into the chair and sighed. "Kenny was being an idiot and went off on a walk by himself. He got knocked out and taken somewhere on the outskirts of the city," he gestured towards the window. "The two dudes who took him called the Jew and told him he had to get down there."

"So they held you for ransom money," Wendy nodded.

Cartman held up his hand. "Wrong as usual, Hippie," he stated quietly. "Kahl got there and they wanted something else from him."

"What'd they want?" Bebe blinked in confusion.

"Something _else_," he emphasized. The three shook their heads in confusion.

"I don't...I don't quite follow you," Wendy said quietly.

"Oh for God's sake, they raped him!" Cartman shouted, throwing his hands in the air in frustration.

Their jaws dropped and their mouths trembled slightly.

Bebe laughed nervously and swallowed. "That's...that's not funny, Cartman....Kyle...Kyle wasn't..." she turned to Kenny. "Was he?"

He looked away from her then back and nodded softly.

Bebe's gaze fell to the floor along with Wendy's and Butters' as they tried to comprehend this. "I...I don't believe it...," Wendy shook her head slightly. "Why...why would they do that?"

"I have no fucking idea," Kenny growled, looking away from them. "Barney kept calling him pretty and I think Mitch was just along for the ride."

"Mitch?" Cartman blinked. "Well, that'll make things easier for Stan and I now."

_Shit._

"No, you heard Kyle. We had revenge on Barney, we don't need to go tracking down this other bastard, too," Kenny glared at him.

"What'd you do with the other one? How'd you get revenge?" Butters asked.

Kenny looked at him, then the other four and let out a heavy sigh. "I...I shot him....I killed him. I didn't mean to. I hit his shoulder....I thought he'd just be really hurt...but it was irretrievable...." he looked away in shame, sniffling a bit.

Wendy got up and sat next to him and pulled him into her frame, stroking his hair softly. "Hey, it's okay," she assured him. "You were protecting Kyle, it was very noble of you to do that. I would've shot him between the eyes if I'd been there. That was a compassionate act; not meaning to take his life, I mean."

He looked up at her and smiled softly. She was the girl version of Kyle. Always there, pulling the best out of a terrible feeling and making sure that he could see it clearly. It still didn't calm the pang in his heart, but it was something at least. He sighed and pulled away from her grip. "Thanks, Wendy," he said quietly.

"Anytime, Dear," she patted his shoulder, remaining on the arm of the love seat. "Well...I...I hope he's okay," she said sympathetically.

"Yeah, he's doing a lot better. I finally got him sleeping every night again, so I think he's gonna make it."

"Good," she smiled with relief.

"You know, we came here for a reason," Stan smirked. "Let's just leave the troubles in the back of our minds for a little bit and remember that today is a special day," he smiled at Kenny, who gave him a small grin back.

Cartman stood up and looked at Stan. "I suppose that's my cue?"

He nodded. "Yup. Go get it," he tossed his car keys towards the larger boy who walked out the door of the apartment.

"Where's he going?"

"To get your present, Silly," Butters smiled at him.

"You guys didn't have to get me anything," he grinned back.

"Oh shut up! You would have bitched nonstop if we hadn't," Stan retorted.

"Point is you didn't _have_ to," he replied. A large box dropped into his lap and he winced.

"Holy fuck, you guys get me a body or something?!" he said, lifting it off his lap.

Cartman smirked down at him from above him. "Shut up and open it, Poor boy."

He ripped off the paper eagerly and beheld a new Xbox. "Sweet!" he cried out. "This so beats the stale saltines you gave me last year, Cartman!"

"Hey, those saltines were good for another three days. You just chose to wait," he responded, going to sit back down and watch him.

"You guys are so awesome," he grinned, hugging the box childishly.

"What'd Kyle get ya?" Bebe asked.

Kenny shrugged. "He made me breakfast for this morning, but I have no idea about a real present. He's been working on it for awhile now, so I dunno."

"Aw, how sweet," she cooed. "We just pulled that idea out of our asses a week ago," she nodded towards the box.

"Well it was the bestest idea ever," he gushed.

"Well, you're welcome," Stan grinned back. "Happy birthday, Dude. Now, if you'll excuse us, we really don't want our asses handed to us by Howard."

Kenny glanced at the clock in confusion. "Jeez, I forgot it was Friday," he laughed. "Decided to run out for lunch, did ya?"

Stan nodded. "Of course, just like we used to do," he smiled. "We gotta go, but have an awesome day, Dude."

"Will do," he waved as they started walking out of the room.

"Tell Ky we said hello," Wendy said as she walked out.

"Be careful hooking that thing up," Cartman smirked. "Knowing you, you'll electrocute yourself to death again."

"Shut up," Kenny replied as the door slammed shut. He set the box on the floor and stood to stretch. He briefly wondered just what Kyle would get him. He always picked him the best stuff. He didn't want to sound greedy or anything, but damn he was excited for when he got home. He grinned wickedly and decided to hook up the Xbox to pass time until his little Jewboy got back. As he opened the box, he couldn't help but let his mind wander back to Damien's and his chat this morning.

He sighed heavily and looked at the clock. Five hours until he could see those eyes again. An image of that damnable letter sliced through his mind again and caused him to tense with rage. Damien was right, he needed fucking proof. Only question: how to get it?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the clock neared five, the telephone started blaring. "Aw, come on!" Kenny protested, gunning his way through Halo for the fourth straight hour. He threw down the controller and walked over to the receiver in the kitchen.

"Y'ello?"

"Hey there, Kenny," the other end picked up.

Kenny smiled warmly. "Hey, Ma. How ya doin'?"

"We're just fine. How about yourself?"

"Pretty damn good, thank you. How's work goin' for Dad?"

"Real good. He's doin' real well at his presentations and such. How about school? You keeping your grades up?"

Kenny chuckled. "Yeah, Kyle won't let me fall below a C in any class or he scolds me like no tomorrow."

His mom joined his laughter, "Well that's good. He cares about you and that's all that matters, Ken."

"True." He paused and heard clanging noises in the background. "Where are you guys?"

"Vegas, actually. The group's takin' a little break before we start back up. We're gonna be here for about a week or so."

"Ooh, send me any winnings left over if you would," he smiled.

"You wish, Junior," she chuckled. "Well, I called to wish you a happy birthday, Hon."

"Thanks, Mom," he grinned.

"I'm sorry we're not there to give you a present or anything...we can actually afford one this year, so I feel pretty bad."

"Mom, don't feel bad," he laughed softly. "I hate to sound so brutally honest, but I kinda got used to not getting family presents when I was six. I'm okay. Spend the money to start your life over, Dude."

"Well, we're gonna start sending you and Kyle a little bit every two weeks to support yourselves. I'm guessing he hasn't made up with his parents yet?"

Kenny sighed. "No, he hasn't even spoken to 'em since the...incident. And you don't need to send us money, Ma. We're okay. I mean, Kyle's parents are footing the housing and his job is paying for groceries. That's all we really need."

"Why don't you have a job?"

"Um...because I'm lazy as hell?" Kenny shrugged to himself.

"Well, that's true," she laughed. "But we'll still send you some. It won't be much, but it'll keep ya afloat."

He sighed heavily. "Are you sure there's no way I can talk you out of this?"

"Well, considering the first check's in the mail, I doubt it."

"Nice, Ma. Real nice."

"Well, I gotta go, Hon. You have a great birthday and you be good to Kyle now."

"Of course, Mom. I'll talk to ya later."

"Bye, Sweetie," and with that her end went flat. He sighed and hung up the phone and walked back into the living room and fell on the couch. He flipped off the TV and reclined into the cushion, closing his eyes and breathing easily with a small smile on his face.

"So, how's it goin', birthday boy?" a voice whispered hotly in his ear.

"AH!" he panicked and flew off the couch, raising his hands to defend himself. He dropped them as he saw Kyle standing there, holding his stomach in laughter.

"Jesus, Ken. Didn't think I'd freak you out that much," he chortled out. Kenny smirked and stood himself up.

"Well what would you have done if you were me?"

"Taken that Xbox and smashed it over your head, probably," he smiled, walking over towards him. He leaned up and grasped the back of his neck, pulling him down for a sweet peck on the lips. "Happy birthday," he swayed him gently.

"Well thank you, Love," he responded, kissing his forehead and hugging him around his waist. "How was work?"

"Frustrating as hell. Bunch of first graders came in wanting the same book for some stupid report," he rolled his eyes. "How's your day been?"

"I've just played around for hours," he laughed. "Just waiting for my little Jewey to get home," he rubbed their noses together for a moment.

"How sweet," Kyle smiled sillily. "I take it Stan and the gang stopped by already," he nodded towards the game console.

"Yup. Came to wish me good tidings and the girls wouldn't stop saying how damn fine you are," he smirked.

Kyle raised his brow. "Wait, what?"

"You heard me, my sexy little Kosher boy," he teased. "Bebe and Wendy would do just about anything to see you lacking clothes," he snickered.

"That's rather disturbing," Kyle shook his head in disbelief.

"Oh you should have heard Stan's opinion when Wendy said it," he laughed louder.

"I bet that was a hoot," Kyle laughed softly, taking his hand and leading him to once again perch on the couch.

"Well can't blame 'em," Kenny shrugged, kissing his cheek. "But your **my** sexy Jew and anyone else who ogles you is gonna have to answer to me," he smiled.

"Aren't we Mr. Domineering?" Kyle smirked, crossing his arms playfully.

"Hey, you'd be like that, too."

"I already am," he shrugged with a grin. "So," he turned and sat cross-legged, facing Kenny. "What do you want for your birthday dinner?" he asked.

"I dunno. What do _you_ want for my birthday dinner?"

"Uh uh. We're not playing that," Kyle shook his head. "What do you want? Do want me to make you something or do you wanna invite the guys to go out or what?"

Kenny considered this for a moment, then leaned in to brush Kyle's lips. "I think I'd much rather be here with you," he smiled.

"Works for me," Kyle grinned back. "What to eat, though?"

"I'm in the mood for some Hot Hebrew speaking boy, do you think you can put that on the menu?" Kenny asked, biting Kyle's bottom lip gently.

Kyle pulled his lip back and chuckled. "That's dessert," he winked. "Now. Food. Seriously."

"Surprise me?" he shrugged hopefully.

Kyle rolled his eyes, "alright. Fine. If you end up with a pound of asparagus, you're not gonna complain, got it?"

"Hey, if I still get dessert, I don't give a damn." Kyle swatted his head gently and stood to go towards the kitchen. Kenny watched him as he went, licking his lips at the boy. He wore light tan slacks with a tight black sweater over a white collared shirt and it looked fucking irresistible as far as he was concerned. He groaned softly in disappointment as he disappeared from his view behind the wall. He let his gaze wander around a bit and his eyes fell on a bag in front of the door.

"Hey Ky?"

"What?"

"What's the bag for? You go clothes shopping?"

Kyle reappeared, much to Kenny's delight, and went over to scoop up the bag. "Yeah, I had to get more work clothes," he rolled his eyes. "Gloria insists I have a different outfit for every day of the week...freaking chicks. I'm so glad I'm not dating one," he smirked at the blonde.

"Trust me, I am, too," he smiled. Kyle went and threw the bag into their closet before heading back into the kitchen.

"So whatcha making me?" Kenny called after him.

"Ken, does the word 'surprise' not hold significance with you?"

"I'm curious, so shoot me."

"Don't tempt me," he called back. "Just hang out there and get your ass kicked in Halo." How'd that kid know everything? Kenny shrugged and flipped the TV back on and grabbed his controller. After about an hour, he gave up actually trying to do anything and just ran around shooting buildings for the hell of it.

"Dinner's almost done," Kyle called out, walking over towards Kenny and leaning on the back of the couch. "Why are you picking on the buildings, Dude?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I just feel like blowing somewhere up and I doubt you want me planting bombs in the apartment."

"True. Well hurry up," he clapped his shoulder. "I'm takin' it out of the oven."

"Yes, Dear," he nodded, flipping off the television once more and heading to the kitchen. He came across a bounty of ribs and scalloped potatoes and broke into a shit-eating grin. "I love you so damn much," he grabbed Kyle and kissed him square on the lips.

"You like I take it?" Kyle laughed.

"Heck yeah," he licked his lips hungrily.

"Well then sit down and eat," Kyle said, grasping his shoulders and guiding him to a plate already specially made up. Kyle walked back over and plopped down in his seat, watching as Kenny took a bite.

"Holy fucking God, I'm dating Emeril," he gushed. He looked over and frowned. "Dude...what the hell are you gonna eat?"

"Hm? Oh, I have a salad in the fridge, duh," he smirked at himself and went to grab it. As he sat back down, Kenny compared their portion sizes and frowned deeper. Kyle caught him and laughed. "Dude, it's fine. Just eat. I like this stuff," he held up the salad for Kenny to see. "You know I don't eat as much as you," he took a bite of lettuce.

"Yea...but...it's so...not covered in barbeque sauce," he pouted.

"Dude, it's fine! I don't like barbeque sauce that much," he smiled. "I had a big lunch today with Gloria, so I don't need much."

"Where'd you go?" Kenny asked, shoving a forkful of potatoes into his mouth.

"We went to that mexican place over on 24th. It was pretty decent. You should meet me there someday," he suggested.

"It's a date," he smiled. That reminded him... "Hey, Ky?"

He looked up from his lettuce. "What's up?"

"Do you wanna...you know, go on a real date sometime?"

Kyle smirked. "What, grocery shopping isn't a good enough time for you?"

Kenny laughed softly. "As much fun as we can have in the produce section, I'm thinking maybe we should actually go out and do something sometime."

"Like what?"

"I dunno. I can think of something," he grinned, gnawing on a rib bone.

"Alright. Think of something and we'll go do it. No gay strip clubs though. I'm drawing this line now so we don't have to come across it later," he lectured.

"Aw. There goes plan A," Kenny smiled. Kyle smiled back and continued looking down at his salad. The blonde chewed his food, watching as Kyle took small bites of his lettuce. It was kinda sad they hadn't actually gone out on a real date yet. It'd been over a month of living together. Between Kyle's job and random cases popping up, they couldn't seem to find the time. Their frequent hospital trips hadn't exactly helped causes much either...

They ate their meals in silence, occasionally meeting eyes and smiling at each other. Kenny's heart pounded a bit faster as he pondered what Kyle could have gotten him for a present. Kyle didn't seem too excited about giving it to him, so it either wasn't that big or he didn't really get him anything. Which would be okay, too. Kenny would be perfectly happy with that dessert that Kyle promised him.

He stood to clear his plate and Kyle waved him off. "Dude, go sit in the family room. I'll clean up."

"But I...,"

"Go," Kyle commanded. "I promise you can do dishes tomorrow. Tonight I refuse to let you."

Kenny sighed and stepped slowly back into the family room and plopped down on the couch. He looked up at the clock, reading 9:30. He looked around the room for something to do for a few minutes, resolving to just crack his fingers for awhile out of boredom.

Suddenly, a piece of cloth dropped over his eyes and was tightly secured around the back of his head.

"What the?"

"Just come with me, Love," Kyle's sweet voice rang through his ears. Kenny smiled. Time for dessert. "I would carry you like you do for me, but I don't think I'd be able to," Kyle grasped his hands and pulled him in the direction of the bedroom, sitting him down at the head of the bed.

"Can I trust you to just sit here and be a good boy?" he asked.

"Well of course," Kenny nodded.

He could hear Kyle smirk as he murmured, "Good." Kyle grabbed his wrists and secured them behind his back on the headboard with all-too-familiar handcuffs. He pulled on them experimentally and laughed softly.

"Really that determined to make sure I stay put, are you?" he asked to his invisible lover.

"Very much so," he replied from the other side of the room. Kenny listened closely and heard some shuffling around before Kyle's footsteps approached him once more. "But most of all," he murmured into the blonde's ear, "this is payback from what you did to me a few weeks back."

"Aw, don't deny that you loved it."

"Who said I wasn't going to make you love this?"

"Trust me, I already am," he smirked, feeling his jeans already growing tighter. They'd had sex a few times a week since that experience, but nothing quite like this. Seems Kyle wanted to make it extra special tonight. Sweet.

"Now," Kyle directed. "I'm going to take off the blindfold. You are not to open your eyes. Otherwise you're getting absolutely nothing tonight, got it?" Ooh, he was playing the dominant tonight. Even better.

"Yes, Sir," Kenny nodded vigorously. He felt Kyle remove the blindfold and kept his eyes shut tight. No way in hell he was missing out on whatever Kyle had planned tonight. He heard Kyle move away and shuffle a few other things around, and he tried desperately not to peek. It wasn't easy as his excitement grew to the boiling point.

"Can I look yet?" He whined.

"Not yet," Kyle sang, still moving around. "Just be patient, Love."

"Yeah. Me and patience. Goes as well together as you and skipping a class."

Kyle chuckled. "True. Okay, when I say open 'em, you can. You laugh at this though and I'm never touching you again."

"Hm. Great. You dressed up as a clown," Kenny muttered.

"Ha, you wish. Alright. You can look."

Kenny shot his eyes open to see his boyfriend standing at the foot of the bed...in a green mini skirt. His mouth dropped into a hungry grin and he tried to move forward...realizing he was still cuffed to the bed.

"You like?" Kyle asked, spinning around for him. He'd even added a green barrette to keep his bangs back to complete the look. He'd kept the black sweater and undershirt, making him look like the school girl of the blonde's dreams. Kenny licked his lips and tried once more to go towards him.

"Hell yes!" he cried, eyeing him hungrily.

Kyle smirked and placed his arms behind his back, moving slowly towards him, swaying his hips as he went. Kenny bit his lip in his giant grin as he approached and sat down on a chair seated level with the bed. "Just how much do you like it?" He asked flirtatiously, leaning his chin into his palm and placing his elbow on the bed.

"Goddamn it I love you," he growled, trying to reach for him. Stupid chains...

Kyle chuckled and leaned towards him, mere centimeters away from his face. "That wasn't an answer," he purred. Kenny reared back to go forward and make contact with his lips, but Kyle pulled himself away.

"Aww...." Kenny groaned, trying to pull away. He watched as Kyle crossed his legs, giving a great view of his milky thighs.

"Trust me. I love it. The proof is in the pants," he breathed, gesturing down towards his now pulsing crotch.

"Oh really?" Kyle batted his eyelashes, "well, we'll have to validate that, won't we?"

"Yes please," Kenny grinned.

Kyle got up and sat on his calves at the edge of the bed. He leisurely reached over and gently grasped the hem of Kenny's t-shirt, lifting it up cautiously, careful not to make contact with Kenny's skin. Kenny couldn't hold back his goofy grin. Teasing, thy name is Kyle Broflovski. Kyle finally made the shirt go over his blonde head and slide down his arms to meet the cuffs. He sat back and stared at Kenny for a bit, smiling sweetly.

Kenny tried to lurch forward a bit, once again meeting failure. Kyle moved and reached down at the end of the bed, and Kenny watched his ass as it raised into the air. No underwear. Holy fucking God he was going to mess his jeans. It didn't help when Kyle caught him watching and teasingly wiggled his ass as he worked.

"Dammit, Kyle!" he hissed through his teeth, yanking once more.

"What?" Kyle asked, batting his lashes innocently. "It's not my fault my ass is so damn sexy."

"It's your fault I can't touch it!" He whined. He knew that Kyle would make it worthwhile in the end, but damn it, this was just fucking torture! Kyle bent back up and placed a bucket on the chair. Kenny blinked at it curiously. Bucket?

Kyle reached in and pulled out an ice cube, displaying it between his middle and index finger for Kenny to see.

"What are you doing?" He blinked.

"Making iced tea," Kyle rolled his eyes. He leaned forward and grasped the ice in-between his teeth and worked it around Kenny's left nipple. He gasped and arched his chest out slightly as the searing cold made contact with his skin. He shivered and felt the tingle travel down to his nether regions. Kyle pulled away and swallowed the ice cube reaching in the bucket for another. Kenny licked his lips in anticipation. Kyle grabbed a substantially larger block and once again placed it in his teeth, reaching over across Kenny's lap and working on the other nipple.

Kenny whimpered slightly as Kyle abandoned that region of skin and traced up his throat with the icy treat. Kyle removed the ice from his skin and held it out for Kenny to grasp. Kenny leaned forward, determined to make contact with the Jew's tender lips. Kyle bit his half of the ice cube off and dove his head away from Kenny's mouth right before hand, leaving Kenny to choke the ice down. He looked at Kyle with a raised brow, who chewed his ice and grinned sheepishly.

"You're a fucking tease," he growled.

"You know you love it," he retorted, sitting on the side of his legs in a very girl-like position. He couldn't argue with that. Kyle reached over and walked his fingers up Kenny's leg, each time he placed a step sending bolts throughout Kenny's system. He came to the blonde's jean button and brushed his fingertips over it time and again. Kenny groaned in frustration and jerked his hips up slightly.

"Patience," Kyle whispered. Kenny bit his lip and forced his hips to stay down. Goddamn he was gonna get that Jew. Kyle finally pulled the button off and slowly zipped down the fly. Kenny's cock practically jumped at him and he chuckled. "Didn't know this was quite that exciting," he commented, smiling at Kenny.

"Kyle, I don't think I've ever seen anything sexier in my whole damn life," he growled.

"Well glad to know I please you so," Kyle said, slowly pulling down his jeans. Kenny lifted his hips to help.

"Oh you have no idea," he licked his lips hungrily. Kyle laughed softly.

"I think I do," he motioned down towards his own crotch. "And this is why I told you I wouldn't wear a skirt," he chuckled.

"Well thank you for changing your mind," he smirked.

"Not at all. It's a special day, it calls for special measures," he smiled sweetly, to which Kenny returned. Kyle reached down beside the bed again, this time pulling out a long feather, meeting Kenny's expression with a smirk.

"You're acting really kinky today," Kenny laughed.

"I'm not the one enjoying it," he raised his eyebrow. "At least, not from direct exposure to them of course." He took the feather and roamed it up and down Kenny's broad chest and abs, sending him into shivers. He changed course and started running it along Kenny's pulsing member, sending his hips into a violent jerk upwards.

"Kyle, seriously!" Kenny panted.

"What? Is something the matter?" Kyle asked innocently.

"I need you. Right now. Get your hot ass over here so I can touch you!"

"Excuse me," he said with feigned anger. "You're the one tied up here, Buddy," he pointed with his free hand as he continued to work the feather. "I don't think you're in position to be shouting out orders, do you?"

"But Kyyylllleeeee!" Kenny groaned, bouncing slightly in anticipation and need for physical contact. He needed Kyle so much it was starting to hurt like hell. Kyle threw the feather to the side and reached his arm over his lap, straddling him with his torso.

"How much do you need me?" he asked saucily.

"So fucking much," Kenny pleaded.

"How much?" he repeated.

"I'm going to fucking **DIE** if you don't!"

"But you're immortal, how is that going to work?"

"Goddammit, Kyle! Stop teasing me! I need you like no tomorrow! I need you or else I'm going to bash my head against the bed to knock myself out so I'm not so tortured! I need you like you're the only thing that keeps me alive and immortal!"

Kyle lunged forward and captured Kenny's lips, much to his delight. He kissed back forcefully, trying to make up for the skin time lost during Kyle's little teasing spree. Kyle moved his leg over Kenny's, taking his weight off his arms and wrapping them around the blonde's neck to pull him closer. He broke away from Kenny's mouth and delicately worked his way towards Kenny's collarbone. Kenny threw his head back and moaned deliciously as the Jew nipped his skin and suckled gently.

"Do you still love me?" Kyle murmured into his ear as he chewed and sucked on his earlobe.

Kenny let out a shuddery breath. "Y-yes," he gasped.

"How much?" he growled.

"So much..."

"How much?" he demanded, licking the underside of his ear tenderly.

"God, Kyle, you mean fucking everything to me," he whimpered, desperately wanting to break his arms free and wrap himself around the redhead.

Kyle chuckled lowly. "Glad the feeling's mutual," he purred.

"Kyle...please...I need you...," he begged.

Kyle pulled back and looked at him lustfully. "I suppose you've been pretty damn good." he lifted himself off of the blonde. "Slide down a bit," he commanded, reaching beside the bed once more. Kenny did as ordered, feeling anticipatory twitches jolting through his thighs. Kyle reached back up and displayed a bottle of baby oil.

"Feelin' like using something different?" he asked.

"Dude, I don't care," Kenny whined. "Please?" Kyle smirked and poured a small drizzle over Kenny's burning cock. He took his palm and guided it up and down the member smoothly, coating it in the serum. Kenny moaned loudly and bit his lip. As Kyle finished, he sat back up and straddled him once more, high up on his knees.

He grabbed Kenny's shoulders and lowered himself onto his member slowly, letting out a small gasp as he went. He fully engulfed Kenny and stopped, looking into his blue eyes. Kenny craned his neck forward and Kyle met him, locking lips as he started rolling his hips. Kenny let out a loud moan into his mouth as their tongues began battling. Kyle continued lifting and lowering himself, Kenny giving what little help he was capable off.

Kyle broke off and attacked Kenny's neck, causing his head to fly back and let a yelp escape his lips. Kyle increased his pace, still chewing on Kenny's throat. Kenny looked down towards his bouncing lover, smiling in ecstasy as he watched him bob up and down over and over. The bars he was leaning against dug into his back, but he couldn't care less. Kyle stopped chewing and tore away from the skin to let out a bout of whimpers. He looked at Kenny, breathing heavily.

It was a perfect moment. Their eyes locked, their bodies one and the same. Feelings skyrocketing out of control. Absolutely perfect. Kyle once again sped up, Kenny writhing underneath him slightly. He'd never been the one not in control...and he fucking loved it. Each of Kyle's thrusts were precise, meant to please Kenny in the best way that he could. They met foreheads, leaning against each other in bliss as Kyle continued to work. They moaned and whimpered together for minutes on end, savoring each glorious second as though it were their last. Upon reaching their climaxes, they locked lips again and screamed into each other's mouth as they unleashed at the same moment. After the thrill of their peaks, they remained in this position: Kyle still sitting atop Kenny with his softening flesh pushed into him, his arms wrapped around the blondes neck as they moved their lips together in harmony.

After awhile, Kyle finally broke off slowly and removed himself from Kenny's member, sitting himself directly behind it. He reached over to the nightstand and grabbed a key, reaching behind Kenny to unlock him. As soon as his arms were free, he flung the cuffs to the side and grabbed the back of Kyle's head, pulling him towards him furiously and running his fingers through his curls.

"Best fucking present ever," he breathed into his mouth. "When did you get the skirt?" Kyle broke away, laughing a little.

"That was my bag of 'work clothes'," he winked. "And believe it or not, that wasn't the only present you get," he looked at him with his usual glimmering eyes replacing the lust filled stare.

"Really?" Kyle nodded and got off of Kenny's lap to go get something from the closet. Kenny looked down and noticed he was covered in cum. Kyle noticed as well and threw him a towel as he cleaned himself off with a separate one and ventured into the closet. Kenny finished cleaning up and sat with his legs crossed on the bed, watching as Kyle came back out with a small box in his hands.

"It's really gay. And you don't have to wear it or anything although I assure you, it is for guys...but I wanted to at least give it to you," he smiled softly. He knelt on the bed in front of Kenny and opened the box to reveal a worn silver necklace. Kenny looked at it curiously, noticing it had the Star of David with a cross in the middle.

"Wow...," he murmured, taking it out of the box and looking at it carefully. "It's...it's really beautiful..."

"It was my grandfather's," Kyle said sadly. "Then dad's. Then mine." Kenny looked up at him in confusion.

"Why would you give me a family heirloom?"

Kyle smiled and took the necklace from him, suspending it in the air for display. "This necklace symbolizes unity. A gathering of different people, despite their differences. That's an important trait of Jewish culture. Despite what Cartman may say, we are very aware of our minority status and we embrace it. It makes us special. But we don't just push other people away, we hold their hand, and tell them that despite our differences, we can come together to make a better world." He paused and his smile faded slightly. "Despite the fact that my parents pushed me away...just because I'm different than them...it's not a criticism to Jews. It's a criticism to them. I'm still a Jew because I know of the good that derives from that part of my heritage," he looked at Kenny and smiled once more. "And I also know that good parts of me derive from you. Even...even if this relationship doesn't work one day, we're still unified in ways that neither of us could have possibly imagined. We're working together, trying to solve a problem upon Earth, despite the fact that it's such a daunting task. Ken, I want you to have this because even if something happens one day...if we...separate or maybe if we're just apart for a limited amount of time...I want you to be thinking of me in some way," he reached up and clasped the necklace around Kenny's neck, and he looked down at it glimmering upon his chest. "You and I...we belong together. Whether it's trying to hunt down ghosts, fighting off people trying to hurt us, or just holding each other's hands, we were made to be with each other. I told you in the hospital before all this happened that I belong to you, and I meant it. I love you, Ken," he grasped Kenny's trembling hand.

Kenny looked down at the pale fingers enclosing his own and looked into the eyes of the owner. He sniffed and gently pried his hand away from Kyle's, taking his arms and grasping around him, pulling him tightly into his warm frame. "You, too, Ky," he whispered, trying to stifle his tears. Kyle worked his arms around his back and clasped him tightly.

Kenny nuzzled into Kyle's neck and smiled. This was **his** Kyle. This was their moment. He felt the pendent pressed in-between their warm bodies, leaving an indentation on his skin. Apart, they were but two souls lost in the world, longing for something they could have never dreamed of having. But together, unified in so many ways, they held the world at their fingertips. The fate of so many held in the palms of two young boys, lost in time, at the mercy of only themselves.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: I have been planning that sex scene for MONTHS! Ha! The first time I mentioned Kyle in a skirt I was like, "omg, I HAVE to do this!"_

_Don't you luv slutty Kyle? God, I would! Nummy nummy =)_

_So, yeah, I wasn't planning on the ending being so heavy...but um, it was. Kyle's so sensitive in my story and I love him for it =D_

_And thanks for the get-well wishes on my last chapter! I'm finally hitting recovery (I hope) and this should be the last day of school I miss...which actually kinda sucks because now I can't write all day like I have been DX_

_Thanks for all the usual stuff!_

_**PS: **__Am I the only one here who spends unhealthy amounts of time looking for Fanart and Fanvideos of SP Yaoi on Youtube and Deviantart? Seriously, I don't know why I'm so obsessive. It's probably not good XD_

_But yet...so delicious...ah, the conundrum!_

_**PPS:**__ I wanna see Kyle in the work uniform I gave him XD...and the skirt!!!!....if I could draw, it'd be a lot easier =(_

_Damn lack of talent._


	26. Innocence

_A/N: Bah, I'm still sick. Stupid life of evilness. Okay, story's gonna try to get back on track with cases and such. Yeah._

_Enjoy =)_

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He walked leisurely down the sidewalk, looking at the trees swaying gently around him in the wind. He took a deep breath and smiled, doing a little turn as he continued to move. It was a good day.

"It's mine!" he heard shouted from a little way away from him.

"No you slut, it's mine!"

Kenny broke into a wicked grin. Nothing like a good catfight to really get the afternoon going. He sped up and walked in the direction of the shouts to come across two glowing figures fighting behind a building.

"Well, well, well," he whispered, shaking his head softly with a smile. It was about damn time he found some more ghosts. And a two-for-one special at that.

The girls didn't take notice of the gawking teenager as they pushed each other and yanked their hair.

"Excuse me, ladies?" Kenny started, walking closer towards them. They turned around and let out ear-piercing shrieks. Kenny slammed his hands over his ears and winced. "YOU'RE the ghosts!" he shouted back. "Why are YOU freaking out?!"

"You can see us!" one exclaimed. He uncovered his ears and looked towards them. Twins. Oh how wonderful. They stood side by side, height and size identical. Their brown hair both pushed back by matching black headbands.

"Yeah, I can," he said, walking right up in front of them. "Now, why the hell are you two fighting?"

The twin in a pale yellow dress frowned. "Who are you and why the hell should we tell you anything?"

"Name's Kenny," he nodded. "I'm supposed to be here to help people like you."

"Whaddya mean?" the other asked.

"I um, help dead people," he shrugged. "You're here because you're stuck on Earth. It's my job to make sure that you end up in Heaven or Hell or wherever you're going. So, mind telling me who you are and why you're trying to re-kill each other?"

"I'm Madison," one responded, "and this," she gestured towards her sister in the dress, "is Madelynn." Madelynn waved shyly. He gave her a small smile.

"We're fighting because Madison over here thinks that the headband she's wearing belongs to her," Madelynn crossed her arms and scowled.

"Um...they look like they're the same to me," Kenny raised his brow.

"They are, but it's the principle of the thing!" Madison exclaimed.

"I shouldn't have to share everything with you!" Madelynn yelled at her.

"It's not like it's always my choice, Lynn!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Kenny waved his arms in front of him, stepping in-between them. "Look, why don't we talk this over calmly? Just come with me and we can talk to someone else about this whole thing, too."

"Who?" Madison blinked.

"Kyle, I'm on my way to meet him. He's a great mediator, so he can help you two calm down, I'm sure."

"Ooh, another guy," Madelynn grinned. She turned to Madison and stuck her tongue out. "We don't have to share him, then," she gestured towards Kenny.

Kenny smirked at her as they began walking towards the library right down the street. "Did I happen to mention that Kyle's my boyfriend?"

"Dammit," she crossed her arms and pouted. Madison and Kenny laughed softly.

"So, how'd you end up with this job?" Madison asked.

"Darnedest thing," Kenny replied. "It just kinda happened one day when I was in Hell. I was talking to Satan and all of a sudden, I'm looking for ghosts and breaking up fights. Fun for all," he grinned.

"That's neat," Madison nodded.

"It's definitely a unique job," Madelynn agreed. "Doubt the pay's very good though."

"Hey, immortality works pretty well for payment in my opinion," he shrugged.

"That does seem like it would be a perk," Madison replied. Kenny opened the door of the library and allowed them to step through. He followed close behind and scoured the building for his Jew. He found him leaning against the counter in discussion with someone and walked up. He could see him pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration and laughed softly.

"So...," the kid drawled out to Kyle. "It's about...Hamlet...killing people?"

"No, it's mostly about Hamlet battling himself, trying to figure out if killing his uncle is really the solution to his problem."

"What was his problem?"

"He had a boner for Orphelia and couldn't hide it very well," Kenny interjected with a large grin.

Kyle looked at him and smiled back. "Well, I'm impressed. You kinda sorta know something. Anyways," he turned back to the kid, "no, he wasn't sure if killing Claudius out of cold blood was really right."

"Wait, why would he want to kill his uncle?"

"He killed Hamlet's dad."

"He did?!"

"Kid, did you read this story at all?" Kyle asked in annoyance.

"Well, no shit!" the kid spit back. "But how can anyone understand something written before Jesus was born?!"

Kyle shook his head softly and Kenny chuckled. "Look, I just need to know the basic story," the kid said. "That librarian chick said if anyone could help me, you could. So can you or not?"

"Ever watch the Lion King, kid?"

"What?" he blinked at the redhead curiously.

"Lion King. Same damn principle. Just make it so everyone dies in the end and you've got Hamlet."

"Oh, thanks!" The kid bounded away and out the doors. Kyle let out a heavy sigh and turned towards Kenny tiredly.

"I see we have visitors," he smiled at Madison and Madelynn, who both waved back shyly. Kenny leaned towards him and pecked his lips gently.

"Rough day?"

"Oh god, I'm ready to pull out my hair. I've been dealing with people like him all day...I fucking hate Saturdays," he growled.

"You can't pull out your hair," Kenny pouted, grabbing a curl and twisting it around his finger. "I like it too much."

Kyle blushed slightly as Gloria came up to the counter. "Hey, no fraternizing on the job," she smirked.

"Hey, you and your husband were making out in the religious section, so I don't think you have any right to judge," Kyle retorted.

She chuckled softly, "alright, Smart-ass, you're free."

"Thank you so much," he said, hopping over the counter.

"There's a door you can use, you know," she swung it back and forth a few times for display.

"I like the fact that I make you and everyone else who works here jealous that I can do that without fracturing my hip," he smiled.

"Ha ha. Very funny. Go home before I launch into a story about life in the twenties," she waved him away.

"See ya," Kenny grabbed Kyle's hand and waved at her as they started out the building with the twins trailing behind.

"Let's go to the park," Kenny suggested. "We can talk there," he looked from Kyle to the girls and they nodded in agreement. Kyle tiredly laid his head on Kenny's shoulder as they walked and he placed his head atop his.

"You feel kinda warm," Kyle commented.

"I told you, you make my body temperature go out of control," he smirked.

"Not what I meant, Ken," he commented, lifting his head and looking at his face. "You're flushed," he said.

"You always are," he retorted.

"Not like this," he placed the back of his freehand on Kenny's cheek. "I think you're fevered, Dude," he said worriedly.

"I feel fine," he shrugged. "Maybe it's just from walking."

"I hope so...," he said, biting his lip. Kenny smiled and gently kissed his cheek.

"You worry too much."

"Well doesn't that sound familiar," Kyle rolled his eyes. Kenny burst into laughter as they stepped through the park at Kenny's lead. He swung Kyle in front of him and covered his eyes.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing?" Kyle asked.

"Well, I had something planned for us, but we kinda got unexpected company. Still, I have everything ready, so we might as well go."

"We can go somewhere else and meet you back here," Madelynn shrugged.

"Would you?" Kenny asked sweetly. "Give us about an hour or so and meet us back here?"

"Sure," Madison shrugged. "We kinda wanted to go look around at the shops to see how they've changed anyways. We'll meet ya back here," she smiled.

"Excellent. Thank you ladies," he smiled widely. They turned and waved as they walked off.

"Ken? What are you planning on doing to me?" Kyle asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Kenny smirked, leading him forward, trying to avoid tree roots and rocks in their path. "Remember how we were talking about going on a date?"

"Yeah...there better not be gay strippers, Ken."

He chuckled. "No, they weren't free until next Wednesday, so this will just have to do." he removed his hands from the Jew's eyes and watched as he broke into a silly grin.

"Ken, you're so gay," he chuckled as he beheld a picnic blanket set up for two.

Kenny shrugged. "I thought it'd be nice to do something like this. All the movies out suck and things cost too much for our budget. I thought you'd like this."

Kyle turned around and chastely kissed his lips. "Of course I do," he smiled. "I'm just saying that you are in fact gay," he hit Kenny's nose with his fingertip. "And I couldn't be happier that you are." Kenny grinned and led him to sit down on the blanket he reached into the basket and pulled out a sandwich, handing it off to Kyle.

"Turkey, tomato, lettuce, and mustard on wheat," he smiled.

"I'm impressed," he smiled back.

"Well, contrary to what everyone tends to say, I do pay attention, Love."

"I know you do," he smiled. "If you didn't, there's no way in hell we'd still be together because we wouldn't be able to cooperate on anything. What inspired you to set this up?"

Kenny grabbed his sandwich and smirked. "I'm in a very gay mood right now, I suppose."

"Obviously," he took a bite and licked his lips. "So, what's the deal with the twins?"

"I don't really know," he shrugged. "I didn't really get the details because I figured that it'd be easier to tackle their issue if you heard the story with me."

"True."

"All I know so far is they share everything."

"Do you even know their names?"

"Madelynn was the one in the dress, Madison was the one in the blue shirt."

"Madelynn and Madison? Dude, that would drive me absolutely insane if I were one of them. Their names are so damn close to each other."

Kenny chuckled. "Trust me, I think they find it annoying, too. Madison called Madelynn 'Lynn' so we'll see if it's okay to call her that so we don't go crazy mixing them up."

"Works for me," Kyle shrugged, leaning into Kenny tiredly and sighing, nibbling on his sandwich.

"Something wrong?" he asked in concern.

"I dunno. Just tired, I guess. This sandwich kicks ass, by the way."

"Ha ha, even I know how to make a sandwich, Ky."

"Well, I'm proud of you," he looked up at him and smiled sweetly.

"Thank you, Dear," he kissed his forehead softly. Kyle nuzzled in closer and they continued eating their sandwiches in silence, watching the sun glimmering off a small pond in front of them.

"This is a romantic movie waiting to happen," Kyle chuckled, swallowing the last of his sandwich. Kenny smirked.

"Not just yet. There hasn't been a make out scene yet." he grabbed Kyle's shoulders and pushed him down onto his back and leaned on top of him. "Wanna change that?" he wriggled his eyebrows.

Kyle giggled softly. "Dude, we're in the middle of a park."

"Right. Now everyone can see that your hot kosher ass is taken by the hood rat."

"Aw, you're not a hood rat," he smiled sympathetically. "You're just Kenny," he smiled and craned his neck up to meet his lips softly.

"Just Kenny, huh?"

"**My** Kenny," he replied.

"I like that better," he smirked, leaning down to lock their lips again. Kyle slowly took his arm and worked it up to the back of Kenny's head, pressing him closer. They slowly shut their eyes and allowed their tongues to dance as they held each other close. Kenny slowly and lightly ground his hips into Kyle's, feeling a reaction starting from the both of them.

"Love you," Kenny murmured into the boy's mouth.

"Love you, too," he replied softly.

"Aw, call Hallmark, Stan. I think they're having a moment," a voice called from above them.

They snapped their heads up and looked to find Cartman and Stan staring at them and shaking their heads disapprovingly.

"Guys, you're in public. Stop dry humping each other," Stan commented.

"Keep going!" Bebe's voice called from their other side.

"Come on!" Wendy smiled wickedly.

Kenny and Kyle groaned as the blonde pushed himself off of Kyle and lent a hand to help him sit up. "Way to kill the mood, guys," Kenny muttered.

"What mood?! You guys were halfway to fucking each other in the middle of the park!" Stan exclaimed.

"No, we weren't," Kyle blushed furiously. "How dare we kiss. Jesus, Stan. We so much as look at each other and you're there saying that we're fucking. What the hell is your problem?!"

"I think you're a little too spontaneous, that's all," he shrugged.

"If I was with a girl I'm sure we wouldn't be having this discussion," he glowered back.

"T-that's not true!" Stan stammered.

Kenny rolled his eyes as the girls came closer. "It sure wouldn't be as hot if you were with a girl," Bebe winked.

Kyle's blush deepened and he opted for looking back at the water as opposed to responding to her.

"Guys, seriously," Kenny sighed. "Can we please have some goddamn privacy?"

"You guys live together alone," Cartman commented. "You have tons of privacy."

"Well, we're kinda on a date right now," he growled. "So if you wouldn't mind..."

"Aww!" Bebe and Wendy squealed.

"You're on a date in the park? How gay is that?" Cartman laughed.

"Hey, newsflash, Fatass," Kyle spouted. "We **are** gay."

"Trust me, I'm well aware," he smirked at the Jew. Kyle scowled at him and looked away again in frustration.

"Guys, there could be kids here, okay?" Stan said. "Just be wary of that."

Kyle turned his head back and raised his brow at him. "Dude. Seriously, you're pissing me off. There's no one else here! And we were just kissing. It's not the end of the world."

"That was more than kissing, Kyle," he lectured.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "It's not like we were giving each other blow jobs or something, Jesus Christ."

Kenny smirked and sat up on his knees. "We can change that though," he commented, pushing Kyle back down once again and holding him down by his wrists.

"Oh god, no!' Stan turned away in disgust.

"YES!" Wendy and Bebe cried out.

Kyle looked into his blue gaze and shook his head with an amused grin. Kenny winked and leant down to kiss his nose gently. "How much do you think it would take to get them to leave?" he whispered into his ear.

"I have no idea," he sniggered back.

"Well, I know how to get Stan and Cartman to leave," he replied softly. "The girls may like it too much though." Kyle continued to laugh warmly in his ear. Kenny bent down and started nibbling at his neck, and Kyle's chuckling broke into a surprised gasp.

"Oh my god!" Cartman exclaimed in disgust.

Kenny continued to work on Kyle's neck as he shivered beneath him. "K-Ken...ah..." he shook a bit. Kenny laughed and trailed kisses up towards his ear.

"AH!" Bebe and Wendy squealed.

"Okay! We get the point! We're leaving!" Stan cried out. Kenny was far too gone to pay him any mind though as he felt Kyle's face burning with that familiar passion-enflamed blush.

"Ken...I-I think w-we're okay n-now...," Kyle gasped out as Kenny chewed just under his earlobe.

"I know," he murmured. "But damn, you're fucking hot."

"Bebe, get your phone! We need a picture!" Wendy cried out.

"K-ken! Sto...stop!" Kyle cried out, trying to push the larger boy off. Kenny laughed and leaned back up, sitting atop the redhead's hips.

"Aw...you don't love me no more?" he pursed his lips pathetically.

"Kenny, I'm going to hurt you," he breathed out in chuckles.

"Babe, you can do whatever you want to me," he said saucily. He looked up to see Bebe holding her phone towards them. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"Video taping the hottest thing I've ever seen," she grinned maniacally.

"Dude, what the hell?!" Stan cried out. "You two need to learn some goddamn decency!"

"You're such a prude, Stan," Wendy argued. "We've done stuff worse than this!" she gestured wildly towards the two on the ground.

"Really? Like what?" Kenny asked with a wide grin.

"Nothing," Stan said firmly.

"Bullshit," she looked from him to Kenny angrily. "We've had sex in public before. So I don't know why he's freaking out over you two just making out."

"WENDY!"

"Where the hell did you have sex?!" Kyle asked, blinking towards his hypocritical friend.

Wendy laughed. "Let's see," she raised her hand to count her fingers. "We've done it at school, in that alley by the chinese restaurant, down by Starks, and bunch of other places, too," she grinned.

"WENDY!!!!" he repeated, desperation edging his voice.

The other four burst into laughter as Stan's face started glowing brightly. "And you think **we're** inappropriate, Stan?" Kyle asked.

"Well....they were secluded areas!" he argued. "This is in the middle of wide open space!" he gestured around.

"Dude, just stop," Kenny shook his head. "We know better than to get it on right here. We'd at least go into the bushes over there," he motioned his head towards the edge of the clearing. "So if you don't mind...," he broke into a wild grin, scooping Kyle up in his arms and standing.

"Ah!" Kyle cried, grasping his neck trying not to fall out of the blonde's grasp.

"What the hell are you doing?" Cartman blinked.

"Well going to the bushes," he replied innocently.

"Can we go, too?" Bebe smiled, her camera still rolling.

"Dude, we just came over to see if you guys wanted to head to the movies with us! Jeez!" Stan cried out, waving his hands in front of him and trying not to look at them.

"No thanks, the theatre doesn't like people getting freaky in the seats," Kenny shrugged. Kyle stifled a laugh into his broad shoulder.

"Seriously," Stan said.

"We would, but we have stuff to do at home," Kyle took his face from Kenny's frame. "We have a bunch of crap to catch up on for school and I need to try to contact Ike."

"Alright," he nodded with a small smile.

"Kenneh, can me and Stan talk to you alone for a minute?" Cartman asked, motioning his head behind him.

Kenny and Kyle looked at each other and shrugged. Kenny set Kyle down and walked over towards the other two boys as Kyle tried to snatch Bebe's phone to delete the evidence of their little frisk-off.

"What's up?" he asked when they were out of the the other's ear shot.

"It's about this Mitch guy," Stan said quietly. "We're looking around and we found three guys named Mitch who would fit how you described him at the hospital. We need your help narrowing it down."

Kenny narrowed his eyes. "Kyle said no and we're going to respect that."

"Kenny, I know exactly what he said," Stan argued. "But also remember who Kyle is. If somebody killed him, he'd still want to spare their life."

"These guys did more than just kill him," Kenny spit out angrily. "That would have been merciful compared to what they did! But he doesn't want revenge!"

"What about you?" Cartman asked.

"What about me?"

"What do you want done?" he stated. "They kidnapped you and beat you and forced you to watch them rape him! What do **you** want done to this guy? Do you just want him to run free, where he could find you and hurt you both again? Is that what you want, Kenny?!"

Kenny blinked at him slowly. "Cartman...I killed one of them. You know how I fucking felt after that? I couldn't fucking stop crying about it. If Kyle hadn't been there to help me through it, who knows what the fuck I would have done to myself. The guilt drove me apart. You really wanna go through that?"

"But they...," Stan started.

"I know what they fucking did," Kenny interrupted. "I may have been knocked out but trust me, I remember. They hit me, and kicked me, and grabbed Kyle and...and told him to bend over.....," he paused and looked at them with glassy eyes. "I...I wanted them dead. Every fiber of my being wanted them dead and rotting in the ground, believe me. And that stayed strong until I actually got my wish. Killing Barney...didn't change anything. I still had some bruises, Kyle was still terrified...revenge doesn't work like you seem to think it does. So many of us say that we want someone dead, but we don't mean it. Like when Kyle died...Cartman how did that make you feel?"

"What?" he blinked.

"For every year of our lives together, you've claimed to want Kyle dead for...foiling your plans or just over-stepping you in some ways...you wanted revenge for him besting you. And yet he died and it tore you apart."

"It didn't tear me apart, Asshole!" he hissed.

"Bullshit, Cartman," Stan muttered. "You were a fucking disaster," he paused and looked at Kenny. "We all were," they all glanced over at the redhead, who was laughing with the girls as they played keep-away with Bebe's phone.

Kenny nodded, "enemies may hate each other. They may...spit on the other's name. But if you play a role in their death...it destroys you. What they did to Kyle was a thousand times worse than what they did to me...I would gladly sit through getting beaten time after time if I could take back what happened to him. But I can't and we both know it, so we're just taking steps together, trying to get back to the way things were."

"But what if he comes back?" Cartman asked lowly. "What if he takes Kahl...or you? What then, Kenny? Do you really think that he'd be able to deal with getting violated like that again?" Kenny stared at him, shivering as he heard Kyle's screams.

"I...I don't know. I don't want you going to prison on murder charges, that's for sure...and I don't want you to kill anyone period."

"Would Kyle testify?" Stan asked.

"What?"

"Do you think that Kyle would testify if we got the police to arrest this guy?" Cartman explained.

"I don't know. I doubt he'd want to...," Kenny looked over at his Jew again, who was getting jumped on playfully by Bebe. He stumbled and grasped her in his arms and laughed as he straightened out and she hugged around his neck tightly.

"Well, I think he would if he considered the circumstances. I mean, what if this guy takes other victims?"

"He won't." he said simply.

"How do you know?" Cartman demanded.

"This was his first time doing something like that," Kenny looked back at him. "He let Barney do everything first. Barney was the one with the lawyers. He held the cards. Mitch was just there because he knew that he could get away with it. He couldn't handle doing this to someone else whom he doesn't know the weaknesses of."

"And what's Kyle's weakness?" Stan asked.

"Me," he said softly. "And he's mine," he sighed. "Even if we weren't boyfriends...," he reached up and grasped the pendant around his neck and stared down at it. "We mean everything to each other. It's almost like you and him," Kenny looked at Stan with sad eyes. "I know he would have done it for you, too. And Mitch and Barney both saw that. Kyle cares about others before himself...it's a great trait...but it just makes him so vulnerable."

"That's Kyle's necklace," Stan noted softly.

Kenny nodded. "He gave it to me for my birthday. He said it symbolized that we're together, despite how different we are."

"Wow, how gay," Cartman commented.

Kenny sighed heavily. "No...it's...I don't know how to describe it. But it means so much. _He_ means so much....I...I want this guy to go to jail. But he won't be in there for life. He'll get out and..."

"And he'll come back for you," Stan finished.

"No. He'll come back for Kyle," he said, looking at him with glistening eyes. "Kyle was the one they were after the whole time. I just happened to be the easiest way to get to him."

"Why were they after him?"

"I...I don't really know," he sniffed. "I think it's something about Kyle that you two can't really see. You're his friends, but there's no attraction between you in any other sense."

"What can't we see?" Stan asked. "If you say anything about his sex ability, I'll hurt you."

Kenny gave him a small smirk. "Well, that's a lengthy topic, because he's damn good, but that's not what I was talking about...," he looked back over towards Kyle, sprawled out on the ground with the girls making pictures in the clouds. "He's so...innocent," he started. "There's just something about him...it draws you to him. He's so perfect in so many ways," he laughed. "Everything about him is just so right, you know? If you catch sight of him, you fall for him. It's just how it goes."

"You're right," Stan agreed. Kenny shot his head back towards him and raised his brow.

"I'm not saying I'm gay for Kyle if that's what you're thinking, you perv," he smirked. "But when we were kids, before we met...I just saw him and instantly I wanted to get to know him. Maybe it was his insane hair or his eyes or something, I'm not sure. But I just walked over to see if he wanted to color with me and I haven't walked away since," he shrugged.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Cartman growled. "I've been trying to repel him for years!"

"Cartman, stop kidding yourself," Kenny shook his head. "You care about him as much as Stan and I. I mean, not the deep 'I'll hold you until your problems go away' type caring, but when the cards are down, you always are there for him. You have a really shitty way of showing it, but you're always there to help him. And the same is vice versa and you know it."

"Oh please," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Look, you hate everything about him, but you continue to hang out with him and talk to him and stuff! I mean, if you really hated him as a person, you'd just ignore him," Kenny continued. "And that's the way it is for everyone else, too. Remember how popular he was in elementary and middle school? Everyone knew Kyle Broflovski and everyone called him 'cool' and he was invited to all these parties...he was a popular guy. But then high school started...everyone started to drift away from him because he stayed the same and they all changed. No one cared that he was seven grades above us all anymore, they considered him a freak for it. But people he just meets, they don't know that. They just see a pretty redheaded genius boy with the innocent face of a child and nothing more. They don't know that the only thing that's changed is his appearance over the years."

"And that's what Barney and Mitch saw," Stan said slowly, gazing at Kyle.

Kenny followed his stare and nodded. "Yeah. They saw whom they considered an easy target. Someone too innocent and caring to really get in way of what they wanted if they manipulated him the right way...they...they called him 'pretty' and 'beautiful'," his stomach churned slightly. "I call him that, too...but not like they did. They said it to deliberately place him in the position of a girl. A scared, powerless little girl. Because it made them feel even more powerful...," he paused and looked away from Kyle back to the necklace pendant in his hand, and he clasped his hand around it tightly. "He had brown hair. And brown eyes. He had a dark beard...and his nose was fucking huge. Kyle knocked out his front bottom tooth," he muttered.

He looked up to find Stan and Cartman gazing at him in confusion. "I want this guy in prison. And I want to be there when they arrest him," he said lowly. "I don't want him coming back for Kyle...I want him sent far away. Will you promise me that you'll let me be there when you track him down?"

"Of course, Dude," Stan said softly.

"And promise me that you'll help me keep Kyle away from it until he's called to testify?"

"Why?" Cartman asked.

"You saw what happened in that office," he bit his lip. "Kyle wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice himself again for us, and I'm not letting that happen," he looked back towards the redhead. "I love him. I really do," he said softly. "I...he cries in his sleep....I can't stand it."

"I thought you said he was sleeping better."

"I said that for the girls' benefit," he looked back at Stan then back towards his Jew again. "He...he does it softly. Sometimes he's awake and sometimes he's not. He's woken up screaming a few times, too...he's had one or two panic attacks when the lights went out at the apartment when someone hit our electrical line."

"I really don't wanna know, but do you two have sex?" Cartman asked.

Kenny looked at him and nodded. "We do. Usually a few times a week. He's gotten better about it, so long as he can actually see me. The first time we did after this happened...I blindfolded him and tied his wrists to the bed."

"Oh, Dude!" They stuck their tongues out in disgust.

"Let me finish," he said firmly. "I'm not bragging about my ability to be kinky, alright?" The retracted their tongues and nodded him on. He took a deep breath and continued, "that's how they raped him. They tied his wrists behind his back and put a scarf over his eyes...so he became afraid of darkness and not being able to have control. So I copied that, trying to show him that so long as I was there, he didn't need to be afraid. I think that helped him a lot...I mean, he's been the one to start us some nights. But he's still a bit nervous if the lights are out or his wrist or ankle gets caught in a sheet or whatever."

"Mitchell Derrick," Stan muttered, rubbing his arm.

"What?"

"Mitchell Derrick. He's the only one who fits your description," Stan stared into his eyes. "We know where he lives. We'll find him and take the police there."

"When?" Kenny asked.

"Today if at all possible."

"No, Monday," he said sturdily.

"Why?"

"Kyle has work then...he'll be none the wiser about it. We'll go during his shift and hopefully get back before he gets home."

Stan and Cartman nodded. "Alright. You think he'll run?"

Kenny shook his head. "I doubt it. If he doesn't know about Barney dying, especially. He won't know that he's alone without a lawyer...and even if he does, he probably doesn't see much chance of us getting caught...they probably threatened my life or something if Kyle ever told police...," he trailed off and his eyes widened with the other two.

"That's why he wouldn't talk," Stan whispered in realization.

"Oh my god...," Cartman shook his head. "Stupid fucking Jew," he muttered.

Kenny looked towards Kyle again, who was looking straight back at him with a raised brow. He turned away quickly and shook. "I don't believe it...that's why he wouldn't let the doctors look at him, too I bet," he said softly. "Dammit," he hissed through clenched teeth.

Stan placed a hand on his shoulder and he looked up into his blue gaze. "Look," he said gently. "Ky's gonna be okay. It's gonna take time, but he'll be okay. You know how strong he is." Kenny nodded in agreement. "As soon as we take this fucker down and get Fischbach off his back...and sort out the letter issue, things will start falling into place again. He'll finally look like he used to," he looked at Kyle sadly.

Cartman looked at him confusedly. "He looks the same to me. Scrawny ginger Jewrat."

"His eyes, Cartman. Look into his eyes," Kenny said. "They used to glitter nonstop. Despite the fact that he clearly wasn't happy, he looked it because not all of his problems were shoved in his face. Now I only see that glitter occasionally...there are very few moments were he's truly happy."

"And I'm guessing that happens to take place before and after sex, right?" he rolled his eyes.

Kenny smirked. "Nah, they get darker. That boy has a lust stare that'll drive even straight guys to their knees to suck him off."

"AW!" They exclaimed, wrinkling their noses at him. He snickered lightly and noticed Madison and Madelynn making their way back through the park. They waved at him and he flashed them a smile as they went to sit against a tree to wait for the boys.

"I've noticed the glitter coming back sometimes, too," Stan said quietly. Kenny looked at him and smiled softly.

"You have?"

Stan nodded. "After you kiss him or tell him you love him it comes back." He looked at Kyle and smiled softly as he watched him and the girls talking and stealing his glasses. "I'm not gonna lie, this whole 'you and him together' thing still freaks me out. I mean...it's you two," he looked back and shrugged sheepishly. Kenny smirked and nodded. He knew what he meant. Him and Kyle just didn't seem too compatible at a distance. "However," Stan continued. "It's obvious that you mean a lot to him and he means a lot to you. I honestly thought this relationship of yours was just a fling...that you were just trying to get him into bed or something. But if you're willing to tough it out through everything you two have been through...well, needless to say you have my support," he smiled brightly. Kenny returned the look and they embraced in a quick one-armed hug. "And we're taking this fucker down. He's never getting near Kyle again, I promise," Stan reassured him.

"Right," Cartman nodded curtly.

"Hey, Kenny!" Bebe called out. "We have a present for you!"

"What?" Kenny turned around and burst out laughing at his boyfriend. The girls had managed to wrap their picnic blanket around his arms securely and he was trying to wriggle out of it, groaning in frustration. He walked over and stood in front of Kyle, smirking at him saucily.

"Well thank you, girls. My very own Kosher boy. How very beautiful he is," he stroked the boy's face lightly.

"Kenny, let me out!" he demanded, trying to break free.

"But...but you're my present," he pouted. "The bestest present ever!"

"I thought I already gave you the bestest present ever," Kyle raised his brow. Kenny grinned widely with memories of that skirt.

"Okay, this is a close second," he replied, stroking his hair.

"Well, foreplay in the park? Just how low do you fags sink?" A voice called out. Kenny's stomach churned again...oh god.

He turned and saw Fischbach standing atop the hill smiling evilly.

"Good," Cartman breathed from beside Kenny.

"Bebe, Wendy, go over there," Stan directed over towards the side. "Take Kyle with you," he nodded.

"Fuck no!" Kyle cried. "I'm fine!"

"Girls, please," Kenny nodded. They nodded back softly and took the bound boy over towards the plants surrounding the pond.

"Aw, little Ginger doesn't wanna fight me today?" Toby grinned, walking down towards the three guards.

"What do you want?" Kenny growled.

"Your boyfriend screaming for mercy, that's all," he shrugged. Kenny growled possessively.

"Try me, you fuck," he spit.

Toby let out a snort and eyed the three of them. "Boys?" he called out behind him. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman watched as his three cronies appeared from behind the hill and started walking down towards them.

Fuck.

"What's going on?!" Wendy cried out.

"Shut up, whore," Toby spit out at her.

Stan's eyes widened and he took a step towards him. "Watch how you talk to my girlfriend, you fat fuck!" he shouted.

"Dude, untie me!" Kyle said to the girls, trying to wriggle out.

"How convenient. He's all ready for me to go," Toby grinned towards him maliciously. He turned back towards Stan and chuckled. "Alright. I'll leave your whore alone," he turned his gaze towards Kenny. "I'll just go after yours instead," he smiled, stepping behind his buddies.

Kenny stole a look at Kyle, who was still struggling to get loose. The girls were trying desperately to get him out, but couldn't seem to do it. "Fuck, it's too tight!" Bebe groaned, trying to work her nails under the main knot.

"Damn it, where'd you girls learn how to tie knots? The Navy?!" Kyle shouted.

"Stop squirming!" Wendy demanded.

"Well, I'll leave you six to have some fun," Toby said. "I've got a playdate with Gingy," he said, calmly walking towards the three on the other side of the pond. Kenny lunged towards him, but was intercepted by Tom's burly physique.

"Hey now," the larger boy said. "Toby's just gonna go see your boyfriend...is that so bad?" Kenny growled and threw his fist at him, Tom catching it and twisting it behind his back. He groaned in pain and Stan and Cartman started to step towards him, ending up caught by the other two.

"Goddammit, you people are fatter than Cartman!" Stan said, trying to break out of John's grip.

"AY!" Cartman shouted, kicking Stan in the shin. Stan yelped loudly and glared at the Fatass.

John, Mark, and Tom burst out laughing. "We can just let them kill each other, Toby doesn't even need us," Mark chortled, flinging his platinum blonde hair out of his eyes.

"Why the fuck **does** he need you?!" Kenny spit, trying to wrangle himself out of Tom's grasp.

"We've all had to deal with the Ginger's grades, too. Besides, Toby's our pal. We don't let people break our pals down without helping fight back," John retorted.

"This should be quite a sweet show," Tom commented, whirling himself around with Kenny to face in Kyle's direction. Kenny watched in horror as Toby moved closer towards the three with Kyle still tangled in the blanket.

"RUN!" Kyle shouted to the girls, kicking them back a bit.

"But...but," they stuttered.

"I said to fucking run!" He demanded. They looked at each other and nodded, retreating back towards the tree by Madison and Madelynn, who were watching Kyle with terrified expressions.

Kyle shot his head back around and watched as Toby approached him, backing up slowly. As soon as Toby was within arm's range, he dove around him and turned with his back towards Kenny and the others.

"Fast little Ginger, I'll give you that," Toby nodded.

"Kyle, run!" Kenny shouted, trying to break away and get to him.

Kyle looked back at him for a moment and bit his lip, turning back to face Toby. "D-dude, look. I'm sorry you got kicked out, alright?" he tried to talk his way out. "B-but it's not like I planned for it to happen or anything!"

"You really think that has anything to do with it? The point is it's YOUR fault that my life is a fucking train wreck! I was riding on a track scholarship, then I got booted off the team because of you!"

"You fucking knocked me unconscious! That was YOUR fucking fault, you retard!" Kenny winced. Kyle's short temper was not helping him any.

Toby lunged forward and grabbed him, throwing him onto the ground. He placed his foot atop Kyle's chest and pressed down. Kyle groaned as Toby sneered, "a retard am I? At least I'm not a weak, pathetic little Ginger who has to have people watch me night and day. At least I'm not the most hated item in school because I just had to try to show up everyone. At least my parents let me back into the house," he smiled evilly.

"Then why...why are you still after him?!" Stan cried out.

Toby looked up at him and chuckled. "Well, multiple reasons actually." He grabbed Kyle off the ground and held him against his chest with one arm, grabbing his knife in the other. He held the blade against Kyle's face and smiled sadistically.

"One," he quickly sliced Kyle's cheek and prompted a loud cry of pain from him. "He was the reason I was in trouble in the first place. Two:," he sliced his cheek yet again, "he's fucking showed me up in everything, academic and track-wise. Three:," slice, "he told my girlfriend to break up with me, didn't you, Gingey?"

Kyle, wincing from the stinging in his face looked up at him and growled, "you were fucking beating the shit out of her! You twisted freak!"

"Four:," slice, "he keeps calling me names," he smirked. "Five:," slice...

"FUCKING STOP IT!" Kenny screeched.

"Okay," Toby shrugged. "I'll just cut him for fun," he smirked, bringing the knife down to Kyle's other cheek and carving into it. Kyle held still, trying to tough out the cutting, looking at Kenny with sad eyes. Kenny stared back at him, trying to get to him, but failing miserably.

"Ya know...I got something even more fun," Toby said, placing the knife back in his pocket after marking Kyle's other cheek in full. He switched arms holding the boy and reached into his other, pulling out a bag with something white inside.

"You're gonna do crack?" Cartman shook his head in confusion.

Toby smirked. "Not right now, no. This is something a little different." He placed the open bag back into his jeans and pulled out a handful. "It's something I'm sure you use every night, Tubs," he grinned.

Kyle's eyes widened with realization and he tried to thrash out of Toby's hold. "Let go of me!" he commanded, pulling as much as he could. Toby pulled him back tightly and slammed his palm against Kyle's right cheek and scraped his hand down his face. Kyle's eyes watered and he screamed a bit before Toby slammed his hand over his mouth to contain his cries.

"See?" he grinned down at the sobbing redhead. "This is what you get for being you, Ginge," he said. "You could have just been like everyone else. You could have just blended in with the crowd, but no. You just had to try to outshine everyone. And look what it's done to you."

Kyle sobbed something incoherent into Toby's hand and he removed it. "What?"

"I...I didn't try to do anything...," he sniffed. "I just did my fucking work...why do you hate me just for that?!"

"If you were in my position, Ginger, you'd understand," Toby growled.

"We're ALL in that fucking position!" Kenny screamed. Toby looked at him with a quirked brow. "Every single one of us has a class with Kyle, you fuck," he growled. "ALL of us have had our grades drop because he raised the damn average! And yet you're looking at his best friend, a friend, and his fucking boyfriend! Just because YOU weren't smart enough to get help, it doesn't mean that it's HIS fault. It's YOUR fault!"

"Please, Fag," he scoffed. "Why does this matter that fucking much to you?"

"He's my boyfriend, you retard! Of course it's gonna matter to me!" He tore his glare away for a moment as he saw Madelynn and Madison running up to Kyle and Toby. They started to try to untie Kyle without drawing attention to themselves. Kyle glanced at them back up to Kenny with hitched breathing.

"Don't you see, Blondie?" Toby asked, Kenny's teeth gritted severely at the name. "Imagine a world without overachievers. Do you realize that our school would have such a better average if he wasn't around?! Are you aware of what the next highest grade point average to his is?"

"Um...no?"

"A 3.1, Dude. No one else fucking cares enough anymore to try to get higher grades! We go to a really small school, there aren't too many people willing to aim higher. And just because this one fucker," he squeezed Kyle tighter, much to the twin's dismay, "decided to go above and beyond, we all go crashing down in the end! It's absolute bullshit!"

"What the hell are you planning to do to him?!" Stan demanded.

"I haven't decided yet," Toby shrugged. "Either kill him or just make him bleed a lot. Either way sounds like a lot of fun." He threw Kyle forward onto the ground. He struggled to sit back up on his knees and turned back around to look up at his assailant. Madelynn and Madison pulled on the knot together and Kenny watched as it became undone. Kyle looked back behind him and mouthed his thanks before looking back at the looming figure.

"What are you doing?" he asked shakily, scooting back on his knees a bit.

"Trying to decide the most efficient way to make you scream, Ginger," he grinned. He leaned down and breathed in Kyle's pale face. "Tell me, does your boyfriend make you scream? Think I could do that?" He grasped his chin and pulled him closer as Kyle's eyes widened with fear.

No way. No fucking way Kenny was letting that happen again. He kicked back at Tom, who kept a tight hold on him.

"KYLE!" he shouted, watching as Stan and Cartman tried to break free, too. Bebe and Wendy watched from their spot, crying and holding each other shakily. He looked back towards Kyle, who was still being caressed by Toby.

"Fuck no!" Stan shouted.

"It's not happening again!" Cartman added, trying to pry himself away as well.

"Again?" Toby blinked before looking back at the trembling Jew. "Really? You were fucked by someone other than lover boy? Huh. Sucks to be you, doesn't it?" he smirked.

"Let go," Kyle pleaded, trying to work his arms out of the blanket still containing him.

"I dunno....," Toby ran his fingers over the salt-infested wounds and made Kyle cringe from the sting. "This seems like fun. I mean...you're terrified. I'm not gonna lie, Ginger, your fear is turning me on," he laughed. "And I'm fucking straight as they come."

"Don't...please don't...," he begged, trying to scoot back more.

"Come on, Ginge. I won't bite...well, I might a little," he smiled maniacally and attacked Kyle's bottom lip.

He cried out as Toby pulled back, taking a good chunk of his skin with it. Blood began seeping out and trickling down his chin and his green eyes widened with fear. Toby licked his lips and chuckled. "Blood actually tastes pretty decent when it's from your victims," he smiled.

"Just leave me alone...please," he said softly. Toby leaned in closely again and breathed into his face.

"But this is so great...isn't it? And your boyfriend gets to watch...won't that be fun? I won't break you, though I may come close," he chuckled. Kyle's eyes lost their fear, turning into raging orbs of fury at the familiar ring of his words.

"Don't. Touch. Me," he breathed heavily.

"Or what?" Toby grasped his chin once more. Kyle furrowed his brows and slid his ass down onto the ground below him. "Finally submitting, hm?" Toby asked with an amused smirk.

"You wish," Kyle growled through gritted teeth. He took his foot and shot it towards Toby's crotch, causing him to fall forward in pain. Before he hit the ground, Kyle pushed back with his foot and fought his way out of the blanket. He grabbed it in his hands and slammed it over Toby's face as he tried to stumble up. Toby thrashed around, screaming profanities, as Kyle jumped atop his back and slammed him into the ground, holding an arm down across the back of Toby's neck to try to hold him steady.

"Fuck! Get off of him!" Tom cried out. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman noticed their distraction and nodded at each other. They all yanked away from their captors and ran towards Kyle at breakneck speed. The other three blinked before comprehending what had happened before they took off after them. Toby threw himself upright, flinging Kyle off his back in the process. He ripped the blanket off of his face and stared at Kyle in fury. He grabbed the front of the Jew's shirt and threw him in the opposite direction, towards his approaching friends. Kyle landed harshly on the ground and rolled a few times as Kenny and the others neared him.

"Kyle!" Kenny shouted. Kyle looked up at him and scrambled to get to his feet before being yanked up by his arm by Fischbach. Kenny growled furiously and bared his teeth, clenching his fist. "DUCK!" he cried out. He smirked as he watched Toby go down and brought his fist straight back up under and into his chin. He grabbed Kyle from his hold and kicked him back away from his Jew. He turned around briefly to see Tom, Mark, and John approaching the four of them slowly. Cartman and Stan backed up and met backs with Kyle and Kenny, fists poised in the air.

"What the hell do we do?" Kenny asked.

"We kick their sorry asses, that's what," Cartman growled back. Toby stood back up and walked towards the group.

"You know," he said. "this is actually a lot simpler than you three are making it out to be. We're only after the ginger. Why you'd risk getting your faces pounded in for him is beyond me. Just give us Broflovski, go play your little games of friendship or whatever, and you can have him back when we're done."

Kenny grasped Kyle around the arms and growled. "I don't think so, you fuck."

Toby snorted. "Your loyalty is certainly inspiring...but also incredibly stupid...," he looked at each of them and towards the girls, noticing they were trying to sneak away. "Ladies, I would not suggest going for help," he called out. "We'll kill them all, do you understand?"

Wendy and Bebe looked at the boys then back at Toby fearfully. "Go sit back down, Girlies," Mark motioned towards the tree. They trembled and looked at the boys again.

"Go sit down, Wends," Stan nodded quietly. Wendy and Bebe looked at him in shock, then nodded and sat down, clasping each other again. Madelynn and Madison stared at them all from a distance away, unaware of the true situation at hand. Kenny bit his lip and looked at Kyle, who was bleeding profusely and looking fearfully and angrily at Toby.

"Just you, Ginge," Toby grinned at him. "You can prevent all of this so easily and you know it." Kenny tightened his grip around his boyfriend. "Come on, we can just get it over with and you can go home...maybe," he shrugged. "As I said, I have no idea what to do to you."

"You're gonna leave him alone, that's what you're going to do," Kenny hissed.

Toby smirked. "I'm scared." He lunged forward and grabbed Kyle's arm to yank him away from Kenny. Kenny growled and tried to pull him back. Stan turned and grasped the young Jew's waist to help as Cartman dove around to hit Toby. Before John, Mark, and Tom could react to their movements, Cartman successfully punched Toby in the face and sent him stumbling backwards into the pond.

Toby's friends growled and tried to lunge for Kyle, too, successfully blocked off by Stan and Kenny as Cartman grabbed Kyle and pushed him back away from the three assaulters. Fists flew and chaos ensued, all the while Kyle stepped backwards slowly, grasping at his hair in frustration and fear from the tangle.

As each side kept raging on, Kenny's eyes kept on the pond, waiting for Toby to emerge. After a good two minutes passed of them beating each other senseless, each of the others started to notice his disappearance as well.

"Dude," Tom breathed out after being punched down by Kenny. "Where...where the fuck is he?!"

Kyle ran to the side of the pond and looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of him.

"Kyle, do you see him?" Mark asked. Kenny rolled his eyes. _Now_ they call him Kyle. Of course. He turned to see Kyle for himself, but met with the sight of him throwing off his shoes and diving into the water.

"KYLE! What the fuck are you doing?!" He cried out. The fists stopped flying as they watched the boy swim farther out and dive into the middle of the pond.

"What the hell?!" Tom asked, getting up to join the others at the side of the water's edge. Bebe, Wendy, and the twins came running up to be with them.

"Why is he out there?!" Bebe cried out. They all held their breath as Kyle's red hair emerged from the surface, dragging a darker head behind him.

"Kyle!" Stan breathed out in relief.

Cartman shook his head in disbelief. "What the FUCK is he doing?!" They watched as Kyle got closer, struggling slightly as Toby's larger weight slowed him down. He neared the edge of the water and stood, dragging the unconscious weight by the arms.

As Toby's body finally made it out of the water, Kyle fell down and coughed violently, spluttering water and trying to get his breath back. "Kyle? Are you alright?!" Kenny asked, kneeling down beside him. Kyle nodded before turning his head back towards Toby's form.

"Toby? Dude, get up!" John said, kicking his arm.

"You fucking idiot, he's unconscious!" Stan hissed.

Kyle crawled over towards Toby and knelt down beside him, holding his ear over Toby's mouth. "Shit," he hissed. He brought his palms up to his chest and started pumping them over and over.

"Oh my god...," Tom shook his head. "What happened?"

"He...he hit his head on a....on a rock," Kyle panted. "I s...saw it."

"He needs mouth to mouth!" Mark cried out.

"I fucking know!" Kyle said. "Thirty then two! Shut the fuck up!" Mark backed up in surprise from his tone. Kyle finished his compressions then grabbed Toby's nose, shaking his head and rolling his eyes with disgust before locking his lips on his and giving him two breaths. Kenny shook his head in disbelief, watching the kid try to save the boy who had just threatened to kill him. He had one hell of a boyfriend. Kyle ripped his mouth off of Toby's and returned to do more pumps to his chest.

"Oh god...he's not waking up!" Wendy cried, grabbing hold of Stan's jacket. Stan held her closely against him and watched Kyle intently. Kyle finished his second round and went back to give Toby his breaths. One...tw-

Toby choked up water into Kyle's mouth, sending him reeling backwards and spitting out Toby's sharings in disgust. He wiped his mouth and watched as Toby turned himself over, spitting out the water and gasping for breath.

"Dude, you're okay!" Tom, Mark, and John all sighed with relief and knelt down beside him. Tom gently hit his back, trying to get the air coursing back through his lungs. Kyle watched, still panting from exhaustion, a grateful smile upon his face. Toby finished choking and looked at his friends, then towards Kyle.

"What are you smiling at?" he hissed. Kyle blinked.

"Um..." Toby lunged towards him and held him down by the wrists.

"AH!" Kyle cried in pain as his head collided with the hard ground.

"Toby, don't!" Mark yelled at him. Toby looked back at him and quirked his brow.

"Dude, he just fucking saved your life!" Tom gestured towards the redhead erratically. Toby looked down at the Jew and raised his brow.

"Why?"

"I...I don't know...," Kyle said, struggling to get him off of his tiny frame. "I don't really get happy from people dying...jackasses like you included." Toby blinked at him for a moment, looking towards the group surrounding him.

"Dude, get off of him," John nodded. "He just saved you. Just...get off of him."

"Before I take you off of him," Kenny growled. Toby narrowed his eyes at him before pushing himself off of the young Jew. Kyle rolled over onto his side and pushed himself into a sitting position. He found a hand in front of his face, looking up to see Toby extending it.

"Well are you going to take the help or not?" he spit at him. Kyle shakily grabbed his hand and was yanked to his feet. Toby threw his hand away from him and scowled.

"Um...," Kyle shrugged.

"Thanks, I guess," Toby said. "I'm not about to say I'm sorry for what I did though. I still hate you for all the stuff you did."

Kyle sighed. "I didn't do anything, Dude. You did it to yourself. You could have easily studied more and not hit your girlfriend and other stuff to make your life easier."

Toby narrowed his eyes at him more. "Who are you to tell me how to live my life?"

"I'm not," Kyle said firmly. "It's your life, I'm not about to tell you how to live one correctly because I have no fucking idea how to do it myself. But if you choose to do something, you shouldn't go tracking down people and attacking them as opposed to dealing with the consequences of your choice like someone with any backbone would."

Toby looked towards his cronies, then back towards Kyle and sighed. "Yeah, whatever. I guess I probably shouldn't come after you anymore. I guess I have too much studying to do if I wanna graduate next month anyway," he rolled his eyes.

"I can help you," Kyle shrugged quietly. All jaws dropped and turned towards him.

"You've got to be shitting me," Toby said, shaking his head softly. "I cut you and you offer to give me study tips? What the fuck is wrong with you, Ginger?"

"My name is Kyle," he growled. "And I don't know. I guess I just have a problem when people can't live up to their potential and I try to help. It's a bit stupid, I guess, but the offer's still there if you want it," he looked out towards the water in frustration.

"I...yeah. Yeah, fine," Toby nodded. "When?"

"Library. Monday. I'm there from 11:00 to five. You can show up, but you don't have to," Kyle shrugged. "Seniors have the day off that day, so your free to roam around and do whatever."

Toby snorted. "You know, you're okay for an annoying-ass ginger nerd." Kyle turned and looked at him with and unamused expression.

"So, no more letters, then?" Kenny asked, stepping beside Kyle.

"Letters? What?" Toby blinked in confusion.

"Your 'finger's on the trigger'? That ring a bell?"

Toby shook his head softly. "Um, I have no idea...was that something we read in English?"

"Kyle's death threat!" Stan yelled, coming up beside him.

Toby looked from Stan to Kenny to Kyle and shrugged. "I make all my threats verbally, Dude. I never sent any death threat...did you?" he turned to Mark, Tom, and John. They all shook their heads no.

"Well then who did?" Kenny asked. "No one else we know would!"

"I wouldn't know, Blondes," Toby shrugged again. "Did you take it to the police?"

"No," he muttered.

"Well, that was dumb," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, we need proof first, asshole," Cartman commented.

"Then best of luck to ya," he half saluted. "I assure you, if I had sent you a death threat, I would have quoted it once or twice," he smirked at Kyle. Kyle just looked at the ground sadly as Kenny worked his arm around his frame. "Um," Toby started again. "You um, might wanna go get your face cleaned off, Dude...it'll get infected pretty quick. Especially from the pond stuff. See ya around," he murmured as the four of them turned and walked back up the hill.

The remaining six watched them until they were out of sight before turning to observe the damage of each other. Stan, Cartman, and Kenny all had a few bruises and busted lips, but nothing too serious. Kyle, however, had blood still pouring down his face, and was shivering from the temperature of the pond water chilling in the afternoon breeze. He started clattering his teeth and grasping his arms tightly as the wind picked up speed. Kenny walked over and grabbed the blanket from the ground, throwing it around Kyle's small frame and clasping him in a hug.

"You okay, Hon?"

"I'm...I'm f-fine," he shuddered.

"Come on, we gotta get you home," he bent down and scooped up Kyle in his bundle and started leading the way towards the park exit. He motioned for the twins to follow and they bounded up after them along with the other four.

"I l-love you K-kenny...," he said.

"Love you too, Ky."

"But...," he started.

"But what?"

Kyle looked up at him and gave a half-smirk. "N-next time, I p-pick the d-date."

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: 'ello all. Well, this is goodbye, but whatever._

_So, yays! Toby no longer wants Kyle's blood! That's a good thing, right? It is for me because that's one less plot element for me to deal with XD_

_Next time is...a lot of stuff. Mitch, the twins, maybe some other stuff. I dunno. It'll be a lot though._

_Who else would absolutely hate that date?! Damn Wendy and Bebe's obsession with boy-love almost got Kyle killed. Bad obsessive fangirls, bad!!!!.....oh wait...._

_So yeah. Kyle is too sweet for his own good =)....the end!_

_Thanks for R&R-ing....and don't expect this day-to-day updating anymore. Two work days ahead and I'm going back to school Monday. Ew._


	27. Separation

_A/N: Today we're....writing. I dunno. I probably need to start formulating an ending for this story sooner or later XD_

_Until then, enjoy 27!_

________________________________________________________________________

"GODDAMN IT, LYNN!" a shout came from the other room.

Kenny groaned and slammed his pillow over his head, looking through a small opening in the side to gaze at the clock. 8:30. Oh just peachy. What a way to start a Sunday. He felt Kyle slowly sit himself up and discreetly looked under the other side of his pillow to gaze at his figure. He sat leaning with his hands placed behind his back and to his side, his chest sticking out just slightly. Kenny licked his lips, gazing intently at his firm torso. Suddenly, the pillow was ripped off and he looked up to see Kyle staring at him with a small grin on his face.

"Morning, my peeping Tom," he raised his brow.

"Hey, I have permits to peep at you," he smirked, sitting himself up next to him and pulling him into a deep kiss.

Kyle broke off and laughed a bit, "oh? And just what gives you these so-called 'permits'?"

"The fact that you love me," he smiled. Kyle smiled back.

"Can't argue with that."

"You can argue with anything and you know it," Kenny rolled his eyes jokingly.

"Gee, thanks," he laughed softly. "Whaddya think they're fighting over this time?" he motioned towards the door. Kenny let out a long sigh. Ever since they had gotten back home last night, the girls had found at least fifty different subjects to argue about. They weren't any closer to finishing their case and it was exhausting listening to them night and day. It was like nonstop Kyle and Cartman banter, just a lot more high pitched and Kenny wasn't interested in banging either of them. Which, now that he thought about it, was pretty fucking amazing. Usually he'd go for any chick with long hair and decent sized boobs, but now, he couldn't care less if they were balding forty year old men. All he wanted anymore was the cute little Jewboy whom was currently wrapped in his arms. Life was good.

"Hey, you awake?" Kyle poked his arm. Kenny looked at him and smiled devilishly, to which Kyle raised his brow. "I know that smile," he mused. "What are you planning?" Kenny threw himself atop the young boy and smirked.

"No planning at all. You know my love is spontaneous." He bent down and attacked Kyle's mouth before he could even think about wording a response.

Kyle turned his head slightly and giggled. "Dude, we just woke up."

"I know, but I dreamt about you last night and now I'm achin' for the real deal," he kissed the boy's neck gently, sliding his hand down towards the boy's shorts.

"What about the girls?" Kyle gasped as Kenny trailed his fingers over his member.

"They don't know we're up," he answered, nipping his throat. "And even if they do, let 'em watch." He moved back and tenderly kissed his soft lips. Ky chuckled quietly and grasped Kenny's neck and brought him closer. They could feel each other through the thin fabric of their boxers. Kyle raised his hips slightly and Kenny pressed back down onto him, slowly grinding himself into the young boy. Kyle moaned softly into his mouth and Kenny pulled back slowly, still rolling his hips, to look into Kyle's magnetic stare. It had become routine by now. Kenny had to see that gaze before taking off all of the boy's clothes, it had become like his drug. Pulling him in. And once he caught sight, there was no way in hell he was turning back.

"God, I love you," he licked his lips, feeling himself growing harder. Kyle blushed, feeling Kenny prodding against him. Kenny slowly peeled of the redhead's boxers, eyeing him hungrily. He kissed Kyle's chest and the boy arched up into his touch. Kenny slid and kicked his own underwear away, gently stroking Kyle's abs all the while. He sat up and brought Kyle with him, grasping his chin and meeting lips with him again. Their cocks rested against one another, twitching from the warmth emitting from the other.

"Ken...I don't know...," Kyle said, his eyes darting nervously towards the door.

"Don't worry. We just have to be quiet," Kenny winked. "You can't seriously tell me that you want to stop," he played with one of his curls.

"I...uh..."

Kenny smirked and kissed his forehead. "Didn't think so," he growled huskily. He put two fingers in his mouth and whipped them out to return his lips to Kyle's. As they kissed, he reached behind the boy and gently worked them into his entrance. Kyle gasped softly into Kenny's mouth and Ken moaned at the feeling of Kyle's muscles clamping on him. He slowly slid his fingers in and out of the boy as he shook slightly. He broke off of his mouth and pulled out his fingers. "Ky, would you be a dear?" he smiled.

Kyle smiled back and kissed Kenny's neck, working his way slowly down towards Kenny's throbbing cock. He kissed the head as he got there and suckled sweetly on the end. Kenny's body was sent into tingles as Kyle took him further and further into his mouth. He grasped the Jew's shoulders and gasped throatily as Kyle bobbed his head back and forth, exploring each section of burning skin with his hungry tongue.

"Mmm....," Kenny purred as Kyle pulled off of him slowly and looked at him lustfully. "Turn around," he smiled. Kyle did as asked, kneeling on the bed on his hands and knees with Kenny behind him on one knee. He lovingly caressed the flesh of Kyle's ass and licked his lips. "Goddamn, you're so sexy, Kyle."

Kyle turned his head and smiled. "Same to you."

Kenny stole a quick look at the door and then looked back at the boy in front of him. He put a finger to his lips to remind Kyle to be quiet. Kyle nodded and Kenny pressed the head of his cock into him. Kyle gasped softly as Kenny buried himself into his hole. He bit his lip and let out little whimpers and Kenny smirked. This was gonna be fun.

He began slowly thrusting in and out of the boy, watching as he grabbed at the bed in a desperate attempt to distract himself from screaming. Kenny let out a low moan and slowly stroked Kyle's back with his fingertips as he increased his pace. Kyle took one of his fists and bit into the knuckle to keep from shouting. "Goddamn," he whimpered softly as Kenny continued to pound into him. Kenny reached under Kyle's chest and pulled him upright, still slamming into him. It was harder to maneuver, but definitely worth the effort. Kyle leaned his head upon Kenny's broad shoulder and continued to let out soft whimpers.

"Come on, Kyle," Kenny moaned saucily. "You know you wanna scream my name."

"Ah...ahh...," Kyle whimpered, squeezing his eyes shut and pressing back into Kenny's body.

"Come on, Ky...,"

"Fu-fuck you," he stammered.

"I'd rather fuck you," he smirked, thrusting harder. Kyle threw his head back and let out a decently loud moan. He took his hands and placed them backwards on Kenny's shoulders for some stance as he gritted his teeth. Kenny took his hand and ran it smoothly up and down Kyle's abs, still thrusting hard.

"Oh god...," Kyle whispered. He turned his head and met Kenny's lips, all the while fighting his voice back.

"Scream for me, Kyle," Kenny murmured into his mouth. Kyle let out a long whine prompting a large smile across Kenny's features. "Come on," he urged, grabbing Kyle's cock and jerking his wrist. Kyle gasped and arched his back slightly, allowing Kenny to pound into him even harder.

"Ah!" he cried out softly. This continued for minutes on end, with Kenny once more trying to work the little Jew's vocal chords. Kenny felt himself tensing as was Kyle.

"Come on, Kyle. Scream my name," he whispered throatily, increasing his pace on both his thrusting and his wrist.

"Ahhh...ahh...ahh fuck!" Kyle said, throwing his head back again.

"Scream it!" he commanded, speeding up his wrist.

"Oh God...ahh...K-KENNY!" He shouted, arching up and releasing into Kenny's waiting hand. Kenny felt himself explode and trembled violently throughout. As it passed, he removed himself and held onto Kyle, nuzzling into his neck.

"Are you two okay in there?" A voice came from outside the door.

Kenny laughed into Kyle's throat as he stuttered for an explanation. "Ye-yea! Kenny's just being an a-asshole, that's all," Kyle stammered.

"Okay, don't kill each other!" The boys waited for another voice, and Kyle sighed in relief when it didn't come.

"Goddamn it," he muttered. Kenny continued to snuggle into his neck and back and sighed contentedly.

"Best damn morning of my life."

"You do realize that we almost just caught naked with cum all over us, right?"

"I told you, let 'em watch."

"Don't tell that to Bebe and Wendy. They'll take you up on that offer," Kyle rolled his eyes. Kenny snickered lightly.

"And why shouldn't they want to? Seeing a sexy little Jewboy like yourself all nice and sweaty? It's fucking hot," he kissed the boy's cheek, which was beginning to quickly change shades.

He sighed and chuckled softly, "you're impossible, Ken," he shook his head. "Come on. We might as well get cleaned up and go talk to the girls. Sooner we do, the sooner they leave."

"Mmhmm," Kenny nodded. "More sexy Jew time for all. Well. Maybe just for me," he smirked. Kyle smirked back and kissed his lips once more before pulling away and stepping off the bed.

"I'm gonna take a shower, Dude."

"How come? You took one last night."

"Dude, I have spooge up my ass!"

"You don't like my spooge?" Kenny pouted.

Kyle's face began to glow vibrantly. "Uh...not dripping out of...wait...how the fuck am I supposed to answer that?"

"Honestly," Kenny shrugged.

"Okay. I don't like the fact that the aftermath feels so weird. The moment of is great. Aftermath sucks. Better?"

Kenny chuckled, "much. Thank you."

"So glad to help your self esteem," Kyle rolled his eyes with a smile as he turned to walk towards the bathroom. Kenny watched as he walked, licking his lips subconsciously. As Kyle shut the bathroom door, Kenny looked at his hand, still covered in Kyle's release. He smiled and closed his fingers around it fondly. Sure, it was kinda gross, but it was part of Kyle. A part that only he had access to. Pretty incredible to think about. He grabbed some tissues from beside the bed and cleaned himself up, then got up to get dressed. He pulled on some jeans and a sweatshirt and walked out of the room.

"Morning, girls," he smiled.

"Morning," they nodded.

"Heard you guys having a hell of a time in there," Madison winked.

"Heh, what gave us away?"

"The fact that we heard you grunting and Kyle whimpering," Madelynn laughed. "It's cool though, we don't mind waiting."

"Well good, because I wasn't about to stop," he smirked, plopping down on the couch next to Madison. "So, what the fuck were you two fighting about this morning?"

Madelynn scowled. "Madison was just being her regular bitchy self."

"Oh please, I'm not the one whining because I can't do my hair," Madison rolled her eyes.

Kenny sighed. "Girls, please. You don't need to fight over everything."

"You sound just like our parents," Lynn grumbled, leaning back into the chair and crossing her arms.

"Well, you two are being ridiculous. I mean, you're like, 16."

"Well, that doesn't mean anything!" Madison shouted. "I'm so sick of sharing everything with her!"

"And I'm just sick of _her_ in general!"

Kenny groaned and rubbed his temples. "Stick out your hands," he ordered.

"Why?"

"Just do it, please." They slowly extended their palms and he smacked them in low-five fashion.

"Um, what the hell was that for?" Madison asked.

"When Kyle gets out here, do the same for him. It'll bring us closer to figuring this all out," he explained, leaning back into the couch.

"Uh...," Lynn drawled out. He looked at her with an unamused expression.

"Just trust me." They turned as they heard Kyle stepping out of the bedroom, crunching his hair with a towel.

"Wash away the sin, did ya?" Lynn smirked.

Kyle glowed red once more. "Shut up, Kid," he muttered, plopping down into the love seat and continuing to work on his curls. Kenny leaned his head into his hand and smiled at him goofily. He had never seen another boy work so much with his hair.

"Ken says you need to touch us?" Madison looked at him. Kyle raised his brow before realizing her meaning.

"Oh dude! I totally forgot about that!" he laughed softly. He threw the towel over the back of the cushion and shook his head, his damp hair fluidly swaying around him. Madison and Madelynn stood and walked over towards him and both pushed him backwards.

"Hey!" Kyle shouted. "What was that for?!"

They giggled. "Just felt like it," Lynn chortled.

Kyle rolled his eyes and walked over to sit next to Kenny. "You ready?" the blonde asked.

"Do I have a choice?"

Kenny leaned in, almost touching noses with the Jew and laughed. "Not really," he lunged forward and made contact with his mouth.

_He tried to pull away, but he couldn't. He looked to the side of him, another figure, staring back at him. It mimicked him, pulling as he did, raising his brows the same, following his breathing pattern. He tried harder, only succeeding in hurting his arm as well as theirs. He and it gave up trying to pull and looked into the distance, hearing a chorus of somber sounds. Low, deep, dark. They tried to follow the sound, but found that it came from all directions, trapping them in. A shadow fell across his counterpart. He was still visible, but it was much harder to make out his physique. He squinted at it, trying to view it as it started to step away. Against his will, he did the same. Together they walked in opposite directions. Step by step by step. They continued to fall further from each other, and yet they couldn't seem to separate, their hands seemingly glued together as their arms stretched with their movement. The somber sounds continued, giving their movement the stifling aura of a death march of shadows._

Kenny reopened his eyes, finding himself and Kyle leaning against each other. He looked up at the twins, who were staring back in shock. Kyle soon opened his eyes as well, looking up at Kenny and taking a shaky breath. he shivered and cuddled in closer to the blonde.

"Another bad one, huh?" Kenny asked softly, kissing the top of his red curls.

"Y-yea," he nodded.

"What the hell just happened?" Madison asked, blinking at them in confusion with her sister.

"We just saw why you're stuck," Kenny explained. "Sit down," he motioned towards the love seat. They looked at each other and shrugged before complying. "Alright," he sighed. "Ky, what did you see?"

"I...I'm not too sure. I was moving pretty fast, I was like, flying forward. Then I stopped and fell. Before I knew it, everything just went black...and I felt a lot of pain for awhile." He looked over at the girls. "Did you die in a car accident?"

They nodded slowly. "Y-yea," Lynn said. "We were heading home from a party and we hit a semi."

"Ouch," Kenny winced. "Those things hurt like hell."

"You've been hit by a truck?" Madison raised her brow.

Kyle stifled a laugh as Kenny fumbled for explanation. "Long story," he finally finished.

"What did you see, Ken?" Kyle asked.

"I think I already figured out what mine meant," he bit his lip. "It was me and this shadow, we did everything exactly alike, blinking and all. We heard something really...low and dark I guess. We started pulling away from each other but our hands were stuck and our arms just kept stretching. I'm guessing that it was Lynn and Madison always being stuck together in every aspect and not being able to pull apart no matter what."

Kyle nodded. "That seems about right. But what about the sound? Obviously it holds some sort of significance, right?"

Kenny shrugged. "I guess so, but I have no idea what it was. It was just really...depressing."

"So...are you two psychics or something?" Madison asked.

Kenny scoffed playfully, "I wish. That'd make this job a hell of a lot easier." He leaned forward and swiped the notebook off the table. He flipped it open and grabbed his pen. "Alright," he said, writing down their first names. "Last name please?"

"Petronia," they responded together.

"Birthday?"

"January 18th, 1992," Lynn stated.

"Death date?"

"Last year...I think it was August 29th." Madison said thoughtfully.

He nodded as he jotted the information down. "Okay...now comes the hard part." He sighed and closed the notebook and leaned back into the couch. "Did you guys have any regrets before you died?"

"Not really..." Lynn said thoughtfully.

"Well, I think it's safe to assume that whatever is holding you back is the same thing," Kyle mused. "And whatever it is correlates to your constant togetherness. Did you guys ever have any time apart from each other?"

Madison chuckled, "not really. We shared a room, a bathroom, a car, everything."

"You have boyfriends?" Kenny asked.

"I did, but Maddie here never wanted one," Lynn jerked her thumb towards her sister.

Madison shrugged. "I dunno. I was just more interested in getting through school than making out."

"That used to be Kyle, too," Kenny smirked. "Then he and I got together and now he has balance, right Ky?"

Kyle rolled his eyes in good humor and chose to not dignify that with a response. "Madelynn, what was your relationship with your boyfriend like?"

"We hadn't been dating long...only about three weeks. I was planning on breaking it off. I guess I did it in a way...not the most graceful, but it got the job done," she smiled sadly.

"How about your parents? What were they like?" Kyle asked.

"Oh, they were just parents," Madison shrugged. "Do this, don't do that, you're grounded, straighten up...you know, just regular parents."

"No abuse or anything?" Ken asked.

"Oh god no!" Lynn shook her hands in front of her. "Our parents would never hit us!"

"Okay, okay, just clarifying," he defended.

"What about your funeral? Did you happen to see it?" Kyle asked. Kenny turned towards him and raised his brow.

"Why would that matter?"

"Answer me, please," Kyle insisted, signaling for Ken to wait a moment.

"Yeah...yeah, we stopped by...," Madelynn muttered.

"It was...kinda nice...knowing so many people cared about us so much," Madison smiled gently.

"It also pissed us right the fuck off," Lynn growled.

"How come?" Kenny asked.

"We didn't even get separate headstones...," Madison responded quietly. "Even in death we can't be apart. I guess they expected us to always stay together...it kinda sucks."

"Okay, I think we've got our reasoning," Kyle smiled.

"We do?!" Kenny asked.

The redhead nodded. "Yeah, piece it together, Ken. They died, that was my vision. Then your vision consisted of you stuck to another person with sad sounds. Those sounds must have been like, funeral music or something of that nature. You couldn't break apart from this person, even in darkness, which I'm guessing represents their actual state of death."

Kenny blinked at him before breaking into a wide grin and quickly pressing his lips against his. He pulled back and admired Kyle's surprised features. "You're so damn smart," he smiled. "I'm so fucking lucky."

Kyle chuckled before looking back towards the girls. "So, you just want it to be acknowledged that you were actually separate. Are you wanting a pair of headstones or what?"

"I...that would be nice," Lynn smiled.

"Problem," Madison inputted. "We're buried on a private family cemetery. And headstones cost too much."

"You from South Park?" Kyle asked.

"Well, yeah," they shrugged.

"Alright then. We'll go to the cemetery and we'll leave you stuff that isn't headstones...but something of remembrance to each of you," Kenny replied. "Would that work?"

They both broke into relieved grins. "Really?" Lynn squeaked.

"Of course," Kyle smiled softly. "It'd be cruel not to. I don't really understand why you were always held so close together. Aside from looks, you're really not that similar," he shrugged.

"Really? Everyone always said that we acted the same, too," Madison said sadly.

Kyle shook his head, "I really don't see it. I mean, Lynn's more of the type of person who likes to be social. You both are, but she just seems more so. Madison seems to hold her education in just a bit of a higher priority, though she doesn't let it overshadow the other elements of her life. Lynn likes light colors, Maddie likes dark, She likes chocolate, Lynn likes vanilla...I mean, they're not like, huge differences, but they're there all the same."

"You're the first person to ever actually differentiate us," Lynn said with a layer of shine coating her eyes. "Thank you."

Kyle shrugged and smiled at her. "As I said...I found it kinda obvious, but that may just be me."

"Well, we're kinda skilled in the area of opposites," Kenny grinned, wrapping his arm around the Jew. The boys grins faded slightly as they saw the girl's glows starting to dissipate into that familiar rosy hue.

"Oh wow...that was easy," Kyle said.

"Already?!" Kenny blinked. "Quick! Tell us where you're buried!"

"Um...Fairview Park," Madison answered.

"Where's that?!" Kyle asked.

"It's down on the outskirts of town...East side, I think! Our plot is somewhere in the far back of it," Lynn said quickly.

"Alright, we'll leave you stuff, I promise," Kenny nodded.

Madison and Lynn jumped from the love seat and ran over to embrace the boys. "Thank you so much," Madison smiled, hugging Kyle tightly. Kyle laughed and hugged her back, Kenny doing the same to Lynn.

"Not at all, girls," Kenny grinned.

"We'll catch ya on the flip side," Lynn winked.

"Thanks again!" they said together as they faded into the air.

Kenny and Kyle sat for a moment and blinked. Kyle shivered and looked at Kenny. "I can still feel them," he said quietly.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one, then," Kenny looked back. He opened the notebook back up, writing _need for separation of lives _in black ink. He watched it glow and fade again before closing the notebook with a sigh. He watched as Kyle hopped from the couch and stretched.

"Well, let's go get some stuff, then," he said.

"Already?"

Kyle looked at him for a moment. "Well...yeah. I mean...we did just promise them. And it's not like we're doing anything."

Kenny nodded. "True. We can have more sexy Jew time later," he smirked.

"This morning wasn't enough for you?" Kyle raised his brow with a smile.

Kenny stood and wrapped his arms around Kyle's small waist and leaned down to kiss him gently. "Eternity isn't going to be enough for me if I'm with you," he smiled.

Kyle blushed and leaned up to kiss him once again. "You're too much for me, McCormick," he laughed, nuzzling into Kenny's chest.

"Nothing's too much for you, Brof." he said, looking down atop his hair. Kyle pulled back and looked up at him.

"Come on," he gestured towards the door. "We've got the rest of time to play googly-eyes. Let's go get some stuff for the girls."

Kenny nodded. "Okay. But I demand googly-eye time when we get home."

"You demand it? You're a dictator for flirting?"

Kenny smirked, "no. But I've got a dick and it loves it when you flirt."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Ya know, you really suck at the whole romantic aspect of this."

"I know. Oh by the way, speaking of sucking...,"

Kyle broke away from him and smacked his arm playfully. "Don't even go there," he warned with a smile.

Kenny grinned back goofily. "Aw, come on. We've discussed this. I'm a pervert, but you love that about me," he ruffled the Jew's curls a bit.

"Nah, I just accept it," he retorted. Kenny grabbed his hand and led him towards the door.

"We ready?"

Kyle smiled, "of course. Let's kick it." Kenny smiled back and led them out of the apartment, their fingers interlaced gingerly. Kenny's grin grew larger as they continued outside and Kyle walked beside him, matching his steps evenly. He didn't see why Madison and Madelynn were so against being together for forever. Maybe it was just because they're related, but it doesn't make a difference. He sure wouldn't mind being stuck beside his little Jew for the rest of time, and he was lucky enough to get the chance to do just that.

------------------------(THE NEXT DAY)---------------------------------------------------------------------

He stared at the bandages with pity and anger percolating in his gut. Sitting next to him on the bed and staring as he slept, observing how despite his injuries, he still looked like a direct gift from God himself. He ran his coarse fingers over the gauze, wishing that he could take them off to see the beautiful perfection of his face. The cuts were gone, for his hand had made short work of them, but for fear of exposure towards the others, the bandages stayed put. Kenny looked over at the clock, noticing that the alarm had hit its sleep mode for the third time, and Kyle had yet to actually stir.

"Ky? Kyle?" he gently shook his shoulder.

The young redhead groaned and slowly tucked his head under his soft pillow. Kenny stood and looked at him with a quirked brow.

"Dude, are you okay? You've never had this much trouble getting up." He switched on the bedroom lights and gently pried the pillow from atop the boy's head. The blonde came across his enflamed complexion and reached over to feel his head. "Holy shit," he murmured. "I'm getting the thermometer, hang tight." Kyle didn't respond, just looked at him exhaustedly as he strolled out of the room. He walked over to the medicine cabinet in the window inlet and rummaged through it.

"Hey, Dude!" a voice called to him as the door opened. He turned his head and watched as Stan and Cartman stepped in and he blinked.

"How the fuck did you get in?"

"Ky gave me a key, I made him," Stan shrugged sheepishly. "Looking for food?"

Kenny shook his head, "No, the thermom...ah, found it," he stated, pulling it out of the cabinet and releasing it from its hold. He started walking back towards the bedroom, the other two in tow.

"Jesus, Jew," Cartman commented upon reaching their bed. "You look like shit." Kyle sniffed and looked at his audience with glazed-over red eyes.

"Open up," Kenny ordered, sliding the stick into the boy's mouth. Kyle merely lied there, obviously lacking the strength to argue.

"You alright, Kyle?" Stan asked softly.

"I dunno," he whispered, keeping the stick under his tongue. As it beeped, Kenny slowly removed it from his jaw and looked at the display screen.

"104. It's pretty safe to say that you're sick."

"But...I have work," Kyle croaked out.

"No fucking way," Stan said. "The number for the place is on the fridge door, right?" Kenny nodded. "Alright, I'll go talk to your boss. You're not leaving the bed," he directed, walking out of the room.

"God, Kahl. Didn't think it was possible for you to look worse than your normal Ginger self."

"Shut up, fatass," he coughed back. Kenny bit his lip and looked towards the hovering heavyweight.

"Dude, go with Stan."

"I wouldn't fuck him while he's sick, Kenneh."

"Just get the hell out of here!" Kenny exclaimed, pushing him away. Cartman merely rolled his eyes and strode out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Kenny looked back at his Jew and sat down beside him on the bed. "You okay, Kid?" he asked, running his fingers through Kyle's curls.

"No....," he sighed. "I feel like shit."

"No offense, but you look it, too," he smirked. He leant down and kissed the boy's forehead, pulling back from it's burning effects with worried eyes. "I'm gonna get you some medicine and some juice," he said. "Me and the dudes are going out for a bit, so you can just stay here and rest."

"Where you going?" Kyle croaked back. Kenny smiled sadly, noticing the obvious grammar mistakes that his healthy Kyle would never have made.

"We're just going galavanting around," he shrugged, still stroking the boy's head. "Do you want me to stay here with you instead?"

"No, I don't wanna get you sick, too," he smiled meekly, "Go do whatever. I'll just sleep, I guess."

He looked back at Kyle and ran his fingers through his locks one last time before standing. "I'll be right back," he promised, walking out the door and shutting it behind him.

"Ken, she wants to talk to you," Stan said, holding out the phone as he walked into the kitchen. He reached out and took it from his hand.

"Hey."

"Hi, Kenny, it's Gloria. Is Kyle okay?"

"No. He's got a fever of 104 and he's coughing a good bit. He's in no condition to come in today."

"I didn't think so but I needed to hear from a source I know firsthand. Alright, you tell Kyle to get better because he's the only one here who understands half of these stories."

He chuckled lightly, "will do. You take care, Gloria."

"Same to you, Dear. So long." she hung up the phone. He sighed and did the same, looking at Stan and Cartman.

"I told you guys to be here at noon. Why are you so early?" He walked over to the fridge and grabbed a juice carton and a glass from the cabinet beside it.

"We figured we had a bit of planning to do, don't you?" Cartman asked with a raised brow.

"We meet police, take them to his house, and watch him be arrested. What's so hard about that?"

"How about planning for if this fucker has a gun, Kenny?" Stan asked.

Kenny shuddered from memories of their encounter with Barney. "I...I guess it just depends on the situation."

"Okay, here's a situation for you," Cartman started. Oh god. "This guy, as Stan suggested, pulls out a gun. Boom. Boom. Cops are dead. We're backed into a corner. This guy...has a buddy. He comes and ties us up or something. He takes your phone because he knows that he can find a certain Jew on your list. I think you can fill in the rest for yourself."

"I'll do something."

"Like what?" Stan asked.

Kenny finished pouring Kyle's juice and grabbing his medicine and sighed heavily. "I don't know. I'd...grab the gun, I guess."

"Gonna pull a Kahl and suck him off or what?" Cartman asked.

Kenny looked at him furiously, "You make it sound like he had a choice in the matter," he hissed.

"He did. He just chose to keep our brains intact," he shrugged.

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I have to get Ky his meds," he stormed off past the blithering fatass and made a beeline for the bedroom door again. He slowly creaked it open once more and found Kyle passed out. He chuckled softly. Must be nice to be able to fall asleep so quickly. As Kyle was thrown into a violent coughing fit, Kenny rushed to his side and sat him up.

"Wake up, Ky," he said, rubbing his back, trying to coax out the last of his coughs.

"Huh?" He said sleepily.

"Come on, down the hatch," Kenny said, holding the medicine cup up by the boy's face. Kyle blinked at it for a moment as Kenny rose it to his lips and tilted it forward. He drank it down in one gulp, shuddering in disgust as it slivered down his throat. Kenny grabbed the juice and held it to his mouth, getting him to drink the last of the sweet orange liquid in a matter of seconds. He sat the glass down beside the bed and looked at his Jew with worry etched in his features.

"You're sure you don't want me to stay?"

Kyle coughed a few times and looked at him with a small smile, "I'm fine. Go with those two. I'll see you when you get home." Kenny smiled and kissed his cheek before lying him back into the bed and covering him up. He looked at Kyle, his eyes drooping once more. At least now maybe he'd be able to sleep without his usual bout of nightmares plaguing him.

"Think he'll be okay alone?" Stan asked as Kenny re-entered the family room, shutting the door behind him quietly.

"Yeah, he'll just sleep a bunch," he shrugged.

"God, why the fuck does he get sick so much?" Cartman asked.

"He has a weak immune system," Stan replied. He turned back to Kenny, "Speaking of which, did he take his insulin?"

"Oh goddammit," Kenny groaned.

Stan stood and smiled, "I'll take care of him." He patted Ken's shoulder and walked past him to the bedroom.

Kenny and Cartman waited in silence, listening to muffled talking from the room before Kenny finally broke the silence asking, "So, when are we meeting the popo?"

"They're gonna be there at noon, so we need to hurry up."

"Alright," he nodded. He took a deep breath and raked his fingers nervously through his hair.

"Calm down, Poor-boy," Cartman ordered, noticing the boy's obvious disposition. "Nothin's gonna happen. We'll get him arrested and if we play the cards right, he won't be getting out of jail."

Kenny looked at him and smiled softly. At least one of them was sure.

They turned and watched as Stan reappeared. "I don't know how he can stand pricking himself every day," he chuckled.

"He's a tough kid," Kenny smirked. "Should we head out?"

Stan checked the time on his phone and nodded softly as he placed it back into his pocket. "Might as well. Sooner we get there, the better."

Cartman stood and motioned towards the door. "Then let's go." Stan and he started moving towards the exit. Ken looked back at the ajar bedroom door and sighed. He smiled at Kyle's unknowing form softly and turned to follow the others.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three boys strode down the walkway, the tension thick and smothering. Kenny's imagination began running wild with possible scenarios as they walked; guns, knives, renegade ninjas, you name it.

"Alright. He lives on Cherry," Stan stated, looking at the page of information in his hand. "We're meeting the cops two blocks away...so at Maple."

"I have a bad feeling about this...," Kenny murmured.

"Me and Cartman can take care of it if you're too worried."

"It's not that...I just keep thinking about what Cartman said. What if things _do_ turn out badly?"

"We'll cross that bridge if we come to it," Cartman shrugged. "With the cops, we should have a better chance of things going off without a hitch."

"Yes, because the cops of this town are just oh-so-reliable," he rolled his eyes.

Stan chuckled softly as they approached a police car on the side of the road. "I guess you have a point."

"This is them, I'm supposing," Cartman commented. "I hope they have their guns on em."

"Officer Mager?" Stan asked upon reaching the window of the cruiser.

"Ah, you're the boys calling about the rape suspect, right?" he asked, stepping out of the car with his partner following suit and walking around to meet them.

"Rape, kidnapping, and assault, yeah," Cartman nodded.

"This is my partner, Officer Bostic," Mager gestured towards the burly man beside him.

"Hey, kids," he nodded. They nodded back in return.

"Now, are any of you his victims or are you just concerned citizens?" Mager asked, pulling out a notepad.

"I was one of them," Kenny raised his hand.

"How many victims were there?"

"Myself and one other."

"And what did he do to you in particular?"

Kenny sighed irritably, "him and his pal kidnapped me and beat me."

"Alright," he nodded, jotting down the information. "And what of the other victim? Did you two know each other?"

"Yeah, we're boyfriends," Kenny shrugged. "He's the one that they raped."

"Alright," he repeated. "And you're sure that this is him?" he motioned to the picture in Stan's hand.

"Yeah, there's no fucking way I could forget his face," Kenny growled.

"Where is the other victim now?"

"He's at home. We didn't want him to come along," Stan explained. "The kid's traumatized enough."

"Fair enough," Bostic nodded.

"Alright," Mager said, placing his pen behind his ear and rereading his notes. "So, we have a charge of kidnapping, assault, and rape...two victims...one present to identify attacker." He looked back up and looked at Kenny. "Where's the other offender?"

"Um, he's dead," Kenny looked at his feet shamefully.

"I see, and did you kill him?"

"Yes, Sir," he muttered. "I've already went through the whole court order thing, so don't bother. I have three cops plus these two as witnesses," he jerked his head towards Stan and Cartman.

"Ah, I recognize this story," Bostic nodded, turning towards Mager. "This was the kid that took down Johanson."

"Really?" he blinked in surprise. "Well, I commend you for that," he nodded at Kenny. The blonde blinked into his gray stare. "We couldn't get that guy off the streets with his lawyers, and he desperately needed to be. Good riddance to bad rubbish." Kenny just blinked and looked away, not wanting to make eye contact with him again.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and found it to be that of Bostic. He gave him a gentle smile under his thick, black mustache and patted his shoulder. "Killing isn't all it seems to be, is it?"

"No. No it's not," Kenny said softly. "That's why I want this fucker arrested." The cops nodded at him.

"Don't worry, Kid, we'll get him," Mager winked. "Alright, give us the address and we'll take it from here."

"We'll take you to the house," Stan said.

"Kids, we're not going to watch the football game, we're going to arrest a deranged man," Mager lectured.

"I want to watch this fucker dragged off," Kenny spit. "He fucking raped my boyfriend and I want to be damn sure that he gets in that cruiser and doesn't come out." Mager and Bostic looked at him for a moment before sighing.

"You kids are to stay out of the way, do you hear me?" Mager said firmly. "If we tell you to run, you are to run." They all nodded in agreement. "Alright," he said, turning to Bostic. "Take the car and follow us to the house." Bostic nodded and hopped in the cruiser, turning on the ignition.

The four on foot started walking towards Mitch's home, taking in the sights around them. It was like Kenny remembered from the first night Kyle and he had stumbled upon this little patch of Hell. It was rusted and corroding from time and abuse of its residence. There was a heavy smell of smoke in the air, co-mingling with the aromas of alcohol and garbage. As they approached the assailant's house, Kenny's heart beat rapidly. What if this guy was just waiting for them? He could just have gun in his hand, waiting to shoot the first thing he saw as a threat! He gulped as they stopped in front of the home, a somewhat quaint little two story house with an old Camry parked parallel to the curb.

Bostic pulled up and clambered out of the car to meet Mager, and they walked up to the front door, signaling for the boys to stay back. Mager pounded on the door, "Mitchell Derrick? Open up!' he called. No answer.

"Derrick, this is the police!" Bostic added. "Come out now or deal with the consequences!" Still nothing. Kenny shook his head and bit his lip, looking up the house, seeing no lights on.

"Great, he's not home," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Get the ram," Mager directed at Bostic.

"Oh jeez, you don't need a fucking ram," Kenny sighed. He grabbed the papers from Stan's hand and ripped the paper clip off the top. He walked up to the door and unbent the clip, sliding it into the keyhole and fiddling with it. He placed his ear up to the door, listening for that familiar tumbling before pushing it open.

"Kid, this tells me that you've done this before," Bostic observed.

Kenny shrugged. "Yeah. And?" He didn't wait for a response as he stepped inside the dark house.

"Hey, you need to get behind us," Mager ordered, pulling Kenny behind him and Bostic and stepping forward. Kenny rolled his eyes and Stan and Cartman came up beside him, looking around the place.

They seemed to be in a living room of some sort. Kenny looked around and thought for a brief moment that he was back with his parents in that shit home on the other side of the tracks. The guy had a whole damn house, why the fuck couldn't he keep care of it?! Beer cans and TV tray dinners scattered the floor and Kenny held back a chuckle. It wasn't until he lived with Kyle that he became a house proud.

"Derrick? Come out with your hands up," Mager yelled.

"Sir, I don't think he's he-" Bostic started, interrupted by a shuffling sound from the room adjacent to the current one.

Mager held up his hand to keep the boys quiet as he and Bostic moved forward. "Derrick, you are being ordered to come with us in a civilized fashion. We are prepared to use force if necessary."

Silence.

"Goddammit," Bostic muttered, starting to advance towards the room.

"Stay low, Bostic," Mager warned. "Be ready," he joined him and they began to walk towards the room together. He shot the boys a quick look, mouthing for them to stay there. They boys bit their lips, the suspension slowly killing each of them. The cops entered the black abyss step by step as Kenny, Stan, and Cartman watched them become completely enveloped in the darkness.

A few agonizing moments passed before the cops reemerged. "Nothing," Bostic muttered with a shrug. "It's empty."

Kenny felt his heart sink, then stop as a figure appeared from behind the men. "LOOK OU-"

Too late.

Mitch brought down two lamps into the back of their necks, knocking them to the floor in two large heaps. The man looked at the fallen cops and back at the boys with a sinister smile. "Well, well, well. Kenny. How are you feeling?"

"Y-you fucker!" Kenny stammered.

"Aw, that's not very nice of you," he smirked, grabbing the cops' arms and pulling them towards a door. He threw it open and pushed the men inside. Kenny, Stan, and Cartman listened as they thumped down a series of steps. Mitch turned and looked back at them, the same grin upon his face. "So," he started. "Here to try to get me arrested, hm?"

"Try nothing! You're going down motherfucker!" Cartman spit. Mitch snorted at him.

"I'm terrified, Tubby. You gonna sit on me? I'd much rather have Kenny's little boyfriend do that, thanks," he looked at Kenny.

Kenny's brow twitched. "Watch what you fucking say, you fat fuck," he hissed.

"Why should I? I'm not gonna lie, Blondes. I'm kinda upset that you killed Barney. It wasn't very nice of you. I mean...we let you live, didn't we?"

"If you call crying in your sleep living, then you have a pretty fucked up mind, you deranged freak," Stan spit.

"Aw, Kylie cries? How cute," He smiled. "I mean, he really is like a girl. Ain't he Kenny?"

"Shut up, Dude."

"I mean, that tight little body, those cute little whimpers..."

"Shut up!"

"His red little face. He's just so pretty, dontcha think?"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Kenny screeched. Mitch just grinned away as Kenny's fists shook in fury.

"I gotta know, Blondes. Just how is it you came to be with him? I mean, a little slut like that belongs on the streets, not in the bed of just one," he taunted.

"What did you just say?!"

"Pretty little Kyle. You know, your little whore. I'm willing to bet that me and Barn didn't even need to tie him up. He looked like he was more than willing to take it. And boy, did he take it. Did he ever tell you just how long we went for?"

Kenny stared at him furiously.

"Four hours," he smirked. "Oh it was great. Barney would go, I would go, we'd kick him around a little, have him blow us and just go right back to the beginning. He gives excellent head, even as a hostage. I can't imagine what it must feel like for you, Kenny. But man, he went for four hours, just to make sure that we didn't hurt you. I don't know how many times he almost passed out, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. It was fucking hot."

Kenny's eyes widened and he leapt. He slammed his body against the larger man and tried to beat the ever-loving crap out of him.

"KENNY!" Stan and Cartman shouted. Mitch took control as he regained his balance and picked the blonde up, throwing him down the stairs as he had Bostic and Mager. He tumbled down the stairs and slammed into the wall at the foot. He groaned as his head began throbbing.

"YOU FUCKER!" he shouted back up the stairs. "You don't fucking talk about my boyfriend like that!"

Mitch looked at him and smiled. "What? Can't handle the truth?"

Kenny looked behind him as he saw Stan and Cartman charging towards the man. He stepped to the side and pushed Cartman down the steps and grabbed Stan in a full nelson.

"Hey! Lemme go!" he shouted, trying to wrestle away from him. Kenny and Cartman looked up as he struggled, their heads throbbing too much for them to make a coherent action. They watched as Mitch reached into Stan's pocket and ripped out his possessions.

"Thanks, Kid," he grinned, throwing him downstairs as well. Stan landed on top of Cartman and they groaned as Kenny shot up and tried to make it to the top of the flight. Mitch slammed the door shut as Kenny threw himself into it, trying to jiggle the knob to open it.

"Let us out!" he shouted, pounding on the metal door.

Stan and Cartman ran up to join him. "Give me back my stuff, too!" Stan yelled.

"Blackberry huh?" Mitch asked through the door. "Nice phone. Lots of features, huh?"

"What the fuck are you doing?! Let us out!" Kenny demanded.

"Just looking through the phone, Blondes. Don't have a cow."

"Get the hell away from my stuff!" Stan growled.

"Hm," Mitch started. "582 Mountain View Apartments. Sound familiar to you?"

Kenny, Cartman, and Stan froze. Oh god.

"Well, I take it from your silence that this is where Kylie is, isn't it?"

"No!" Kenny argued. "He isn't staying there anymore!"

Mitch chuckled. "Bullshit. What do you think? Should I go pay him a visit, Blondes? I can tell him you said hi."

"Stay away from him!" Cartman said, slamming his fist into the door.

"This is just too good to pass up," Mitch chuckled. "I bet he'll just love that. Getting taken in his own bed by someone who isn't Kenny? Oh God, this is gonna be fun."

"NO!" Kenny screamed, slamming into the door full force. Stan and Cartman joined him, only succeeding in making noise and bruising their shoulders.

"Well, I'll talk to you later, boys. I have a pretty little redhead to go...talk to," he laughed, his voice drifting further away from the door. They listened and heard the front door slam shut.

"Oh god!" Kenny cried. "We have to get out of here!"

Stan tried flicking on the lightswitch next to them, but to no avail. "He has my fucking key to your apartment, too...Goddammit!" he swore, hitting the door fiercely.

"Call him!" Cartman shouted.

"What?" Kenny asked.

"Call the Jew and tell him to get the fuck out of the house!"

"Right. You go try to wake them up," he motioned towards the unconscious men sprawled out on the floor at the bottom of the steps. They nodded and headed down as Kenny whipped out his phone and frantically scrolled through his contacts until he found home. He hit call and bit his lip as it rang...and rang. And rang.

"Oh god, he's not answering!" he panicked. "He's probably too hopped up on that damn medicine!"

"We have to break out of here," Cartman said.

"WAKE UP!" Stan shouted at Bostic, shaking him frantically. He smacked his face a few times, trying to gain a response. Cartman did the same to Mager, gaining a small groan from him.

"Dude, dude you have to wake up!" Cartman said, shaking the man by the shoulders a few times. Kenny redialed the phone, trying to reach his lover again, but once more gained only the voicemail.

"Dammit!" he yelled.

"Dude, come on, get up!" Cartman kept urging Mager. The man slowly opened his eyes to the brunette and squinted.

"What the...fuck?" he whispered.

"Come on, get your ass up," Cartman ordered. "We have a Jew ass on the line here!"

"What?" he blinked, sitting up slowly. "Where's...where's Derrick?"

"He knocked you two out," Stan gestured towards Bostic. "He threw us down here and now he's going back after Kyle!"

"Kyle?"

"The rape victim!" Cartman shouted. "Kenny's trying to get a hold of him and get him to get out of the house. Can't you call for backup?!"

"Bostic is my backup! We don't have more than three working at a time anymore, and we're on the two man shift."

"FUCK!" Stan shouted. "This is what taxes are paying for?!"

"Well, sorry. Tell the mayor to pay us more and we may increase-"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Kenny shrieked. "This is not the time for your fucking 'I-need-money' rant! Kyle is in trouble! We need to get out of here and go save him!"

"Right," he nodded, hopping to his feet. He ran up the stairs as Bostic began to stir.

"What the hell was that?" he asked slowly.

Cartman filled him in as Kenny and Mager worked on prying the door open. "Goddamn, it won't budge," Mager cursed. "How far away does Kyle live?"

"We got here from there in about ten minutes by walking."

"Fuck. When did Mitch leave?"

"I don't know, not long before you woke up."

"It's already been about five minutes...FUCK!" Stan shouted. Bostic stood and walked up the stairs.

"Move," he directed. Mager and Kenny stepped aside. He raised his baton and smashed it down over the door knob time and time again as the others watched. After about ten blows, the knob broke apart and clattered to the ground. Bostic kicked the door open and they ran out, straight to the front door.

"Alright, in the car," Bostic yelled as they all sped into the cruiser. Kenny noticed the Camry missing from the road and panicked. He was already there, wasn't he?! He whipped out his phone and dialed the number again, the other line still dead. Bostic flipped on the sirens and sped away.

"Mountain View apartments," Stan directed. Kenny tried the number again, tears welling up in his eyes. Oh god, not again...he sniffed and shook his head. If only Ky had been at work today...

They sped down the inner-city roads at breakneck speed, looking to catch up to that ugly beige Camry. As they reached the complex, they saw the car parked beside it and jumped out running through the lobby, ignoring Sally and Joel, and throwing open the door for the apartment. They came across a boy passed out on the floor. Stan went and turned him over, seeing the face of Toby Fischbach.

"What the fuck?" Cartman muttered.

Stan checked his pulse. "He's out cold. What the hell's he doing here?"

They all shot their heads up as they heard a scream from the bedroom. An all-too-familiar scream.

They forgot about Toby and ran in, finding a sickening sight. Mitch was on top of Kyle on the bed, holding one hand over his mouth and the other holding his wrists down. Kyle was thrashing around furiously, trying to break loose from the man's grasp. He turned his head and opened his tear filled eyes at the group.

"MMM MMH!" he shouted. Mitch followed his gaze and smiled at the audience.

"Come to watch?"

"Get off of him!" Kenny screamed, starting to advance towards him. Bostic held him back, much to Mitch's amusement.

"That's right. Don't come any closer. That'd ruin all the fun," he smirked. He removed his hand from Kyle's mouth and dove into his pocket.

"GET OFF!" Kyle screeched hoarsely, trying again to pry himself loose. Mitch just smiled and removed a bandana from his pocket and waved it in front of the young boy. He shoved it into his mouth and laughed as he choked for air.

"Get away from him, Derrick," Bostic demanded.

"I'm the one with the hostage. I don't think that you're in any position to be ordering me around, do you?" he quirked his eyebrow.

"Let him go," Stan growled.

"Nah, this is just too much fun. I love nothing more than a good fuck. And this little pretty boy is just what I'm looking for," he trailed his free hand up Kyle's stomach, listening to his desperate protests and licking his lips. He looked at the group and smirked. "Just leave us alone for a bit and then you can have him back, I promise."

"Fuck no!" Cartman snarled.

Mitch shrugged. "Okay then. You can watch." He took his hand and dug it into Kyle's pajama bottoms and grabbed his cock, prompting a loud scream from the boy.

"DON'T TOUCH HIM!" Kenny yelled in fury.

"You gonna stop me? I'm one good hit away from killing him, you realize." Kenny bit his lip. It was a false statement, he knew, but he didn't want Kyle hurt. Mitch smirked and removed his hand from Kyle's pants, much to his relief, and hopped off the bed still holding the Jew's wrists. He yanked him off of the bed and twisted his arms behind his back, holding him against him tightly and smiling maniacally.

"Put him down," Mager ordered, pulling a gun from his holster and aiming it at the man.

He laughed sadistically. "I don't think so. Me and Kyle wanna play around a little, don't we hot stuff?" he murmured hotly into the boy's ear.

"Mmm mph mmphm!'

"See? Submission is a beautiful thing, isn't it?" he leant down and licked Kyle's burning cheek.

Kenny growled and wrestled away from Bostic's grip, once again leaping towards the man and socking him in the jaw. He grabbed Kyle and tried to pull him into his arms, only to be kicked in the stomach by the man and stumble backwards.

"Now, now, Kenny. Be good," he taunted. "I don't wanna have to hurt dear Kyle," he stroked the Jew's head, clasping his other hand over his mouth and holding him tightly against him. Kenny bit his lip, seeing Kyle lacking the strength to fight back.

"Why...?" he asked. "Why are you after Kyle?...he...he didn't do anything to you!"

Mitch chuckled, "I'm a commitment man. If I screw someone...I do it until their dead. And for Kyle here, that won't take very long." Kyle's eyes widened and he tried to pull free. "No, no, no, stay still little Kyle," he whispered, backing up slowly with the boy.

"STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Bostic ordered. Mitch continued to back up, holding Kyle flat against him as a shield. He took an arm and opened the double doors to the balcony outside the bedroom and drug Kyle back onto the cement.

"MMPH MMHP!" Kyle screamed, breaking into a coughing fit.

"You have a few choices here, Blondes," Mitch stated. "As you can see, I have Kyle. You're in no position to argue. Are you willing to listen to my options for you?"

Kenny stood and bared his teeth angrily. "What?!"

Mitch smirked. "One, you let me off scot free, and I just get away with smacking you around a little. But do know that I know where you live. Two, I don't get off free, but I get to fuck this little pretty toy of mine until tomorrow," he squeezed Kyle's cheeks, "Then you never see me again. Three...I throw Kyle off this balcony and you never see _him_ again," he smiled. Kenny stared at him in horror. "Tick tock, Kenny. Make a choice."

"Shoot him!" Cartman demanded.

"They can't. Not with Ky in the way," Stan breathed.

Kenny stared into Kyle's desperate eyes. On one hand, if he said to let him off free, the cops might be able to take him down. But they might not, too. They weren't exactly competent. Besides, he could probably grab Kyle again if his back was turned at any time. On the other, there was no way he was letting Kyle get hurt. Whether it was a broken skull or a sore ass, it wasn't happening again.

He straightened up as he found an option. "Damien," he breathed.

"What?" Mitch blinked.

"DAMIEN!" he shrieked.

Right on cue, a red glow appeared in between the two standers, and from it came the ebon-haired boy himself. "Why hello, Kenny," he smiled. "I told you that I would be here," he winked. He turned back towards Mitch, who was staring at him in horror. "I suggest you let that boy go before I let him hurt you," he said calmly.

"W...what the fuck are you?" He asked, backing up more with Kyle still clasped tightly in his grip.

"Why, I'm the son of the Fallen Angel," he grinned manically. "I am the true spawn of Satan himself," he bowed theatrically. "You, however, are a disgusting rapist. A man so far into his own interests that he forgets the lives of those around them; the pain and suffering inflicted upon them by such lecherous acts as your own."

Kenny shot a look at the other four, who were standing there in shock, watching the magical boy talk calmly.

"Kyle," he addressed the captive with sympathetic eyes. "I told you I'd never let something so severe happen again. I don't know if you're ready, but it's time to test out just how much power you hold over this life."

Kenny and Kyle's eyes widened with confusion. Damien held out his hand towards the boy, it beginning to glow a familiar golden and blue.

"Damien, what the fuck are you doing?!" Kenny hissed, looking worriedly towards the other five.

Damien looked at him and smirked. "Don't worry," his eyes glowed red and the cops fell to the floor in a deep sleep. "And those two," he nodded towards Stan and Cartman, "have special permits," he winked.

"WHAT?!"

"All in time, McCormick. All in time," he smiled. He looked back towards the man and boy in front of him, his hand still glowing.

"Recognize the colors, Kenny?"

"Yeah...," he breathed.

"Did you ever notice that Barney never held that glow?"

Kenny's eyes widened. "N-no, I didn't ever catch that..."

"That's because you lost that power. However, I have it with me, with some boosts added to it. But it's no longer for your use," he looked towards the Jew. "It now belongs to Kyle, only he can use it to its full extent."

"What?!"

"You'll see," he smirked.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?!" Stan cried out, tugging his hair in confusion.

Damien ignored him and shot the colors towards Kyle, sending his body into violent spasms as it coursed through his veins. Mitch threw him away from himself, alarmed by the sudden glowing of the boy. Kyle landed on his knees, yanking the gag from out his lips, trembling and gasping for air.

Kenny started to run towards him, but Damien grasped his shoulder. "No," he commanded firmly. "This is Kyle's power, he has to learn to control it on his own." Kenny looked at him angrily for a moment before turning his attention back to Kyle, who was still shaking. He sat on his knees and clasped his arms, shuddering and breathing heavily.

"Excellent," Damien whispered. "He's already calming it down. Watch." he motioned towards the Jew. Kenny gazed as the gold and blue around him turned into a gentle green glow.

"OH MY GOD, HE'S DEAD!" Kenny cried.

Damien rolled his eyes. "No, you moron," he shook his head. "In case you've forgotten, YOU CAN'T DIE!" he smacked the blonde's head. Cartman and Stan came up to stand beside Kenny, watching Kyle calm down more and shakily stand back on his feet.

"Kenny...," Stan breathed heavily. "What's going on?"

"We'll explain later," he muttered.

Mitch stood behind Kyle still, watching in shock before his expression became angry. "I don't know what you're doing, Little Kyle. But I've decided. You're coming with me," he walked up and grabbed the young Jew by the arms. Kyle shot his eyes open and Kenny caught them glowing the green, and suddenly changing to red as he whipped his head around to face his attacker. Mitch went flying back into the air and landed against the wall, sliding down with a silent thump.

Kyle's red glow suddenly dissipated and he backed up quickly, his mouth agape in shock. "OH MY GOD!" He screamed, yanking at his hair anxiously. "WHAT DID I DO?!"

Kenny ran over and grabbed him hugging him in a tight embrace as he breathed erratically. "Shh, you're okay. Everything's okay," he reassured him.

"Kenny, what did I do?!" He cried out, tightly grasping him back in fear.

"You learned to use a power, that's what you did," Damien smiled. "Congratulations, Kyle. You now hold a power far beyond your wildest dreams."

"WHAT'S GOING ON?!" Cartman and Stan shrieked. Kyle, Kenny, and Damien all paused and looked at the two boys. Then the two passed out on the floor, then towards the man slumped against the wall.

"Um...," Kyle started, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"We...well...we...uh...," Kenny stumbled.

Damien chuckled and motioned for the two stunned lads to walk over towards them. They did, though with noticeable hesitation. As they reached the other three, the Demon boy threw his arms around their shoulders and grinned sheepishly. "Well, long time, no see," he greeted.

"What is going on?" Stan breathed, a bit calmer this time around.

Damien's red eyes glimmered with mischief as he looked towards the four boys. He turned to Kyle and Kenny and smirked. "I guess we all have some explaining to do."

________________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Holy crap, this chapter hated me._

_You're reading the re-re written chapter! I typed it all once and hated it, so I started again. Then I didn't like that either. So I typed it again, finding that the ending had completely cut out the twins, so I had to go back and retype the beginning to get them out because they'd interfere with the next part of the story. Needless to say, I'm a bit frustrated from it. _

_So I threw in a sex scene to make myself feel better =D_

_Next chapter, you're gonna wanna read if you have questions. It's gonna be a total plot element chap XD_

_Get some questions answered, fill some plot holes, and blah blah blah._

_Thanks for everything =)_

_(We hit 150 reviews!!! Oh snap!!! Think we can hit 200 with the next four chaps? That'd be killer =D)_


	28. Exposition

_A/N: Heh, welcome to the whole explanation of the plot XD_

_Why can Stan and Cartman know the secret? Why the fuck was Toby there?! Why does Kyle randomly gain new abilities?! And why the hell is Twin Peaks such an addicting show?!?!_

_I'm totally retarded, I know XD_

_Anyhoo, enjoy =D_

_(THIS IS GOING TO CONFUSE YOU, I GUARANTEE IT!)_

________________________________________________________________________

Uncomfortable. Awkward. Just plain annoying. Didn't matter what term you associated with the feeling hovering within the small apartment, but it probably fit just fine. Kenny, Kyle, Stan, and Cartman sat on the couch and chair, staring at each other. The two immortals were given directions from their demonic counterpart to not say a word about the whole powers fiasco until he returned from taking Mitch and the officers back to the prison and setting up a scene for them to follow along with. How he was going to pull that off, Kenny hadn't the slightest idea. But he was the son of Satan, he could probably accomplish a lot.

Kenny looked over at Kyle, who was holding a cup of coffee and still trembling pretty severely. He scooted a little closer to the Jew and wrapped his arms around his frail form. Kyle jumped a bit at first, but soon settled, opting to cuddle in closer to the blonde to feel more protected.

"So..." Cartman started slowly. "Why the hell is Fischbach here?" he nodded towards the unconscious boy that they had placed on the love seat.

Kyle was silent, staring down at the ground with wide eyes.

"Ky?" Stan asked, gently touching his shoulder. Kyle yelped a bit at the contact and dove himself closer into Kenny, burying his face into his chest and shaking.

"Shh, it's okay, Kyle," Kenny said, stroking his hair softly. "It's just Stan...no one's gonna hurt you."

Kyle looked up at him uncertainly, then turned his head back a little to look at Stan, who looked genuinely freaked out over Kyle's reaction. "S-sorry," the poor boy stuttered.

"God, Jew. He didn't get that far, calm down."

Kenny and Stan looked at him furiously. "Didn't get far?!" Kenny spat. "He was fucking attacked, Cartman!"

"It's not like he had a cock shoved up his ass or anything!" He retorted. Kyle let out a long, high pitched sob and threw himself into Kenny's torso again.

"CARTMAN!" Stan yelled angrily.

"What?!" he shouted back. "He's okay! No bruises or anything!" That reminded Kenny...he slowly sat the boy up from his chest, gazing into his bloodshot eyes with a severe twang of heartache. He slowly peeled the gauze off of his face, tossing it onto the coffee table beside them. He slowly stroked the clean complexion of his cheeks lovingly, biting his lip as Kyle continued to shake.

"Holy shit...," Stan breathed. "They're gone..." he shook his head, unbelieving.

"All in time," Kenny looked at him and nodded. Stan nodded back slowly. Kenny turned his attention back towards Kyle and stared into his green eyes. "Kyle...he's gone now. They're both gone," he cupped the boy's chin gently. "I promise you. No one will ever hurt you like that again. I'm going to protect you."

Kyle sniffed a few times and tried to smile at his boyfriend, but just couldn't muster enough to do so. Kenny smiled reassuringly and Kyle leaned in and clasped his little arms around the blonde. Kenny returned the gesture and held on tightly to his little Jew, swaying him gently back and forth.

"Kahl, why is Fischbach here?" Cartman repeated.

Kyle reluctantly pulled back from Kenny and sniffed, wiping his eyes on his arm. "He...he came over to talk about something...he went to the library, but since I wasn't there, Gloria told him where to find me. We didn't get very far into the discussion before....," he trailed off with his voice cracking slightly.

"He tried to protect you?" Stan asked, sliding a little closer to the sniveling redhead.

He shook his head. "Yeah..."

"Kahl. Tell us exactly what happened," Cartman demanded, looking at the Jew determinedly.

"What do you want to know?" He asked, looking back at him.

"He came over. Then what? Tell us what happened." Stan added. Kenny looked at him as well with understanding eyes.

"He...he came over...and I was passed out out here...I had moved awhile ago. Anyways, he came in and we were talking a-about Saturday...he was apologizing...I-it was nice of him," he managed a small smile, to which the other three returned his expression. His grin suddenly dropped however. "Then...M-mitch came. He unlocked the door...and I figured it was you guys, so I didn't t-think much of it...," he bit his lip.

"Then what?" Kenny placed his hand on the boy's knee. Kyle grabbed his coffee from off the table and took a large gulp, trying to swallow down the nerves he'd been building up to that point.

"H-he barged in...he shut the door...and he started coming towards us...I freaked out...he...he called me p-pretty," he shuddered in disgust. "a-and Toby figured out that he was the one who...who...," he shut his eyes and trembled.

Kenny grabbed him again and ran his fingers through his curls. "Shh...it's okay...you don't have to say it. What happened after that?"

He took a deep breath and let it out in a wavering stream. "H-he grabbed me and tried to k-kiss me...," he breathed. "Toby jumped up a-and grabbed me away from him...so they started f-fighting."

"Wow, the jackass has a heart," Stan murmured, looking over at Toby.

"M-mitch hit him...probably the same way he hit y-you," Kyle looked up at the blonde sadly. Kenny nodded him on and Kyle went back to staring at the floor. "After he knocked out Toby, I-I tried to get out...he blocked the doorway, though and grabbed me," he sniffed a few times, trying to hold back another onslaught of tears. "He dragged me into our room and th-threw me on the bed..." he shook his head slowly, biting his lip.

"Kyle, did he like, really hurt you?" Stan asked. "I know that he was holding you down, but did he hit you or anything?"

Kyle looked at him uncertainly then nodded.

"Where'd he hit you?" Kenny demanded.

"He...he didn't hit me..." Kyle said, looking towards the blank TV for a distraction.

"Then what did he do?" Cartman asked. Kyle looked at him and took a shuddery breath.

"I...I don't know how bad it is..." he said, breaking off of Kenny's hold. He fingered the edge of his black night shirt and sighed heavily. He slowly tore it off his scrawny frame, and Kenny's jaw dropped as his back came into view. There was a deep gash trailing down his spine.

"Oh my god, Ky...," Stan shook his head and fingered around the wound gently.

Kenny stood from his seat. "Kyle, lie down," he directed. Kyle looked at him for a moment and nodded. He lied down with his head resting on its side with his back facing towards the ceiling. Kenny kneeled down beside him and gently stroked beside the gash. "Ky...what did he do to you?" he asked as he began to slowly run his hand up and down the wound to start its healing.

Kyle winced and hissed from the sting, but kept his eyes on Kenny. "He...he flipped me over after I w-was on the bed...he said that he liked it when I was like that..." he shook his head sadly. Kenny bit his lip and continued to work on the gash, feeling it slowly but surely beginning to close up. "I wouldn't d-do what he said, so he p-punished me with one of the wire hangers from our closet."

"What'd he tell you to do?" Cartman asked quietly.

Kyle looked up at him and narrowed his eyes. "What do you think?"

"I don't know," Cartman shrugged. "There's a long list of options."

Kyle sighed and his face started glowing. He turned to look towards the side of the room past Kenny's shoulder and bit his lip. "H-he told me to get my ass in the air s-so he could f-fuck me."

Kenny stopped running his hand over the wound and looked at Kyle. Kyle wouldn't meet his gaze. He just stared at the wall as a heavy silence passed over the room. "Did...did he get much farther than that?" Kenny whispered. Kyle finally met eyes with him and sighed.

"Yeah. Yeah he got a little farther."

"What'd he do?" Stan demanded.

"I'd...I'd really rather not say," he bit his lip.

Kenny finished with the wound on his back and helped him sit up. He kneeled in-between Kyle's legs and stroked his face. "Ky, please. Just tell us what he did."

"I...he...," he looked up towards the ceiling and dropped his head to his chest with a deep breath.

"Come on, Kahl. It couldn't have been that bad," Cartman raised his brow.

"It...it was. It was a lot worse than the cut on m-my back."

"What did he do?" Kenny said more firmly, grasping the young boy's hand. Kyle looked at him and bit his lip.

"He...," he swallowed briefly, "he had a gun. It wasn't loaded...he usually uses it to s-scare people."

"So, he just scared you a lot?" Cartman asked. Kyle shook his head.

"No. He...he took it...and he," he took a wavering breath. "He fucked me with it," He looked towards the ground in shame.

Cartman, Kenny, and Stan's mouths all dropped in shock. "N-no..." Stan whispered, shaking his head in disbelief.

"He told me it wasn't loaded afterwards...," Kyle grasped his exposed arms and shivered.

"Oh god...," Kenny stood and sat back down next to Kyle, pulling him in once more and kissing him softly. "God...I wish...I would have gotten here sooner," he whispered.

"Why didn't he use the gun when we got there to scare us?" Cartman pondered.

"He already had what he wanted," Stan said quietly, looking at the redhead. "He already had everything he needed. He knew that we knew that all he had to do was turn his wrist and he could severely hurt Kyle. It wasn't necessary."

"Does...does it hurt, Kyle?" Kenny asked.

Kyle looked up at him and shrugged meekly. "Not as badly as last time...a little, but not as much."

"God, why would he do that?" Stan shuddered.

"To punish me again," Kyle muttered.

"Why? What'd he tell you to do?" Cartman asked

"Two things," he said softly. "One, he told m-me to blow him...and I told him to go fuck himself because I wasn't about to without a fight. And t-two...," he sighed again. "I kept trying to get to the phone. I s-saw Ken's name on the i.d. and knew that y-you were trying to get me out of there."

"The first time I called was about two minutes after he'd left," Kenny said. "There's no way he was already here."

Kyle shook his head, "nope. I was passed out. Then Toby came over and my mind was elsewhere and I didn't get to the phone in time. Then he walked in and obviously I couldn't get to it by then."

"Goddammit," Kenny whispered, looking towards the ceiling, tears coating his pupils. He felt a pair of arms encircle his waist and looked down to see Kyle holding him closely. Kenny turned and sat against the arm of the couch, grasping Kyle and pulling him in in-between his legs to lay down on his chest. He held his head tightly against him and stroked the carrot locks. "I'm so sorry, Kyle," he whispered.

"It's not your fault," Kyle nuzzled into him. "You got me out of there."

"No, you did," a voice called. They all looked over at Damien, standing in front of them with a playful grin across his face. "Ken just happened to be there," he shrugged. "But your pansy 'you saved me' cliche fits well in your romantic endeavors."

"Hey, shut the fuck up, Damien," Kenny growled.

"FINALLY!" Cartman said, throwing his hands in the air.

"Dude, explain everything right now!" Stan said frantically. "How the fuck do you have powers?!"

"Why were you glowing?!" Cartman added.

"What does he mean you can't die?!"

"How long have you been like this?!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, one question at a time," Damien laughed softly. He walked over and sat cross-legged on the coffee table. "Alright, Ken. Explain how you got the powers. Just you, not Kyle."

Kenny blinked at him and looked between Stan and Cartman. Stan walked up and sat on the arm of the chair so that his eyes could see Kenny's face at all times. He sighed and stared at them. "Well, you're both aware that I used to die constantly. I had to because I was...I guess chosen or something for what me and Kyle do."

"Which is?" Stan asked.

Kyle sat up off of Kenny and he sat up straight, grasping the Jews hand and still holding him close. "We hunt down ghosts, to put it quite simply. It's our job to find...restless spirits and help them pass on to Heaven or Hell...though it's mainly to Hell," he added.

"So...you just randomly got powers?" Cartman questioned.

Kenny shook his head. "Not really. I mean, Satan had this planned since I was born."

"Oh no, long before that," Damien grinned. He turned to the two clueless boys and continued, "there was a...I guess you can call it a prophecy. We had been waiting for a soul who was caught in the torrent between life and death, for they would have a decent understanding of what fates fell onto the spirits that they assisted. We waited for thousands of years."

"What happened to the last one?" Kenny asked.

"He died," Damien shrugged. "Remember that your job didn't come equipped with immortality, McCormick."

"What happened to him?" Kyle asked softly.

"He killed himself. He felt as though he were sentencing people to pure torture and couldn't stand it anymore."

"I thought you told me that I couldn't take that way out," Kenny raised his brow.

"We added that rule after him," he smirked. "Anyways, we waited and waited until Kenny finally asked my father about his problem with his constant dying. Kenny became in charge of the most complicated system in the universe."

"Ken's in charge of the IRS?" Kyle asked.

Damien chuckled softly, "very funny, Smartass," he looked back towards Stan and Cartman. "Ken held the power to tip the balance between life and death. His refusal to complete his task could have brought upon the breakdown of the system of the Underworld. So as you can tell, he's kind of vital."

"Why Kenny though?" Stan asked.

Damien shrugged, "I dunno. I think it's just random or something. My father knows more about it than me, but I know enough to know this: we needed a human soul. A pure, completely human soul. Not afraid of being themselves, but still good enough to be willing to work for the benefit of humanity. Ken's a shameless sex hound," he nodded towards the blonde, who beamed proudly as his boyfriend shook his head and chuckled, "but he's a pure spirit. He's willing to help if he's needed and that's why we got him on the job."

"When?" Cartman pondered.

"Kyle's birthday," Kenny said softly, turning towards Kyle. "It's the only reason I could make it before it ended." Kyle smiled and leaned up and kissed Kenny's cheek.

"Well thank you for damning yourself for the rest of our lives just so you could give me a sketchbook," he laughed softly.

"Anything to see you smile," he grinned, kissing him back.

"Alright, kids. Stop making out and focus," Damien rolled his eyes.

"Oh, you're just jealous," Kenny smiled, wrapping his arms around the small Jew, who seemed to be feeling a bit less edgy.

"Yeah, jealous. That's the word," he smirked.

"Okay, so Ken got his powers directly from Satan, but what about Kyle?" Stan asked

"Kyle. Your turn," Damien nodded. Kyle stared at him a minute before swallowing and looking towards his best friend with guilt in his expression.

"No doubt you remember all the shit I put you through last month," he started softly. Stan and Cartman nodded, leaning forward slightly to listen. He took a deep breath and continued, "after I died, Kenny came to save me. That 'deal' we were talking about that he made for my arms wasn't just for my arms. I came back to life, got the same powers as Ken, and we got immortality to top it off. The only reason I'm here right now is this job."

Stan and Cartman's breathing became a little deeper. "So...not modern science?" Stan asked.

Kyle shook his head. "You know how much I hate lying to you, Stan, but we kinda had to."

"Why?" Cartman asked.

"Yes, Damien, explain why Stan and Cartman are allowed to know about this," Kenny raised his brow.

Damien smirked, "okay, I will. You see Marsh and Cartman, under usual circumstances, the holders of this power, Ken and Kyle, cannot tell a mortal of their abilities. The knowledge gives mortals the actual power, and the power is simply too much for a mortal being to be able to hold on their own, their bodies can't handle it, so their lifespan is cut down drastically. Obviously, these two telling you would have made you die quicker and they didn't want to do that."

"Not to Stan, at least," Kyle muttered.

"Ay! Piss off, Jew!"

"Anyways," Damien growled. "My father made a special exception for you two. You can't hold the powers, but you can know about them."

"Why?" Ken asked. Damien simply pointed in the direction of the young Jew.

"Me? What'd I do?" Kyle asked.

"What did you do? You proved to my father that your spirit has its flaws. Your suicide, as I've told you before, has us on edge. You're still a very fragile person and we need to take steps to prevent you from turning to a knife again."

"It's not like I can kill myself again!"

"Ah, true," he nodded. "But as you've all seen," he looked around pointedly at each of them, "you and Kenny can still become critically injured. That's one of the reasons we gave Kenny his healing power," he nodded towards the blonde. "You can still harm yourself."

"But what does that have to do with us?" Cartman asked, gesturing to himself and the ebon boy next to him.

"A lot. You three are the driving force behind Broflovski's life and we can't just sacrifice you. It'd only be a matter of time before you found out, so we figured we needed to hit the nail on the head right away so we didn't run into complications later on."

"Driving force?" Stan repeated.

The demon nodded. "Yes. You keep him alive. His love for Kenny, his friendship with you, and the pure drive of hatred from Cartman."

"Ay!"

"All of these played into his death, and so we decided to make sure these factors wouldn't altar his judgment."

"Wait, wait, wait," Kyle waved his hands in front of him. "For one thing, I don't need Cartman, he just happens to be here. For another, what does this have to do with me killing myself again?"

"Let me ask you something, Kyle," he challenged. "Let's say that this secret of yours slipped to Stan and he only had...six years to live to begin with, but you cut it down to two months by slipping. Would you be able to handle the guilt of bringing him closer to death in such a short amount of time?"

Kyle blinked at him. "So...guilt. You think I'd hurt myself out of guilt."

"Don't deny that you would," he quirked his brow.

"You're...you're probably right," he sighed.

"Even for me? Aw, thank you, Kahl," Cartman batted his lashes.

"Oh shut up, Fatass."

"Ay! You should respect me, Jew! After all, I am a driving force to your existence," he boasted.

"As I am to yours, you fucking lardass, now shut up!" Kyle growled.

"I don't need you to live, Kahl, I assure you."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Damien chuckled. "Kyle is the very force behind all of you, actually."

"Really?" Stan asked.

"Of course," he smiled. "He's the only one who cares about all of you, though some more than others," he looked at Cartman pointedly. "I've had my ears open for a while, waiting for the moment to bring about this little conversation of ours. I heard Kenny talking about how were it not for Kyle, none of you would be together and I can't begin to tell you how true this is."

"But I have a feeling you're going to try," Kenny leaned his hand into his palm and raised his brow.

"Well, no duh," he smirked. He gestured towards the redhead, "Kyle is the connection between you all. His rival status with Cartman keeps them on close terms constantly, though their years of being in such tight quarters has made them extremely protective of one another." Both the redhead and the large boy scoffed and turned away from each other with their arms crossed. Damien continued, "his deep friendship with Stan...well, it's obvious. I've lived a long time and never before have I seen friends able to read emotions by the mere shade of their eye color. Quite incredible, really." Stan smiled at Kyle, who was still looking away from Cartman. His green eyes wandered back over to Stan's direction and he smiled back softly. "And of course," Damien said, "we have Kenny. Now why they're together, I'll never fucking know. But their love for each other is strong enough to withstand Hell itself, so it's gotta be something." Kenny laced his fingers with the Jew's and prompted a larger smile to spread across his pale face. "His connections with all of you have brought you into this group of friends; this little cult as I like to call you," he smirked. "Through him, you've been able to stick it out through almost eighteen years through the wildest shit on Earth and still hang with each other day after day. Though he's the one that connects you all, he needs you more than you need him, believe it or not."

"I find that very difficult to believe," Kenny said, tightening his grip on Kyle's hand.

"Well, believe it," he replied. "Kyle needs Cartman so he always has someone to keep him on his toes. He needs Stan because he just needs a good friend when the time calls. And he needs you, Ken, because he loves you and not having you with him drives him insane. Without awareness, companionship, and love, what is a person? Kyle would have killed himself long before he did were it not for you three."

"I love how you're speaking for me," Kyle raised his brow.

Damien chuckled. "Sorry, but it was asked. I'm here to answer questions. My father commanded it."

"Sweet. What's the next winning lotto ticket?" Kenny asked with a wide grin.

"I believe that it's some sort of paper with a bunch of numbers on it picked by a computer for a winner, but that's not important right now."

"What's the meaning of life?" Stan asked. Damien raised his brow at him and he shrugged. "Sorry. I couldn't help myself. I just wanted to know."

"Yea!" Kyle agreed.

Damien smirked. "The meaning of life is to figure out the meaning of life, you assholes."

"Wait, what?" Stan blinked.

"Aw, no fair," Cartman whined. "You won't give any real answers!"

"I did just give one, Tubs," he rolled his eyes. "Now, can we please continue here?"

"Fine," Kenny crossed his free arm over the one still holding Kyle's hand and pouted childishly.

Damien rolled his eyes and smiled. "You are impossible. Anyways, yeah. Kyle needs you to stay alive so he doesn't hurt himself in a nutshell. Any other questions?"

"Um, we're going to die eventually," Cartman said slowly.

"True, but you're not dying for many years to come, we've made sure of it. Kyle should be in better health by then," Damien shrugged.

"Speaking of dying...I kind of have a question," Kenny raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"We...can't die...so...do we just kinda...stop aging? Or...do we keep on going? I mean, I really can't see us being 243 and walking around solving these cases."

Damien chuckled. "I suppose that should probably be explained. Let me ask you, are you both happy with your appearances right now?"

Kyle and Kenny blinked at each other then back at him. "Um...yea?" Kyle shrugged.

"Of course. We're hot," Ken smirked, sliding his arm around Kyle's waist.

"Well, you'll be back to looking like this after awhile," Damien winked.

"What?" they responded together.

Damien stood from the table and paced in front of it slowly. "You two are not going to age like the rest of humanity. You're going to live twice as long. So instead of passing on at 100, you'll pass at 200 for example."

"We're passing on?" Kenny asked.

"Well, as you said, 243 year olds can't really have that great of health," Damien smirked. "Your physical body is not immortal, hence the reason you get hurt. You won't die from injury, but you can still be harmed pretty harshly as you know." They nodded slowly. "Well, your spirit will pass on to another one of your bodies."

"Wait...what?" Kyle shook his head in confusion.

Damien smiled, "hold tight, I'll show you," he vanished from the room, leaving four very confused boys behind.

"Um...am I the only one with no fucking idea what he's talking about?" Kenny asked.

"No...I'm...I'm with you on this one," Kyle nodded.

"Dude, I don't understand anything about this!" Stan exclaimed. "Ghosts, immortality, deals, I mean, what the fuck is going on?!"

"Stan," Kyle began. "This...this is confusing for Kenny and I, too. Basically, we're here to help save spirits from wandering the Earth for eternity. That's really all there is to it."

"How many have you helped so far?" Cartman asked.

"Eleven," Kyle responded.

"Over a month? That's not much," Stan commented.

"Hey, it's a lot of work," Kenny pouted. "Sometimes they don't know why they're stuck and we have to completely unravel their lives. And we've kinda had some issues the past month in case you've forgotten."

"I've gotta know," Stan said slowly. "Barney and Mitch...was it really just a random person screaming that led you outside? Or was this a ghost issue?"

"Ghost issue," Kyle whispered. "We went to find one in town and we ran into them..."

"Great. Just great. Now I can always freak out that every time you go out to take on one of these things that someone's attacking you," he rolled his eyes.

Kyle smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry, Dude. Not much we can do about it."

Stan looked at him and smiled back. "I know. And I know I obviously can't help with the ghost thing...but if any _living_ being hurts you..."

"You'll be the first person we talk to," he assured him.

"Good," he smirked. They all turned their heads as Damien faded back into view, with something in hand.

"What the fuck?" Kenny murmured. Damien took his parcels and put them lengthwise on the coffee table, showing Kyle and Kenny clones.

"What the fuck?!" Kyle repeated.

"We have bodies ready for you when your ascension begins," Damien smirked.

"Why are they naked?!" Kyle asked.

Damien shrugged innocently. "You come out of the womb naked, don't you?"

"Not at 17!" He went around the table and poked his clone's arm. "It's real skin," his eyes widened.

The demon-boy chuckled. "Well, yeah. Don't forget who my father is, Brof. We have these bodies just lying in a room waiting for you to age."

"This isn't right at all," Kenny frowned, standing and crossing his arms, looking at the clones thoughtfully.

"Whaddya mean? They're clones!"

"No, no, no. Ky's cock isn't long enough," he stroked his chin.

"Kenny!" Kyle protested, his face beginning to glow furiously.

"That's how long it really is, McCormick. Stop trying to get more out of it."

"Oh Jesus Christ!" Kyle slammed his face into his palms.

"Nu uhhhh!" Kenny argued. "I should know how long it is and that isn't it!"

"Ken, seriously!" Stan said.

"Kill me now...kill me now...," Kyle shook his head in embarrassment.

"Kyle, take off your pants, I'm totally proving this," Kenny said.

"Kenny, I am not taking off my pants just so you can compare me to my double!"

"But Kyyyyyllllleeeee," he whined.

"Ken, for one thing, you're being ridiculous," he lectured. "For another, my size shouldn't matter to you!"

"It doesn't! I'd love you if you were like, four inches! But you're bigger than that!" he pointed to the clone.

"Okay, okay, stop," Damien interjected. "McCormick, stop staring at Kyle's cock. Kyle, stop blushing so damn much, you look like a girl."

"Shut up!" he growled.

"And another thing that isn't right!" Kenny shouted.

"What now?!" Damien groaned.

"My clone is lying naked next to Kyle's and their neither holding each other nor aroused and that's just not right!"

"Kenneh," Cartman growled. "Seriouslah, stop."

"Kenny, they're bodies, okay?! Empty bodies! Nothing will work until you two pass on."

"Please just explain this to us," Kyle pleaded. "When will we ascend or whatever?"

Damien looked at him and smiled softly. "Whenever you do," he shrugged. "I honestly don't know. However, I do know this, despite your age, your body and mind will remain the same as the age right before your health starts to deteriorate."

"What do you mean?" Kenny asked.

"Okay. Let's say in human years, you're one hundred. You'll have the body of a 50 year old. When you hit this age let's say...Kyle's lung collapses or something really out there, deeply affecting his health. His body would revert back to the stage right before hand, before his lung gave out and he would stay in that form until he was ready to ascend. Which may be around another hundred years for all we know," he shrugged.

"So, when do we actually like, move bodies?" Kyle blinked.

"Take the years you were originally going to live and double it. You'll be put through a...I guess a fake death. We'll give you a heart attack or something and you'll transfer your spirit and memories to your backups," he gestured towards the lifeless forms in front of him.

"So, we're going to be building centuries of knowledge and reusing healthy bodies...wow...," Kyle gave a short, unbelieving laugh.

"I think it's a bit complicated in some forms, but it's the best we could do. We couldn't have you just not age, but it wouldn't be very fun to keep you going for ninety years at a time, we wanted you to stay out a little longer."

"I think this is cool," Kenny grinned. "Wait, would we have to wait a few years to see each other if we don't 'die' at the same time?"

"Hm. I'm not too sure...," Damien looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Probably not. Considering the fact that you two are a team and need to work together to solve these cases it'd be a little complicated and a bit stupid on my father's part to keep you apart like that. Actually, I'm sure of it. Kyle's time to die would be when he hit 34 if he still had one since he bypassed it by coming back to Earth...and that's too early for our tastes. So it'll be based off of your death day, Kenny."

"I'm so confused," Stan shook his head slowly.

"Get used to it," Damien chuckled. "Even my father scratches his head at this."

"Wait...so...we're just living time and time again...what do we do about school and other stuff?!" Kyle said. "I mean, the governments going to be a bit suspicious of people living for two hundred years and then seventeen year olds just popping up out of nowhere!"

Damien nodded, "that's true. However, don't forget who you work for, Kyle. My father and myself are masters of manipulating the human mind, we can slide you through the system with little trouble."

"Sweet, so we're tax exempt?" Kenny grinned.

Damien smirked, "maybe. We'll see about that later. Now, we've covered the job, immortality, and a few other things. Anything else we need to discuss?"

"Um, how about Jewboy glowing and slamming a man three times his size against a wall?!" Cartman spluttered.

"Ah, yes. Kyle," Damien turned towards the boy and smiled. "How did you feel with your new powers?"

"Um...numb. Very numb...and cold."

"Yeah, it happens," he snickered.

"So why the hell does Kyle get new powers out of no where?"

Damien stopped laughing and looked at the blonde. "He's best qualified to wield their full extent. The way his body reacts to certain circumstances makes him the one we need. You wouldn't have been able to hold all this power and still stay in a stable frame of mind."

"I thought you said that I wasn't stable," Kyle quirked his brow.

He nodded, "you're right. I personally think that giving you the powers so quickly was bad judgment on my part. But the sooner you gained them, the sooner you would understand the importance of getting your emotions under control."

"But the Jew's always on his period, he's never been able to control himself," Cartman pointed out.

"Shut up, Cartman!" he shouted in response.

"See?"

Damien chuckled softly, "yeah, I know," he turned back towards the redhead. "Kyle, I told you not too long ago that your powers waver with your emotion. Kenny, what color are his eyes right now?"

Kenny blinked at him and then looked into Kyle's orbs. "That beautiful green as always," he smiled.

"Hm, well, you better hope they change eventually."

"What? Why?"

"Kenny, when Kyle's aura turned green, you freaked out, tell these two why," he gestured towards Stan and Cartman.

"When a there's a restless spirit, they're green," he shrugged. "They all have an aura around them."

"Right. And other colors?"

Kenny bit his lip and thought. "Pink is when they reach peace before going to the afterlife. Blue...blue is when a person is about to die, but they're at peace. Golden is when they're about to die, but have something that's going to hold them back from Heaven or Hell. Right?"

"I'm impressed," he nodded approvingly. "When Kyle fully died, he became one of them. Kenny could never be one of them since he was guaranteed to return a short amount of time later."

"What about when he had that muscle thing and actually died?" Stan raised his brow.

"We all knew he'd be sent back," Damien shrugged. "We just kept him around longer that time around."

Kyle looked at him confusedly, "what does this have to do with my powers?"

"Once you became one of the dead, you established a connection between your mind and the minds of them. You're closer to them than any mortal could ever hope to be. You may have only been dead a few hours, but nonetheless, you were gone. We really didn't plan on McCormick coming back for you...at least not that quickly...at least I didn't. Never know with my father though. Anyways, your mood or state of being relates to the way a spirit or spirit-to-be would be like. And if you think about it, it makes sense, just look at your other power. You hold a way to be one with the dead in a sense; this just deepens that idea."

"But what are Ky's powers?" Stan asked.

"Depends on his mood," Damien smirked. "Emotions drive his life. Happiness drove him towards life, love and lust drove him towards Kenny, depression drove him towards death. This is true with many mortals, but Kyle is different. His emotions are powerful, but even then he still has some judgement pulling him back and guiding him in some way, shape, or form."

"Apparently not since he decided to become slash-happy," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Oh, not true. Kyle, tell them how long you were contemplating suicide." All eyes fell towards the young boy, who was staring at his feet in shame.

"Kyle?" Kenny said softly.

"Four years," he replied quietly. Kenny blinked.

"Please don't tell me...," he shook his head.

Kyle looked up at him with glimmering eyes. "I...I knew that if I said something to anyone here, it'd leak back to my parents and all Hell would break loose. I had no idea what to do...I kept telling myself that if I just ignored it or denied it it'd go away. I thought it might have just been a passing phase. Then weeks passed...and months...and before I knew it, three years had gone by and I still hadn't gotten over my feelings. The idea of you not returning my feelings just fucking drove me to the breaking point. It's why I started spending more time with you, too," he admitted shamefully. "I mean, aside from the fact that I like spending time with you, I was hoping I'd find some flaw in you to make my feelings go away...obviously that plan didn't work too well," he smiled sheepishly at the blonde.

"Your feelings drove you to wanting to die?!" Stan shouted desperately.

Kyle looked at him with guilt and sadness plaguing his eyes. "I...I didn't know what to do!" he pleaded. "You try being gay and Jewish! You try being a Broflovski! It's not all lawyer income and matzo balls, you know! You all know that my mother's fucking insane and my dad never stands up to her! The only person in that house I ever could talk to about anything was Ike and he's too young to really understand everything! What would you have done, Stan?!"

"Went to you," he said softly.

"No you wouldn't have, you liar!" Kyle planted his hands on his hips, prompting a snicker from Damien. "Stan, it's not like everything can be solved through each other," he looked at him sadly. "I wish our lives worked like that, but they just don't. You can't stop the strength of my religion just like I could never stop your dad's drinking habits at all your birthday parties...Dude, it just doesn't happen. Sometimes we need to keep some things secret."

"If you hadn't of killed yourself...would we be together?" Kenny asked softly.

Kyle looked at him and smirked softly. "I doubt it...my mom would have killed me in a few days anyway. Poisoned my gefilte fish or something," he sighed. "Look, a lot factored into what I did. Not just Kenny, not just my parents, not just myself. Everything put something into the jar."

"Did I?" Cartman asked with a wide grin upon his face.

Kyle looked at him in a deadpan expression. "What the hell do you think?"

"Excellent," he smiled, leaning back into the chair. Stan whacked him across the head and looked back at Kyle with sad blue eyes.

"Do you still want to die, Kyle?" Damien asked.

Kyle looked at him, not responding. He just stared, his face expressionless.

"Ky?" Kenny grabbed his hand desperately. "You...you still don't want to live?!"

Kyle looked at him and bit his lip, and Kenny felt his eyes welling up with tears. "It'll pass," Kyle whispered.

"WHAT?!" Stan leapt to his feet and grabbed Kyle's shoulders. "What the fuck are you saying?! You're fucking immortal anyways!"

"I know that. Doesn't mean I have to _want_ to live, Stan," he responded quietly.

"But...Kyle...," his voice cracked pathetically.

Kyle pushed himself back off of Stan and glared at him. "Tell me how **you** would feel, Stan. I just had a gun shoved up my ass by someone who raped me for hours! You really think that I'm just going to brush that off?!" he hissed.

"No, and I'd be even more concerned if you did!"

"Well then stop freaking out! I can't fucking do anything about it, so just stop!"

"No, we **can** do something," he breathed heavily. "As soon as we're done with our little discussion here, I'm calling a fucking counselor for you because I'm not going to go through sitting at your side in a hospital with slashes in your arms again!"

Kyle narrowed his eyes, and Kenny started to notice they were changing color. "Just who do you think you are?" he growled lowly.

"I think I'm your best friend and I know you better than anybody!" Stan yelled. "You need help and I mean now!"

"Don't you fucking think that you can tell me what to do just because you know me the best! You're not my goddamn parent, Stanley!" he clenched his fists and Kenny gasped as the beautiful emerald of his eyes faded into a ruby red to match Damien's. He looked over at said boy who was watching the young Jew with an amused expression upon his face.

"Kyle, you've said it yourself, you're not healthy!"

"I don't need some fucking stranger reinforcing that idea!" he shrieked. "I'm not going to have them tell me that everything's going to be okay when it's clearly not! I'm not going to be put on some fucking drug just so they can calm me down! I'm not a fucking guinea pig made to test their little psychoanalysis methods!"

"I didn't say that you were!" Stan pleaded. "I just want my best friend back!"

"I'm right fucking here!" he gestured to himself erratically.

"Kyle...," Kenny started slowly, standing up to be closer to the boy. "You're not here," he whispered, shaking his head. "You're not the same."

"Well I'm sorry," he spit angrily. "I just haven't exactly had the best of luck lately."

Kenny cautiously approached him, looking into the now garnet eyes and sighing. He wrapped his arms around him gently and pulled him close. Kyle allowed this, but was heavily tensed. "Ky...," he breathed slowly. "I want you to be happy again."

"I know you do."

"Then you need to talk to someone. Not me, not Stan. Someone who actually can help you. I don't give two fucks if me and Stan are the 'driving force' behind you. We can't delve into your subconscious. You know us too well and you know how to get us to avoid that topic."

Kyle sighed irritably. "I don't want help," he muttered.

"I know you don't. But I love you. I want you to be able to sleep at night again. I don't like listening to you cry...it breaks my heart hearing you so upset." Kyle was silent, just breathing heavily into Kenny's chest. "Please," he continued. "you promised a month would be what you needed. We gave you that month. Now, you need to listen to us and actually try. I know you have been trying on your own, but nows the time to enlist some help from an outside source. I promise that they won't give you drugs or anything. We'll make sure of it," he gently squeezed him for emphasis.

"Yeah, he's already fucked up enough," Cartman snorted. Kyle shot his head towards the larger boy and they all watched as the chair he had placed himself in flipped over with him under it.

"Holy shit!" Stan screamed.

"What the fuck?! Dumb Jew!" Cartman shouted from underneath the seat.

Kyle snorted, "you deserved it, Fatass."

Damien clapped slowly. "Bravo, bravo," he nodded as Cartman pushed himself out from his confinement. "Kyle, I may have underestimated you. You do have some level of control. You held the power within for a fairly decent amount of time before unleashing it. I'm very impressed," he grinned. "And you're already calming down," he nodded.

Kenny looked at the Jew and caught sight of his eyes, seeing a familiar green plaguing them once more. "What are his powers?" Kenny breathed.

"I don't know of all of them," Damien shrugged sheepishly. "My father just told me to give them to him. Didn't explain 'em or nothin'."

"Great," Kyle muttered.

"Cheer up. You'll figure em out soon enough," he smiled. "You're a smart kid. You know that you have the power to send people flying away from you," he chuckled. "That's a pretty great asset."

"That's true," Kenny mused.

"This is just too much to take in," Stan sat back down on the couch and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Damien smirked at him, "you're right. It's an awful lot for just one sitting. Why don't we continue this later if more questions arise, hm? Honestly, I'm exhausted from talking so much."

"Fine," Kenny murmured, still clasping Kyle protectively.

"Listen to me," Damien started, looking at Stan and Cartman. "You are NEVER to tell anybody about this, are we understood?"

"What happens if we do? I mean, we can't transfer the power or anything," Stan raised his brow. Damien smiled and looked towards Kenny.

"Condition number three applies to them in a different sense, McCormick. Their only responsibility in this ordeal is to keep the secret. If they spill, you lose, do you understand?"

"THAT'S NOT FAIR!" Kenny shouted, tightening his grip around his Jew. "You...you can't do that!"

"Actually I can," he smirked. "I suggest you find a way to make sure that nothing interferes with your responsibilities. Remember that they have control over your possession, too," he raised his brow. "Its fate rests with all of you."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kyle blinked. Kenny looked down and stared at him.

"Don't you remember?"

"Remember what?"

Damien walked over and ripped Kenny away from Kyle and dragged him away to speak privately. "My father made it so he doesn't remember that portion of the conversation," he whispered. "You cannot tell him, alright? I mean, you can, you won't be punished or anything...but I don't think that it'd be a smart idea. It may cause some problems to arise in the future."

"O-okay...what do I tell Stan and Cartman?"

"Tell Stan the truth. Don't tell that to Cartman, though. He may find too much joy in holding the strings on Kyle's life." Kenny nodded in agreement. "Tell him that _his_ life is dependent upon it," he suggested.

"Well...what do I tell Kyle?" Damien blinked and looked over at the young Jew briefly.

"Tell him the truth, too. Just not so directly as to tell him that it's him on the line."

"So, just tell him I lose a possession?"

"Basically, yes. It'd work, I'm sure," he shrugged.

"You don't sound to confident," he raised his brow.

"Okay, so you may have to find a better lie than that," he smiled sheepishly. He stood straight and stretched. "Well, it's been fun, but I really need to get back to Pops and report," he addressed them all tiredly. Kyle broke into another coughing fit and he raised his brow. "Broflovski, get some more meds in you. You're starting to let it wear thin."

"What's going to happen with that deranged fucker?" Stan asked, standing beside Kyle and gently patting his back to coax out his hoarse coughs.

"He's in jail. I've manipulated the cops into thinking that they arrested him. Everything should be okay." he looked over at Fischbach, still unconscious on the love seat. "He should be fine," he motioned towards him. "when he wakes up, explain what happened and all should be okay," he smiled.

"Thanks, Dude," Kenny said, patting his shoulder.

"Of course. I'm always willing to help," he grinned. "Marsh and Cartman," he looked at them, "remember to keep quiet. Trust me, it won't be pretty otherwise. You're rather lucky to have learned of this secret, you've been entrusted with the secrets of a god, so don't be fools and betray that trust. Kyle," he changed direction and walked in front of him, placing his hands on his small shoulders. "You...you've been through a lot. And I mean a lot," he emphasized. "I need you to remember that you work for us now. We need you at full cooperation. I want you to get help. I know you don't want to, but trust me, it will do you a lot of good. We need to expel these problems because we don't want you depressed throughout eternity, do you understand?"

Kyle nodded softly. "Fine." Damien grinned at him and patted his shoulder before turning back to Kenny as he picked up their clones from off the table.

"Ken. Kyle. Keep up the good work. Things are finally falling back into place," he smiled. "Catch ya around," he winked before fading off again.

The boys stared at each other, trying to think of the best way to approach the subject once again.

"Well..., ahem," Stan cleared his throat. "I'm gonna...make that call for you, Ky," he jerked his thumb back towards the kitchen.

Kyle sighed and looked at him. "Fine. I'm coming, too. I gotta get some medicine and we can order us some food. I think we all need it," he grumbled.

Kenny walked up to him and grasped his chin. "Ky? Are you mad at me?"

"Why would I be? It's not your fault I'm like this," he laughed brokenly.

"Yeah it is," he winced. "Kyle, I'm so sorry that I made you so depressed..."

"Sorry if I get you sick," Kyle muttered.

"Sick?" Kenny blinked. "Why would you-"

He was cut off by Kyle yanking him down and mashing their lips together forcefully. Kenny looked towards Stan and Cartman, who were watching with slight nausea tracing their faces. He closed his eyes and grabbed Kyle's head, pulling him in closer and pressing back into him with equal force. Kyle dove his tongue into his mouth and he returned the favor, feeling the sweet caress of the damp muscle and shivering just slightly. They pulled back and Kenny stared at his lover surprised. Kyle pushed some of the blonde's hair out of his face and smiled. "You didn't make me depressed. I did that to myself. You made me happy... happy enough to make me ward off killing myself for so long. It was only when I thought that I had lost you that I actually fell so far. Kenny, I don't want to lose you."

Kenny reached up and pulled the pendant from under his shirt, watching with delight as Kyle's eyes lightened up. "I'm never taking it off," he assured him. "You'll never lose me so long as you promise to stay with me."

Kyle bit his lip and smiled, and Kenny noticed his eyes gain slight speckles of pink amidst the green. "I have no intention of leaving you, I promise," he hugged him tightly against himself. Kenny smiled back and clasped him back just as tightly. He looked over at Cartman and Stan, who were standing and observing with gentle expressions upon their features. He smirked at them and buried his head into Kyle's hair and swayed him back and forth a few times. Kenny couldn't hold back a few stray tears that rolled down his cheeks, but he could not place exactly where they derived from.

Perhaps it was his fear; the fear that Kyle was still so unhappy, still lively to snap under pressure and place himself in harm's way once more. Perhaps it was his anger; his utter hatred of the man who had so violated Kyle...who had hurt him so. Perhaps it was his relief; that his Jew was in his arms and not those of a maniac with the intention of hurting him. Relief that he and Kyle now had people there with them who understood why they were going to be running off at times.

Or maybe, just maybe, it was his happiness that caused his tears. They were hurt. They had been thrown against walls and beaten until they had almost hit submission. They had faced foes too strong for them to have been able to conquer, but they had. Together in strides, they stood beside one another through the hurt, the bad, and the love. Together, they could withstand eternity and bring inner peace to others, and perhaps, one day, they could even bring peace to themselves as well.

______________________________________________________________________

_A/N: Dear god this was confusing for me, so I know it is for you!_

_Questions? Ask 'em! I'll answer them on my next a/n or sometime within the plot. Stan and Cartman knowing plays a large portion of this story eventually...and it's just easier on me to not make excuses for the boys to go running off on their adventures XD_

_Not a long chapter, but I figured I destroyed your brains with my logic of nonlogicalness so this was enough XD_

_And the immortality thing took me months to figure out how to execute it, lol. God, I spent hours on end trying to think of a good way to make it work. I think it'll work well...and I got to throw in some humor to accompany it, so it's all good XD_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_PS: on a totally unrelated but totally related note, I ordered some SP dolls from Amazon and I totally have Kyle and Kenny beside me for inspiration. I usually position them so they look like they're making out and my parents walked in once and they're just like, "WTF?!"_

_teehee. Catch ya next time!_


	29. The Perfect Contradiction

_A/N: 'Nother chapter. Yays._

_I'm so freaking depressed right now I don't know how this is gonna be. Ugh. _

_Enjoy_

* * *

He listened to the silence with a light feeling in his heart. He gazed at the black-haired boy, passed out on the floor under a blanket much too small for his muscular physique. His attention turned towards their larger counterpart, his legs swung out over the edge of the plush chair with his breathing slow and even. A glance to the opposite side revealed a boy he still didn't trust, but allowed him to continue to stake out his unconscious state on their love seat for the mere fact of he had tried to help the situation earlier that day. Finally, his glance fell towards the ginger-haired boy asleep atop his legs. His hand was curled up in front of his face, prompting his breathing to rebound a bit and blow some stray curls lingering on his forehead.

Kenny watched him as he slept, grateful that he seemed to be having a somewhat peaceful slumber despite his horrendous day. He gently played with some of the curls atop his head and smiled down on him. He loved moments like this. Despite that there were three other people in the room, their position made it seem like there was no one else anywhere. No one to interrupt their tender moments together. These moments had become so routine, and he loved every second. He was truly blessed to have won the affection of such a kind-hearted and affectionate boy. His smile grew as he pondered on this idea for some time, stroking the Jew's head carefully so as to not awake him from his sleep.

He heard some soft groans from his left and turned to watch as Toby sat up slowly, rubbing where Mitch had probably hit him.

"What the fuck?" the boy muttered.

"Shh," Kenny said softly. Toby turned to look at him, then towards the other three. He raised his brow and Kenny pointed towards the kitchen. "Meet me in there," he directed in a whisper. Toby blinked and then shrugged and gingerly sat up off the love seat and shuffled towards the other room. Kenny very cautiously lifted Kyle off his lap and set him back down, following the tall boy into the room.

"What the hell happened?" he asked, rubbing his eyes and sitting down at the table. Kenny walked over to the fridge and pulled them both out sodas, handing one off to the dazed boy.

"You were trying to save Kyle and you got knocked out."

"Oh yeah...," he blinked, opening the can and taking a gulp. "I guess I kinda failed huh? He's not dead apparently, but how far did that fucker get with him?"

"Pretty...pretty far," Kenny winced, sitting down next to him.

"Aw, shit," he muttered.

"He didn't get full on raped...but he kinda came close."

"What happened after he hit me? Seriously, don't fucking skim the details."

"Why? Is it really that important to you?"

"I'm curious. Shoot me. I wanna know what I could have prevented had I hit the guy right."

"Tell me why you played protective over Ky first and then I'll tell you what happened," Kenny crossed his arms and raised his brow.

Toby set his can on the table and sighed in aggravation. "I...I felt kinda bad for what I did."

"Really?" Kenny's eyes widened in surprise.

"Yeah. It took a day or so...but I went home and realized that I was minutes away from never seeing my mom or dad or sister again...and I figured out that were it not for the Ginger, I probably wouldn't have been able to come home to them. After all I did to him, he still had no second thoughts about saving my ass, so I felt the need to return the favor," he shrugged. "I'm not completely without a conscious, you know."

"I'm glad to hear that," Kenny smirked. Who woulda thought?

"And then that guy came in...and I saw how scared he was of him. It took me a minute, but I remembered that you guys mentioned how he was fucked....sorry, raped and I knew that he was back to do it again."

"Yeah. His obsession with Kyle can't be healthy," Kenny muttered.

"Just so you know...when I was saying that stuff to him on Saturday...about doing the same thing...I was never gonna do that," he looked at Kenny guiltily. "I mean, it didn't really sink in that you really meant he had been held down and raped until earlier today. I just saw a big reaction from him when I said that and I kept playing upon it. I didn't think that it'd affect him so much."

"You'd be affected, too. Trust me. They were pretty brutal with him," Kenny said softly, running his finger along the rim of his can.

"They?" Toby blinked. "You mean...more than one?"

"Two," he whispered, biting his lip harshly.

Toby stared at him for a moment before slowly turning to stare down at the table in front of them. "Wow...now I really feel bad," he muttered. "I mean...did he just get attacked in an alley or...what?"

Kenny looked up at him and sighed. "I...I don't know if I should tell you. It's kinda personal."

"Personal? Why? Were you one of the rapists?" Toby narrowed his eyes.

Kenny glared at him, "fuck no," he growled. "I...it was kinda my fault that it happened," he bit his lip again.

"What'd you do? Did you owe someone money and they took it out on your boyfriend?"

"No. They threatened me to get him to do what they said," he sighed. "And they wanted him to just...take it. So he did....for hours," he shook his head and felt tears welling up in his eyes.

"How did they make that big of a threat? I mean, I'd call a bluff if I were Ginge and just head to the police or something."

"One problem with that," Kenny stated lowly, "I was tied to a chair and had the hell beaten out of me before they called Kyle. I think it's pretty safe to say that he saw their threat as viable by then. You've seen it yourself, Fischbach, Kyle cares too much about other people to let his own health and safety become a barrier. He does whatever he can to help whoever. Whether it's me or someone like you," he shrugged.

"Oh...well, I think that's more of a problem for him than he seems to realize," he pointed out, taking another gulp of his soda.

"No, he knows it. Trust me. But he doesn't regret what he does. He told me that he'd go through it all over again if I were in danger. And he wouldn't hesitate to jump into another pond to drag you out."

"Heh. What a softie," he snickered.

"Not really. Takes a lot of balls to do that kind of stuff. I wouldn't have been able to drag you out. I personally would have let you drown if I were in Kyle's position."

"Gee, thanks," he rolled his eyes.

"Dude. You cut his face and scraped salt into it, okay? You're not exactly nice guy numero uno."

"Hey, I tried to repent," he claimed. "I just kinda...didn't. I tried though. Now, what'd this guy do to Ginge anyways after I passed out?"

Kenny sighed and leaned back in his chair. "He...he took him into the bedroom and told him to do what he said. Kyle told him to fuck off and he scratched his back with a clothes hanger. Then he took a gun and..." he took another deep breath. "He raped Ky with the gun. Then me, Stan, Cartman, and two cops finally were able to get in and get him away from Ky."

Toby just blinked at him. "He...he raped him with a fucking gun?" he repeated, shaking his head in disbelief.

Kenny nodded. "This guy was insane, Dude. He was just determined to make Kyle suffer."

"Well I'd say he did a pretty good job by the way Ginge was freaking out when he grabbed him the first time...," he said thoughtfully. "How...how long has it been since that first time?"

"'Bout a month," he responded quietly.

"I'm guessing that Ginge still hasn't gotten over it," he raised his brow.

Kenny looked at him unamused, "would you?"

"No...no I suppose I wouldn't." he sighed and looked over at the clock. "Nine. Great. My mom's gonna kill me," he rolled his eyes.

"No, I called her. Told her you were studying over here and you passed out. You just need to get up early in the morning and head to your house to change and stuff," he muttered.

Toby blinked, "um, thanks. I can tell you still hate me, though," he grinned sheepishly.

"Very much so," Kenny smirked. "I'm not too fond of people who abuse my boyfriend. But since Kyle was willing to let you in the place without someone to help fend you off, I guess that means you've gained his trust. I guess that if he's able to do that, I should probably give you some leeway, too."

"Heh, thanks, I guess," he chuckled. "You ever figure out who sent him the death threats?"

Kenny shook his head, "honestly, no. We've been kinda busy and I don't wanna work on it if Kyle's around. It'd just upset him and I don't wanna do that to him."

"Any ideas who it could be?"

"No. I was positive that it was you and I was already trying to think of things to put on your headstone," he took a long sip of cola.

"Nah, I don't do written threats. Not as intimidating in my opinion. Though I can understand why you'd hit that conclusion," he shrugged.

"I'd be concerned if you couldn't," he sniggered. "I never realized just how many people could have it out for him though," he said quietly.

Toby nodded, "you'd be surprised, Blondes."

"Please don't call me that," he said lowly.

"Why?"

"Because that's why Kyle's rapists called me and to be quite frank, it pisses me off," he growled.

"Okay, okay...what the hell's your name?"

"Kenny."

"Okay then. You'd be surprised, _Kenny_. Ginge is pretty hated around the school. I mean, it's only really for his grades, though," he shrugged.

"Well that's fucking stupid," Kenny rolled his eyes. "Just because no one else holds the ambition to actually do their work, he ends up with the short end of the stick? How fucking retarded is that?!"

"Very upon hindsight," Toby shrugged again. "I mean, he was right when he said I could have just tried harder and I wouldn't have had much of a problem. People just don't like people who stand out from the others in that sense. Popularity is one thing, but being different for brains is a completely different story."

"You'd think that there'd be some people with him since he plays sports, though," Kenny said thoughtfully.

"Not necessarily. I mean, he's the captain of the basketball team, but basketball gets overshadowed by the prospects of baseball and football starting back up. It's kinda lame that it happens, but it does. And people think he just got up to the captain position because he's in line for valedictorian."

"That's fucking stupid!" Kenny exclaimed. "Kyle worked his ass off to get into that position and he wipes the floor with anyone who he goes against!"

"People don't know that," Toby pointed out. "They also don't see that he's actually worked to get where he is academic wise, too. Face it, Kenny, we go to the dumbest fucking school in Colorado. Were it not for Broflovski, no one would be passing with anything above a 3.0."

"Having epiphanies are ya?" Kenny smirked.

Toby returned his expression, "I guess you could say that." He broke off of Kenny's gaze and looked around the kitchen. "Pretty nice place he has," he noted, looking back at Kenny. "Why'd he get kicked out of his house?"

Kenny's face fell and he cleared his throat lightly. "I guess you could say that's my fault, too."

Toby raised his brow, "how? What'd you do this time?"

He laughed nervously, "Well, it wasn't so much what I did, but more how Kyle felt about me."

"Ah," Toby clicked his tongue. "The ol' 'kick out the queer son' tactic, I see."

"Gay. Not queer," he looked at him unamused.

"Whatever," he snorted. "Homophobe parents, hm?"

"Only if the homo happens to be their son," he rolled his eyes.

Toby winced, "ouch. That's gotta hurt a bit."

"Dude, you have no idea," Kenny replied.

"I thought he lived in luxury or something," Toby shrugged. "I mean, isn't his dad a lawyer?"

Kenny nodded, "yeah. They lived pretty well. But you go against Jewish principles in that house and your fucked to say the least."

"Double ouch. How has that kid not killed himself already?!" Kenny's expression worsened and he shifted uncomfortably. Toby noticed and raised his brow, "did he really slash his wrists like you guys implied? I mean...I honestly can't imagine him doing that, but you seemed pretty tweaked when I brought that up."

"Y-yea," he stammered, looking down at the can in his hands. "Ky...Ky has some problems," he shook his head softly.

"Oh...well...damn," he said softly. "Didn't think he'd be that far off. Then again, I probably would be, too if I'd been raped," he shrugged.

"This was before that," Kenny said. "This was the day he came out to Stan and his parents. Everything fell apart and he just hit a wall."

"Damn. Kid needs therapy."

"Yeah, yeah, we know," Kenny sighed. "Stan called and set him up an appointment today for Wednesday with a counselor. He's not exactly thrilled."

"Heh, I doubt it. He doesn't seem like the type willing to accept help."

Kenny looked at him and smirked, "you know, for someone who was trying to kill him, you seem to be pretty aware of what he's like."

"Well, I've been in classes with him all four years of school, it's only natural I'd learn something about him."

"True," Kenny mused.

"So, I gotta know, why him?"

Kenny laughed softly, "why am I dating him?"

"Yeah. You seem rather different from each other."

"God, what is it with you people?" Kenny continued to laugh and shook his head softly. "Everyone keeps saying that."

"Well, that means it's true," he grinned sheepishly.

"Not necessarily," he quirked his brow. "And I'm with him because I love him. That good enough for ya?"

"Not really, but I don't know you too well, so I won't delve any further," he smirked.

"Thanks, you're so kind."

"I know. Part of my charms," he snickered.

Kenny rolled his eyes in good humor. "So, you're not goin' to try to hurt Kyle anymore?"

"Shouldn't that be obvious by now?"

"Well, no. Honestly, I'm having trouble trusting anyone around him right now. He's gotten hurt too much lately."

Toby nodded. "I suppose I can understand that. I promise, I'm not going to go after him anymore. I have other things to focus on anyway. Truce?" he held up his soda can.

Kenny smirked and raised his, meeting Toby's with a soft clink. "Truce," he nodded. They gulped down the last of their drinks and sighed heavily. They turned their heads towards the living room as they heard a soft sound coming from the couch. "Oh no," Kenny muttered, shooting up out of his seat.

"What's wrong?" Toby asked coming after him.

They got to the couch and looked down, seeing tears streaming down the small Jew's face and him desperately grasping at the pillow. He let out a long sob and Kenny could feel his heart breaking.

"Is he okay?" Toby blinked.

"No. He's been doing this lately," Kenny replied softly. They heard a pair of groans as Stan and Cartman awoke and rubbed their eyes. Stan's shot open as he saw Kyle's position.

"Oh god....," he bit his lip and looked at Kenny sadly.

"Wake him up or something!" Cartman hissed.

Kenny sighed and walked around to the other side of the couch, kneeling down beside the trembling boy. He ran his fingers gently over his face and kissed his forehead. "Shh...," he whispered. "It's okay...I'm right here," he assured him. Kyle continued to let out heavy sobs and Kenny stood and lifted his head and cradled him as he sat back onto the cushions. "Kyle...," he sniffed. "I'm right here," he tried again, his voice cracking pathetically. He looked up at Stan with glistening eyes, finding he was in the same state. He felt a tear roll down his own cheek and looked down as it left and splashed Kyle's forehead. The redhead slowly creaked his eyes open and found himself staring at the blonde with bloodshot eyes.

"Kenny...," he said softly, still crying. "I...I....," he found more tears and shot up to grasp Kenny in a tight embrace. Kenny returned it, clasping him tightly into his chest, trying to protect him from his nightmares.

He looked up at Stan and Cartman, who both stared at the boy with strong gazes of pity. Kenny bit his lip as he realized just how often this look had come upon their faces lately. He looked up above himself and met eyes with Toby, who just stared back, unsure of what to do. He'd never seen Kyle's breakdowns, he had no idea what to expect.

"_If Kahl doesn't learn to deal with it from somebody, then all of these people going at him at once is going to completely tear him apart and put him right back in the hospital."_

Cartman's words once more rang through his head and he took a shuddery breath, pulling Kyle closer into his frame. "Kyle, I'm right here," he whispered. "No one will hurt you if I'm here."

"K-kenny...?," he sniffed.

"What is it?" he asked softly.

Kyle looked up at him, his eyes bloodshot still. Kenny narrowed his eyes in confusion as he noticed Kyle's iris' turning a dark navy blue. "H-help me," he pleaded, tears still streaming down his face.

Kenny's eyes widened as the words passed through his tender lips. He brushed some of the young Semite's fiery hair off of his tear-soaked skin and bit his lip. "I'm going to help you, I promise."

"I'm so fucking scared...," he bawled, looking down at Kenny's chest and shaking his head slowly. "Kenny, I'm so scared..."

"Don't be scared," he kissed the top of his head gently. "I'm right here. They're right here," he motioned towards Stan and Cartman. "I swear, Kyle, no one will ever lay their hands on you again. Barney's gone. Mitch is gone. Toby doesn't want to hurt you anymore. I'm gonna find who wrote that letter and beat the living shit out of them. You don't need to be frightened."

"B-but...they won't leave," he whispered.

Kenny and the others quirked their brows. Stan moved and sat beside the two lovers on the couch. "Who won't leave?"

"THEM!" Kyle shouted.

"Barney and Mitch?" Cartman guessed.

"NO! THEM!" Kyle took his finger and shakily pointed it towards the living room. The other four followed his gesture and looked at the empty space with confused glances.

"Uh...there's nothing there," Toby shook his head.

Kenny looked up at him and bit his lip. "Hey, can you do me a favor?"

Toby looked back, "Sure, what?"

"Can you go into the kitchen and order us two large pepperoni pizzas? I have a feeling we're gonna be up a while longer."

Toby blinked at him and nodded. "Yeah, no problem." he gave one last concerned look at the still-pointing boy and sauntered into the kitchen.

"Kyle? Do you see ghosts?" Stan asked softly.

"I don't," Kenny raised his brow in confusion.

"I-I don't know what they are," he sniffed, still trembling in Kenny's lap.

"What do they look like?" Cartman asked, crossing his arms.

"They....they're voices," he shook violently. "I don't see them...but they're coming from right there!" he gestured towards the area again.

Their jaws all dropped slightly. "Ky...what are they saying?" Kenny asked slowly.

"Die. Die. Die, you deserve to die," he shook his head slowly, saying the phrase in monotone.

Stan grabbed his hand, "Kyle, are you sure you're hearing voices?"

"You're useless," he whispered, still staring at the spot. "Everything you touch dies. You're a killer," he sniffed loudly a few times, trying to stifle his sobs.

"I know what's going on," Cartman growled. He grabbed the front of Kyle's shirt and ripped him off of Kenny's lap and held him in front of his bulky form.

"Cartman!" Kenny yelled.

He ignored the blonde and stared down at the trembling Jew. "Kyle, you're fucking hearing what you're thinking!" he spit out. "There's no one there! It's all in your fucking head! Stop being so fucking melodramatic!"

"I...I'm not!" Kyle protested, trying to push himself away from the blithering boy. "I...this isn't my voice!" he insisted. "They're yelling at me!"

"Oh? And what are they saying now?" Cartman quirked his brow. "Kill the fatass, right?"

Kyle shook his head, "no," he whispered. "'let the fatass kill you.'"

Cartman's angry expression dropped and was replaced with an almost terrified stare. He looked up at Stan. "Marsh, I suggest that you get this appointment moved to tomorrow."

"I can't," Stan muttered. "Trust me, I would if I could."

"Let go!" Kyle yelled, trying to wrangle away from Cartman. The large boy looked back at him and tightened his grip on his collar.

"Kahl, you're fucking insane!" he yelled, shaking him back and forth violently.

"Let go...," he repeated, starting to slowly cease fighting back. "Please let go...," he started sobbing. Cartman instantly released him out of shock and they watched as the boy fell to the floor on his knees, still crying heavily.

Kenny dove down beside him and embraced him. "Kyle, it's okay..."

"NO IT'S NOT!" he screamed, placing his hands over his ears. "They won't shut up!" he looked up at Kenny with shimmering navy eyes once more. "Kenny, make them stop!" he pleaded.

Kenny blinked at him and shook his head slowly. "I don't know how, Kyle," he whispered.

"Please!" he cried out.

Kenny just took the boy's hand and caressed it gently. "Ky...it's okay. They can't tell you anything. Just stay calm and stay here with me."

"But I'm scared!" he whined.

"Nothing will happen, I promise," he said firmly, moving from caressing his hand to wiping away his tears. "Just take some deep breaths and stay with me."

Kyle shakily inhaled and exhaled slowly, his eyes slammed shut and shuddering violently. He rocked himself back and forth, whimpering softly. "Just go away," he whispered, shaking his head. "Please go away..."

Kenny gently wrapped his arms around him and rocked with him. "It's okay, Ky. I'm here. Nothing's gonna hurt you."

Kyle's breathing became a bit more evened and he stopped shaking. He slammed his hands down on the hardwood floor with a loud smack and took a few wavering breaths. Kenny cupped his chin and looked as his eyes slowly faded back into their usual emerald shade. He breathed a sigh of relief and gently stroked his head with one hand. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.

He looked into his eyes and nodded softly. "They...they stopped," he panted, his few remaining tears streaming from his eyes down his reddened cheeks.

Kenny grasped him into another hug. "Thank Moses," he whispered. Kyle laughed softly and nuzzled into him.

"Kenny...it wasn't me," he said softly.

"Whaddya mean?"

He pulled back and returned his azure gaze. "I mean it wasn't me thinking that stuff! I...I don't know who it was! I heard so many voices...there had to be at least ten!...I don't know what the hell's going on," his voice cracked.

"Ky, you have an appointment on Wednesday," Stan stated. "We're going to help you."

"But...but it wasn't me!" Kyle insisted. "I swear, Stan! Don't you believe me?"

"Honestly? I don't know what to think about all this, Ky," he shook his head. "I...I want to believe you...but seeing you cry in your sleep isn't doing much to help back up your story."

Kyle's face dropped even farther. "Stan...," his drawled out in a high pitched voice. "I...I didn't...," he shook his head, fumbling for words.

Kenny stroked his cheek gently. "Kyle, I believe you," he assured him. "I don't know what's going on...but you don't lie to me so I know that something else is happening here. We're gonna go to this counselor and I'll be right beside you. We'll talk to 'em and see what we can do. As for the voices, I don't know, but maybe something's going on in your head that we just can't see yet."

"You...you don't believe me either," he whispered, dropping from his gaze and staring at the ground. "DAMMIT!" he screamed, raking his fingers through his hair vigorously. "I'm so fucked up right now I don't know what to do!"

"Kyle, you're not fucked up," Kenny said firmly, grasping his chin and pulling him upwards. "You're depressed and that's understandable considering everything that you've been through. But calling yourself names isn't going to get you anywhere. All that matters is you wanting to get healthy."

"I-I do...," he sniffed.

Kenny stood and pulled Kyle up along with him and wrapped his arms around him, laying his head atop his curls. "Then you're not fucked up," he repeated. "If you see that you're upset, that'll make your recovery all the swifter. I'm going to help you, Kyle. I'm not going to fucking focus on much else until I know that you're better."

"I...I'm so sorry, Kenny," he sniffed, burying his face into his broad chest. Kenny kissed the top of his head and pulled him in closer. He looked to see Toby walking back towards them with a gentle expression on his face. Stan and Cartman noticed as well and tensed slightly.

"Guys, cool it," Kenny said softly. They looked from him to Toby and backed off a bit. Kenny sighed and looked back down towards the redhead. "You wanna go back to sleep, Ky?"

"What if they come back?" he whispered fearfully, clinging onto the blonde's shirt.

Kenny reached behind him and scooped him up into his arms. "Then they're gonna deal with me, that's what. Come on, I'll take ya to bed." He gingerly walked past the other three and made way to the bedroom with his Jew secure in his strong grip. He cautiously lowered him down onto the bed and covered him up. Kyle shot him a forced smile, and Kenny noticed his eyes flicker towards the balcony door nervously. He patted his shoulder reassuringly and walked over to the door, making sure it was bolted tight. For extra measure, he took one of the chairs from beside the bed and propped it up under the handle for a stronger lock. "Don't worry. Nothing's getting in," he smiled gently at him and walked back towards him.

"Thanks, Ken...I'm sorry," he frowned guiltily.

"Don't you be sorry just because you're scared. I'm glad that you are in a sense. If you weren't scared, I would be," he smirked softly. He sat down next to him and stroked his head gently. "Don't worry, Ky. We'll get this fixed, I promise." He leaned down and gently pecked his lips. "You need anything else?"

"No," he whispered. "I just need to sleep I guess," he sighed.

"Alright. You yell if you hear the voices or need meds or anything, okay?"

"Kay," he smiled crookedly and sent Kenny's heart into a flutter.

"Love you."

"You, too," he responded, snuggling into his pillow. Kenny smiled at him and stood up and walked out of the room, leaving the door open just a crack. He turned and faced his audience.

"He alright?" Toby asked.

"Yeah. He's gonna be okay," he sighed heavily. "At least for now." he walked over and threw himself down onto the chair, massaging his temples. "God, he's never freaked out like that," he mumbled.

"That was certainly different," Stan mused. "I mean...what the hell happened?! He was asleep and next thing I know I hear him whimpering."

"I told you, he's been crying in his sleep," Kenny replied. "This isn't the first time its happened and I'm sure it won't be the last.

Cartman sighed heavily and plopped down next to Toby on the couch. "Great. First he plays slashy and now we get to deal with the aftermath. Can't that goddamn Jew just be a fucking normal kid for once in his life?"

Kenny growled protectively. "Would **you** feel like being a fucking normal kid if you were in his position, Cartman?!"

Cartman shrugged. "Tons of girls get raped and you don't always hear them bitching."

"That's the fucking stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Toby exclaimed.

"Yeah! Jesus Christ, Cartman!" Stan replied, disgust apparent in his tone.

"I'm just saying they don't all wake up crying like a little pussy," he shrugged again.

Kenny stood and stared him down evilly. "Actually, many of them do. But Kyle would probably kill to be just another rape victim," he sneered. "How many fucking people have been kicked out of their house, committed suicide only to be brought back to the world so they could be hunted down by a classmate," he gestured to Toby who looked down guiltily, "and then raped for hours by strangers, only to find himself staring down both of them again later?! Cartman, I don't know anyone who's gone through something so horrendous!"

"He'll be fine once he actually gets help," he rolled his eyes.

Kenny sighed again. "That's just it. I don't know if he ever will be...," he sat back down and bit his lip. "He...he's never had so much trouble getting through a situation...do you think he'll be able to actually handle it?" he looked at Stan for an answer.

"I...I don't know either," he frowned. "I mean, Ky's always been so able to pick himself right back up. I think that he will here, too...it's just gonna take a lot longer." Kenny let out a heavier sigh and threw his face down into his palms, shaking his head.

"I...I don't know what to do...," he sniffed. "I just don't know anymore."

He felt someone sit down beside him and looked over to see Stan looking back with a sympathetic expression across his face. He placed his arm over the blonde's shoulder and sighed. "I don't know either," he muttered. "We need to keep our eyes on him, though. I'm...I'm really afraid of him doing it again."

"We could throw him in the asylum and call it a day," Cartman shrugged.

"Fuck off, Fatass," Kenny hissed.

"Um...I don't really think I can help you much...," Toby rubbed his head sheepishly. "I'll go get the pizza."

"Thanks," Kenny smiled gratefully.

"I'll come, too," Cartman groaned as he stood. "It's rather obvious that Kenneh has sand in his vagina."

"Alright, come on," Toby nodded towards the door. The two large boys walked out of the room, leaving Stan and Kenny still perched on the couch, their minds racing with thoughts of their Jew.

"You really think he'd do it again?" Kenny whispered.

Stan sniffed and nodded. "Yeah. No offense, Ken...but saving him...probably wasn't the best move you could have made."

"I...I had a choice," he mumbled. "But life without him just seemed so..."

"empty," Stan finished. Kenny nodded.

"Yeah. I...I love him, Stan. I didn't want to be stuck here without him. He's the only person in my life that makes it worth living. I mean, no offense, you're cool and all," he smirked. "But..."

"But I'm just not Kyle," he grinned back. "I totally get you, Dude. No offense to you once more," he winked, "but when you died all the time, it was just kinda like, 'oh, okay. Someone killed Kenny.'"

"You bastards," a voice came from across the room. They turned and saw Kyle standing there with a cocked grin.

"Why are you up?" Kenny asked.

Kyle sniffed and walked over. "I don't think I'm gonna be able to sleep for awhile," he laughed nervously. He sat down on the love seat and took a deep breath. "I'm still a little freaked," he shrugged.

"Ky...I know you'll fucking hate me for this...," Stan started slowly. "But are you going to be alright?"

Kyle laughed, a little more truthfully this time. "I'll be fine. I'm just...I don't know," he smiled shyly. "I guess today was just a little more than I was expecting."

"Trust me, me too," Stan replied, rolling his eyes. "I'm still having a hard time believing it."

"Well, believe it, Marsh," Kenny smirked. "You're looking at real live Ghostbusters."

Stan chuckled softly, "you'd be creeped out, too. This isn't exactly normal news."

"This is South Park, Dude," Kyle chuckled. "What the fuck around here is normal?"

"Well, I thought things had finally straightened out...," he shrugged.

"No such luck, I'm afraid," Kenny grinned. "So long as we have our little diverse group of people, nothing in this town will ever be normal."

"Diverse? We only have Token," Stan raised his brow. Kenny burst out laughing as Stan and Kyle looked at him confusedly.

"Not what I meant," he chortled. "Well, sorta. But I mean, look at us four!"

"What about us?"

"Let's start with the obvious one," he smirked. He pointed towards Kyle, "Ky is a Jew. And what is Cartman?"

"A fat-assed domineering moron with way too much time on his hands?" Kyle suggested.

"Yes, but don't forget the Nazi portion of that statement," he winked. "I mean, what is our town without you two duking it out?"

"Oh it wouldn't be half as fun," Stan rolled his eyes.

They all three chuckled a bit, until Kyle suddenly stopped and his eyes widened. Kenny noticed and cocked his brow at him. "Ky? Kyle?" he stood and walked in front of him, waving his hand, getting no reaction.

"Ky, what's up, Dude?" Stan asked, joining Kenny. Kyle slowly stood from the couch and looked around the room. He met eyes with Kenny for a brief moment before he turned and took off out the front door.

"KYLE!" Kenny shouted after him, breaking away from his position and taking off after him with Stan close on his heels.

"Where the fuck is he going?!" Stan panted as they followed the boy out of the complex.

"He must feel a spirit," he replied. "Goddammit, he's too fucking fast!"

"Nah," Stan chuckled as he ran up beside the blonde. "We're just a lot bigger. Too much weighing us down."

Kenny let out a small snort and turned back to look at the Semite dashing away.

"Looks like he's headin' for Starks," Stan commented.

"At least it's not downtown this time," Kenny mumbled. Stan nodded in agreement as they continued to trail the redhead.

"Dude, we must look stupid as hell right now," Stan gasped.

"Eh, that's not so different from usual," he snickered. They followed Kyle past a thick mess of trees and came upon him stopped about one hundred feet from the pond, spinning around looking at their surroundings.

"You feel a ghost, Dude?" Stan asked as they caught up to him and stood beside him.

He nodded slowly. "Yeah...I don't see 'em though."

Kenny joined him in looking around. Stan just stood there and watched them as they gazed at the wooded area. "I don't see anyone either...,"

"Wait," Kyle held up his hand and stepped slowly towards an densely covered part of the woods. "Hello?" he said loudly, looking up into the branches. Kenny followed his gaze and saw a ghoulish glow emitting from beyond the leaves.

"What the fuck do you want?" the man in the trees growled.

"Um...we're here to help you?" Kenny said, trying to see the figure.

"Oh really? And just how is it you want to do that?"

"Well come down here and we'll explain," Kyle shouted, placing his hands on his hips.

The figured groaned and leapt down in front of them. He brushed his dark hair out of his face, revealing stone-cold gray eyes. "What do you want?" he repeated.

"I told you, we're here to help."

"Who the fuck are you?"

"I'm Ken, that's Kyle," he gestured towards the redhead. "And that's Stan, but he can't hear or see you so don't even bother."

"Nice to meet you," he rolled his eyes. "Now what do you mean help me?"

"You're stuck here for some reason. You need to get to Heaven or Hell and that's where we come in," Kyle explained.

"Oh. How nice. You come up and just damn people for eternity, huh? Fun way to get your kicks."

"It's necessary, Dude. Hell's system is out of whack," Kenny narrowed his eyes.

"Well, whatever. I'm not interested. See ya," he turned to walk away.

"Hey! We weren't asking your permission!" Kyle shouted after him. "We're gonna do this whether you like it or not!"

"Oh? Think I'm fucking scared of you, you little pussy?" He turned and loomed over the redhead.

"I don't give a flying fuck if you're scared of me, you're gonna listen!"

The boy pushed him back a bit. "Think I care what you say? I don't have to stand here and listen to a little pre-pubescent fag telling me what to do."

"Hey, don't you touch him," Kenny snarled, pushing him back.

"Whatcha gonna do, hm _Ken_?" he taunted, pushing Kyle again. Kenny growled possessively and reeled back to hit him.

"Kenny, no." Kyle said firmly, grasping his hand gently in his. Stan stood and watched with his brows furrowed but his hands stuck in his pockets since he couldn't do anything. The larger boy laughed softly.

"I was right, hm? Fags are we?"

"Yeah, got a problem with it, Fuckwad?" Kenny spit. Kyle tightened his grasp on his boyfriend's hand.

"Calm down," he said softly.

"No! This asshole just meets us and we offer to help him and he pushes us?! Fuck no I'm not calming down!" he shot his head back around to face the boy. "Look, we're getting you where you need to go one way or another, so you might as well cooperate!" he hissed.

"Hm. No," he smirked, turning to walk away again. Kenny lunged forward and grabbed his arm.

"You're staying here," he growled.

"Um, how about not? Get your fucking hands off of me before you make your fag boyfriend over there jealous."

"Don't call him a fag!" he shouted. Stan blinked at them curiously, looking like he desperately wanted to join in the fight.

The boy turned around and glared at him. "I said to fucking let go."

"And** I **said that you need to stay here to get you where you need to be, Ass."

"Kenny...," Kyle started.

Kenny looked at him quickly, "Ky, let me handle it." he turned back around, his grip still firm on the boy. As he turned, the other's fist came crashing into his face, sending him backwards onto the ground.

"Ken!" Kyle and Stan shouted. Kenny sat up and wiped his arm over his lips, finding a trail of blood left on his arm. He growled and stood back up, lunging towards the boy.

"Kenny, don't!" Kyle pleaded as he crashed into the larger male. Kenny ignored him and tried to punch the living hell out of the spirit. He grabbed the blonde's fists and pushed him away. Kenny yelled in frustration and went to charge at him once more, only to be kicked in the stomach and sent back into the ground in a crumpled heap, gasping for air.

"Fuck, where is he?!" Stan yelled at Kyle. Kyle didn't hear him as he watched the large dark-haired boy run towards his boyfriend with an evil look upon his face.

"No!" he screamed, diving towards Kenny and grasping him around the head protectively as he continued charging towards them.

"Kyle, get away," Kenny coughed, trying to push him. Kyle held onto him tighter and glared at the approaching brute. Kenny noticed a purple glow around them and looked at Kyle, who's face was set in a determined stance at the attacker. As he lunged towards the two lovers, Kenny grasped Kyle back and waited for the impact with gritted teeth. Before he could touch them, a purple and white flash went off before their eyes and he was sent flying back into the air, crashing into the ground with a loud thud.

"Holy fuck!" Stan cried out. "What the hell just happened?!" Kenny just stared at the fallen boy with his mouth agape. He looked up at Kyle, who was panting heavily, but still clasped onto Kenny protectively.

"K-Kyle?" he said softly.

The boy looked down at him, his eyes a bright violet. "You okay?" he asked.

"Am I okay?! Dude, what the hell?...," he pulled from Kyle's grasp and took his face into his hands and studied it carefully. "Your eyes...," he whispered.

"What? What's wrong?"

"They're purple...Jesus Christ..."

They heard a low groan and turned to see the boy lifting himself off the ground slowly and rubbing his head. Stan followed their gaze, staring at the ground with a quirked brow.

"Dammit, this is really annoying," he muttered, shaking his ebon-coated head.

"Sorry, Dude," Kenny mumbled back, his eyes still on the rising foe. He snuck his arms around Kyle's tiny waist and held him close, noticing that his eyes were still that vibrant purple.

"What the fuck are you?!" he spit out at Kyle.

Kyle just stared back, daring him to try to attack his Kenny again.

Kenny pulled him in closer and his frown deepened into a scowl. "He's someone who just wants to help you, that's what he is you twisted fuck."

The boy stood up and dusted himself off. "I don't want your fucking help," he scowled before turning on his heel and tromping away. Kenny started to get up to run after him, but Kyle held him back.

"Just let him go, Dude," Kyle said as they stood together. They watched as he faded away into the distance. Kenny looked back at him and saw his iris' changing into their original shade once more. "We can't win 'em all," he sighed heavily. Kenny followed his sigh and leaned down to kiss his forehead gently. He was thrown into that all-too-familiar icy feeling once more.

_The air was stifling. Just too much. He sniffed and tried to move his feet, finding them heavy to move. He walked around aimlessly in the darkness, no sign of anything around him, just the feeling of being watched. Suddenly, four slits appeared, glowing a gentle red glow. Not the furious red glow he had seen before, but a soft and tempting glow, the shade of an apple. He reached out towards it, slowly taking strides towards its illuminating state. The closer he got, the further they moved back. Further. Further. He started to try to lift his heavy legs faster, trying desperately to catch up to them. It wasn't long before they disappeared altogether, leaving him alone once more in the heavy atmosphere._

"Kenny?! Kyle?! Are you alright?" a concerned voice called out. He slowly creaked open his eyes to see Stan staring back at him in worry. He sat up groggily and saw Kyle do the same out of the corner of his eye.

"Yea," the Jew replied softly. "We're okay."

"You hurt in this one?" Kenny asked.

Kyle shook his head. "Not really. I mean, it hurt at first. It was totally dark, but my entire body was stinging violently...then I just went numb," he shrugged. "Dunno. You okay?"

"Yeah. I guess it really doesn't matter what we saw. The guy hightailed it out of here, anyways."

"True," he nodded.

"Guys, what happened?" Stan asked, his voice still brimming with worry.

Kyle glanced up at him and smiled as he and Kenny got to their feet once more. "Don't worry, Stan. Happens every time. We just had visions of why that guy was stuck, that's all. No problems."

"You're sure? You looked epileptic."

Kenny chuckled, "yeah, we're sure. Totally forgot about that happening though."

"Me, too," Kyle joined in his laughter. "Kinda threw me onto my ass to say the least."

Kenny pushed some of his fiery hair away from his eyes and stared into them lovingly.

"I don't know what you did back there, but it was fucking incredible, Kyle," he commented softly.

Stan looked at them with the confused glance still upon his face. "Dudes, what the fuck happened before you fell over?"

"We lost our first case," Kyle sighed.

"Yeah, I figured that out, but I mean what was with the flash?"

"Ky's powers," Kenny shrugged. "I don't know exactly what happened, but it was Kyle all the way. Amazing...," he looked at his young love again. Kyle blushed and smiled at him softly as the blonde stroked his cheek tenderly. Kenny paused and frowned, "Kyle, you're burning up again."

"Oh...it's been a few hours since I took any meds," he shrugged. "I feel okay, though."

"I don't care. You're out here in your pajamas. Come on, we're getting you home." He froze as his phone buzzed in his jeans. He ripped it out and put it to his ear. "Hello?"

"_Where the fuck are you, Poor-boy?"_

Kenny winced. Oh yeah. Them. "Um...we're just out on a walk."

"_Well get your asses back here, the damn pizzas waiting."_

Kenny chuckled. "Alright, we were just about to head back anyways. Save some for us, Fatboy."

"_I'll think about it," _and with that he hung up.

"Come on," Kenny gestured towards the edge of the direction they had came from. "The jerkoffs are waiting for us." He slid his arm around Kyle's waist and they started walking off. Kyle laid his head on his shoulder and sighed contentedly. Kenny looked over at Stan and noticed him smiling gently at the two of them. He smiled back and nuzzled softly into Kyle's hair, inhaling the fresh scent of his shampoo.

"You goin' to school tomorrow, Stan?" Kyle asked sleepily.

"Unfortunately," he rolled his eyes. "I'm thinking about skipping Wednesday, though."

"Why?" Kenny asked.

"Why do you think?"

"Stan, I'll be okay," Kyle looked at him sadly. "I still don't wanna go...but I am. And Kenny's going with me. No offense to you or anything, but I really don't think that I want you there."

"Why not?!" Stan asked, his face looking slightly scandalized.

Kyle chuckled, "because I know you. You're my best friend. You take everything I say that makes me sad and go all out to stop it. If I said a brand of toothpaste hurt my feelings, you'd blow up the company."

"Well excuse me for caring," he smirked.

Kyle laughed gently once more, "Stan, I'll tell you all about it after school or something. Until then, just focus on passing your test Wednesday. We're gonna get you back on that team if it's the last damn thing we do."

Stan smirked, "I'm a bit more concerned about your well being, Ky."

"And I appreciate it to no end. However, there are other things going on in your life right now that you need to focus on. It'd be nice to graduate with you."

Kenny scoffed, "Kyle, you're not graduating with us. You'll be up in the front the whole time with the valedictorian sash smiling like you actually give a shit about school."

Kyle chuckled, "well, I'd like you to be in the same basic outfit with the same stupid-ass hat. How's that?"

"Better," Stan nodded with a smile. He looked up at Ken for a moment. "Hey, Kenny?"

"Yeah?"

"About Fischbach...are we cool with him now or what?"

"Hey, he tried to save Kyle," he squeezed the Jew's waist gently. "As far as I'm concerned, he's a saint...okay...maybe not that far. But I owe him for that."

"As do I," Kyle grinned sheepishly.

"You don't owe him shit, Ky," Stan lectured.

"Hey, I'd rather take cuts on my face than what he tried to save me from any day," he shrugged. "If he hadn't been there...well I think he would have gotten farther than he did...," he trailed off slightly and Kenny pulled him in closer. Kyle let out a little laugh and Stan and Kenny both looked at him confusedly.

"What's so funny?" Kenny asked.

Kyle laughed softer and looked up at the night sky. "It's just so weird, ya know? I mean...everything's just so different than it was not much more than a month ago...I know it sounds fucking insane and I sound like a fucking moron...but it's kinda flattering how they went after me like that. I don't mean I liked it, not by a long shot, I still hate them both with a fiery passion...," he raked his fingers through his hair and sighed. "But still...here I've lived my whole life thinking I was just this ugly little..._jewrat." _he chuckled. "And yet I had two people completely obsessed with me to the point of hunting me down...and I'm dating the hottest guy in school...I mean...it's just really fucking weird. I feel like...something's just so different. Something changed everything....and I just don't know what it is."

"Nothing's changed, Ky," Kenny commented. "Aside from the whole ghost thing, of course. But you've always been fucking beautiful, you just never had any confidence to actually show it to anyone," he smiled as a blush creeped onto the Jew's face and illuminated in the silver moonlight. "I mean, yeah, we're dating, but we've always had each other. We just share a little more now," he smirked pervertedly.

"Dude, no," Stan warned.

Kyle and Kenny broke into chuckles before the blonde continued, "I mean, look at Bebe and Wendy. Two of the hottest and most popular girls in school and they'd throw wads of cash at you if you took off your shirt. Kyle, I told you this before, you are popular. Your brains tend to freak people out because they're damn well past human intellect, but you as a person, everyone loves," he smiled gently.

"Yeah, Token and Craig really sounded like that," he rolled his eyes.

Stan frowned slightly, "they're total dicks and you know it."

"Explain our English class then," he frowned again. "And our chem. And every other fucking class I'm in. Why am I the only basketball player who doesn't get cheers when I make a basket? Why am I the only runner who can win a race and not get any congratulations? Why am I the only one of our 'little cult' that doesn't have any clique to belong in?"

"You hate cliques," Stan raised his brow.

"It's the principle of the thing," he sighed.

"What cliques are we in?" Kenny asked.

"Stan's a jock. Cartman's part of the skinhead group. You're part of the 'I don't give a flying fuck what the world is throwing at me' group...I mean, you'd think I'd at least be one of the nerds or something, but even they don't like talking to me because I'm too laid back for their tastes!"

"Seriously?" Stan chuckled.

"Yeah! It's really fucking weird! Just because I have you guys they think that I'm a slacker or something...I just want to fit in somewhere, I don't really care where...even if I'm not friends with anyone in that group, I just want to be able to blend in with someone. I'm so sick of getting pointed out in the hall because of my fucking hair or my grades or other useless shit," he sighed. "I...I just wanna...I don't even know anymore."

"You know what I think?" Kenny asked.

"I'm a little afraid to ask," he replied.

Kenny chuckled softly. "I think that you don't need to 'belong' with anyone in particular. You're a clique all your own, and that's just fucking awesome."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Stan raised his brow.

Kenny smirked at him. "Think about it. He's part jock, part nerd, part geek, all gay," he winked, "part goth at times, part reject at times...face it, Kyle, you're just a little of everything."

"I don't wanna be everything...I just want to be Kyle!"

"And you are. You wouldn't be Kyle if you conformed to just one group," he shrugged. "I love you the way you are. I love how you can totally blow me away with your knowledge on Quantum Physics and then turn around and laugh with me at a fart joke. I love how you can go from wanting to rip my hair out when I'm being stupid to holding me and telling me that you love me just because I'm me. I love how you can beat the living hell out of someone and then you kiss me like you're made out of porcelain. I love how you can be the most innocent person on the face of the planet and then go and dress up in a skirt for me," he paused as he saw Stan staring at them slack-jawed while Kyle slapped his face into his palm and blushed. He smirked and continued, "Kyle, you just wouldn't be you if you tried to just be one thing. I wouldn't be able to stand it," he smiled. "You're the Kyle I want to be with and I don't give a flying fuck what any retards at that damn school say. You're **my** Kyle and I'll be damned if they think that acting like that's gonna change the way that you are. You've made so many sacrifices for me, I feel like I owe you the world, and I'm more than happy to give it to you."

Kyle took his face out from his palm and smiled a little. He gently leaned up and kissed Kenny's cheek. "_To gain that which is worth having, it may be necessary to lose everything else," _he said softly. Kenny smiled and nuzzled their faces together and they sighed. They heard snickering and looked over at Stan who was looking close to losing it.

"God, you two are like lovesick school girls," he guffawed.

Kyle raised his brow and smirked. He stuck his foot out in front of Stan and he went crashing into the ground. He shot his head up and looked at his best friend with a vengeful grin upon his face. "You're gonna get it now, Broflovski," he snarled playfully, jumping to his feet.

Kyle laughed and broke apart from Kenny, intertwining their fingers as they stepped backwards from the ebon-haired boy. "I'm so scared. You can't outrun me, Muscle-boy," he grinned.

"Wanna bet?" he raised his brow in challenge.

"Ky?" Kenny asked.

"Yeah?"

"Show him just how fast you are," he winked. Kyle looked from him and smiled at Stan, who was stepping towards him quickly. He broke off of Kenny's hand and quickly backed up away from the approaching boy. As Stan grew nearer, Kyle spun around and leaped away as he lunged for him.

"Dammit!" Stan chuckled, breaking into a run to catch up to him.

"Crap," Kyle laughed, turning away and breaking away from him at full speed. Kenny began running to keep up with them, laughing at Stan's pathetic attempts at reaching the speedy redhead. Kyle wasn't even trying. They soon reached the complex lot with Kyle still a good deal ahead of them.

Kenny caught up to Stan and turned towards him in laughter, "can't even catch someone so tiny? Come on, Marsh!" Stan turned towards him and stuck out his tongue, nudging Kenny's side as they watched Kyle running backwards with an amused look upon his face.

"Please tell me that you two are just not trying. Because otherwise, I'm putting you both into a gym."

Kenny broke ahead of Stan and ran quickly towards the boy. Kyle yelped slightly in surprise and turned to try to break away, but couldn't do it before Kenny finally caught up to him and swung him up into his arms. Sadly, he wasn't quite holding the boy right and they went toppling into the ground with Kyle landing right on top of the blonde. They burst out laughing as they met stares and tried to catch their breath. Stan caught up and shook his head in amusement. The boys ignored his presence, however, continuing to gaze lustfully into each other's eyes. Kyle leaned down and gently pecked Kenny's lips, pulling back away ever so slowly with that mischievous smile that made Kenny's heart flutter. He felt a slight rise in his jeans and almost burst out laughing as Kyle caught it, too and raised his brow at him amusedly. He pulled the redhead down and whispered, "I told you you make me hot, Kosher boy."

Kyle giggled and sat up off of him, standing next to Stan. Kenny soon followed and they headed into the complex, heading up the stairs to their apartment.

"Bout damn time," Cartman rolled his eyes. He looked at Kyle and raised his brow. "Why'd you go out for a walk in your pajamas, Jew?"

"Um, they're comfortable?" he shrugged. "I'm gonna change into another pair though...these kinda stink now," he chuckled. "I'll be back."

Kenny watched him and noticed that his little friend hadn't quite died down just yet. "I'll be back soon, too," he nodded. "I need a shower," he ran his fingers through his hair and stuck out his tongue in fake disgust. Kyle raised his brow as Kenny grabbed his hand and pulled him into the bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind them. "You still sore?" he asked softly.

"Nah, I'm okay now. Few hours was all I needed, it was just a little gun" he smiled.

"Wanna bigger one?" he growled saucily.

Kyle gulped, "dude, there are three people out there, two of which know us a little too well. What if they walk in and catch us?!"

"They won't. We're goin' to the shower," he licked his lips and grabbed Kyle's hand once more, pulling him eagerly towards the bathroom and shutting the door. He switched on the shower and turned towards Kyle, seeing that familiar look in his eyes. He wasted no time and pushed the boy against the wall, kissing him furiously. Kyle wrapped his arms around his neck and deepened their kiss, both of them moaning ever so slightly.

"I'm going to ask this now," Kenny murmured into his mouth, "because if I keep going, I'm not going to be able to stop. Are you sure about this?"

"Shut up and kiss me," Kyle commanded, pressing back against him. Kenny smirked and roughly thrust his hips into Kyle's, grinding him back into the wall. Kyle yelped slightly and Kenny started fingering his nightshirt. He stepped back and ripped the boy's shirt off, admiring his toned figure as always. Kyle took off his shirt and smiled lustfully at him, running his fingers over his broad shoulder and over the pendent on his chest, continuing them downwards towards his button. He brushed his finger over it lightly as Kenny leaned down to kiss him once more. As they met tongues, Kyle quickly undid the blonde's jeans and let them fall to the floor with a gentle thud. Kenny slid his finger's under the Jew's waistband and pried the pants away from his lover's hips, letting his bottoms fall to the floor in a similar fashion.

They backed away from the wall slowly, still locked in each other's arms. Kenny broke away for a moment to test the water and deemed it perfect. He stepped in and pulled Kyle in behind him. As the water enveloped their bodies, their skin slick with moisture, they felt themselves growing harder, barely having made any sexual contact at all. Kenny moaned softly at this thought. Even more so as Kyle slowly broke away from his mouth and licked his way down his torso towards his throbbing member. Kenny backed up into the wall and took a shuddery breath as Kyle began playing with his balls. He gently took them into his fingers and squeezed, testing Kenny's reactions. He leaned forward and suckled on each one independently, listening to his lover's satisfied growls with pleasure tingling throughout his spine.

After he tired of ball-sucking, he took the tip of his tongue and ran it gently up Kenny's cock, causing his hips to jerk forward just slightly. Kenny leaned his head back against the tiled shower wall and moaned, "Kyle..., oh my god..." Kyle took damp muscle and ran it across the head of Kenny's cock, licking his lips at the sweet taste of his pre-cum. He plunged forward and engulfed Kenny, earning himself a pleasure-induced gasp and his hair being grabbed tightly as Kenny tried to steady himself. He started moaning as he bobbed back and forth, his voice overpowered by the steady fall of the shower. But Kenny could feel it as his cock tingled violently. He looked down and watched as Kyle hungrily devoured his member and licked his lips. Kyle's hair darkened from the water, but still held its curl, making him look all the more irresistible. His little Jew. All his.

After awhile of Kyle's continuous work, Kenny bit his lip sharply and released as he squeaked out Kyle's name and violently thrust his hips forward. Kyle, ever the unsuspecting, fell back and received Kenny's load in his face. He looked up at his blonde, panting boyfriend and smirked. "Lack of control much?" he grinned.

"If I'm with you, there's no fucking way I can control myself," he laughed. Kyle laughed softly, sitting back up on his knees and fingering off some of the cum. He looked lustfully into Kenny's eyes as he licked every drop off his finger and licked the remains off of Kenny's cock, which was quickly growing harder. "How the fuck do you keep being so fucking sexy?" he growled.

Kyle laughed softly and stood up, wrapping his arms around Kenny's neck and chastely kissing his lips. Kenny tasted himself on his lips and smirked. Kyle trailed his fingers delicately up and down Kenny's spine and flashed him a seductive smile. "How funny. I was about to ask you the same question."

Kenny growled and pressed the boy back against the wall, hungry for more. "You have no idea what you do to me, do you?"

"Why don't you show me?" he challenged. Kenny smiled. He liked this side of Kyle. The one side that no one else ever got to see.

"Gladly," he accepted huskily and slammed into the boy's mouth, nibbling at his lip and thrusting his tongue into him. He reached his hand down Kyle's abs and found his member, gently trailing his fingers over it and softly pinching the flaming skin. Kyle purred into his mouth and sent Kenny into overdrive once again. "Damn your moan," he said into his mouth. "It's so fucking sexy." Kyle just continued to kiss him back passionately, enjoying Kenny's teasing tugs on his cock, his hips thrusting into his hand ever-so-slightly. He blushed as he felt Kenny's cock once again standing strong against his thigh.

"Kyle?"

"Hmm?" he responded in a shudder.

"Is there anything you'd like me to do for you?" he teased.

"Fuck me," he murmured into the blonde's ear as he nibbled his neck.

Kenny paused for a moment, feeling his member twitch. "Say that again," he whispered.

"Ken, please. Fuck me," he pled.

"I'd love to," he smirked. He bent down slightly and reached his arms through Kyle's thighs, spreading them apart as he lifted him up against the wall.

"Ready?" he whispered. Kyle grabbed around his neck and looked at him saucily. Kenny planted a kiss on his lips before sliding into him. Kyle let out a quivering moan and shut his eyes, only to open them again to stare at Kenny in a lust-filled drive. He tightened his thighs around Kenny's hips, urging him to go deeper and harder. Kenny fulfilled his wish, gaining speed as the shower water beat down onto his back furiously.

"Ohh, Kenny," he moaned, leaning his cheek upon his small shoulder, still staring at him. His face began to grow redder, and Kenny couldn't get enough of it. He leaned forward to the exposed portion of Kyle's neck and suckled hard at it as he thrust relentlessly. Kyle gasped and his head fell back slightly. He moved his arms to over Kenny's shoulders, raking his fingernails into the blonde's back.

Kenny gasped at the stinging sensation and purred Kyle's name softly time and time again into the boy's pale skin, still thrusting for all he was worth. He thrust harder a few times in a row and listened excitedly to Kyle's yelps of bliss.

"Oh god...," Kyle whimpered, his thighs tightening around Kenny. The blonde smirked, his little tug session placed Kyle right on the edge already.

"Fuck...," he panted, looking up and into Kyle's darkened eyes. He leaned forward, their lips barely touching. "Do you love me?" he whispered hotly.

"Y-yes...," he breathed heavily.

"How much?" he smirked, mimicking Kyle's little teasing spree.

"More than anything..."

"Tell me you love me," he demanded.

"I love you," he whimpered, his body shaking as Kenny thrust into him still.

"No...make it more special," Kenny grinned.

Kyle let out a shuddery gasp and looked back into his azure eyes. "Ani O'hevet ot'cha," he murmured.

Ken licked his lips hungrily and thrust harder. "Say that again."

"A-ani O'hevet ot'cha..." he swallowed heavily as he tensed and bit his lip.

"Louder!" Kenny ordered.

"Ani o'hev-...o-oh shit!" he grit his teeth and bucked his hips as he released onto their stomachs. Kenny let out a loud groan as he hit his climax for his second time and shook heavily. Kenny slowly slid out of him and they stood together, hands on each other's shoulders, panting. They met eyes and smiled wickedly before locking their lips for a passionate kiss. They felt the residue sliding off of their slick bodies. Only when they were sure all evidence was gone did they separate.

"Fucking. Intense." Kenny breathed with a wide grin. Kyle licked his lips and returned the expression and nodded.

"God...that was amazing," he laughed. Kenny turned behind him and shut off the shower, turning back and running his hand through Kyle's damp hair.

"I do love it when you talk Hebrew to me," he grinned.

"Don't get used to it," he smirked. "I don't remember much from before my Bar Mitzvah."

"Damn," Kenny pouted. Kyle laughed and pulled him down to meet lips with him again.

"I'll relearn just for you," he promised with a smile.

Kenny smiled back and pecked his forehead. "Sweet. Come on, I'm sure they've caught on by now," he laughed. Kyle rolled his eyes.

"I'm not looking forward to the interrogation."

"Let me do the talking," Kenny winked.

"No, you'll give all the details!" he replied. "I know you too well for your own good, Kenneth."

He laughed, "did you just seriously call me Kenneth?"

Kyle blinked. "I...I did?"

"Yes you did, Kyle, Love," he chuckled. "Usually I hate when people call me that...," he twisted one of the boy's curls around. "but from you, it sounds...right," he smiled. "I really couldn't care less what you call me. So long as it's you and your beautiful voice."

Kyle smiled shyly as Kenny grabbed his hand and led him out into the bedroom. They dispersed to their separate clothing stacks, smirking at each other occasionally. Kenny couldn't hold back his smile as he gazed at Kyle as he smoothly slid on a fresh pair of pajamas and combed out his hair. Whether or not his passion-induced state was a result of bipolar or not, he didn't know. But Kyle's smile didn't seem to be disappearing anytime soon, so something must have been going on alright in that head of his.

His smile faded slightly as he remembered Kyle's breakdown from earlier that day. The deep, somber blue in his eyes. The voices. Why would Kyle hear voices? Was Cartman right? Were those Kyle's inner thoughts, taking the form of something else? He wasn't a psychiatrist...and he wasn't Kyle's head. He wouldn't be able to figure it out on his own, regardless of how well the boys connected. He glanced briefly at the calendar. Two days. Two days and maybe things would finally come to light for them.

* * *

_A/N: It's two AM and I'm tired. Can you tell? XP_

_Lots in this chapter. New elements of Ky's powers, another element into his insanity, a ghost escapee, and shower smex. I love me some shower smex._

_Can you guess what next chappie is gonna be? Betcha can't XD_

_Thanks for blah blah blah._

_PS: Guess what? I've started a new story, too! It's more Style related, but there's some K2 in the mix. The first chapter's already up and if you wanna check it out, that'd be so awesome of you! It's called Latency. I'm kinda excited to get it going. But don't worry, Possession is still top priority as of now =)_

_PPS: Link here for a picture that kinda sorta not really inspired the smex scene. I already had it planned out, but couldn't picture it too great into my head until I saw this (BTW, it is for mature people...but if you're reading this than this is nothing, Dude.) All credit for the pic goes towards the AMAZING **azngirlLH**: _http://yaoi. y-gallery. net/view/582107/.......(Minus the spaces!)

**(If you don't have a membership on the site, you can't view this. However, if you still want to see the pic, go to her profile and follow the link posted there for her site Essence. TOTALLY WORTH IT!)**


	30. Tension

_A/N: Holy fucking God, we're on chapter 30 =O_

_...and I've only been writing this since August?! I have WAY too much time on my hands! But hey, it's fun =)_

_Yays, enjoys =D_

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The air was warm, surrounding the bodies in an essence of peace, despite the fact that the smallest of them was absolutely rigid with tension. As they walked through the town hand in hand, the taller of the two couldn't help but chuckle silently at his lover's behavior. The small form was red as always, biting on his bottom lip and tightening his grasp around the older one's hand time after time, forming a steady beat of tension and anxiety.

"You're gonna be fine, ya know," he quirked his brow. The redhead looked at him and scowled.

"Yeah. Until they dub me fucking insane and haul me off to the nuthouse."

"You're not insane," he sighed and shook his head softly.

"They'll think I am! Then they'll try to hop me up on like, seventy thousand medications and run all these tests on me and completely brainwash me into gaining even more problems so they can just keep getting a paycheck!"

Kenny laughed at him, in total disbelief of his attitude. "Kyle, Dude. Calm down. You're starting to sound like Cartman."

Kyle's angry scowl quickly dropped into a horrified expression. "How could you say something like that?! I thought you loved me!" he said jokingly.

"I do. Very much so," he grinned. "And because of that fact, I'm taking you to get you help because I care so much."

"But...but...I don't wanna," he pouted.

Kenny smirked, "don't make me spank you."

Kyle quirked his brow. "You'd enjoy that too much."

He snickered lightly. "Yeah, you're right. I don't think you'd be too against it, either."

"The line has to be drawn somewhere, Ken."

"So...let me get this straight. You'll put on a skirt for me...but not let me hit your ass?"

"You already stick something up it, why would you want more to do with it?"

Kenny burst out laughing. "Not my fault it's so damn fine."

Kyle smiled with him for a moment before letting out a heavy sigh, "I don't wanna do this Ken."

Kenny threw his arm around his shoulder and pulled him close. "I know, Dear. But I'll be right beside you the whole time, no worries," he kissed his temple gently.

"I have a lot of worries," he frowned. "I don't know what the hell they want me to say or anything..."

"You answer their questions...honestly," he added firmly.

"You think I'd lie through it?"

"I never know with you, Love."

He sighed again. "I just think this is a bad idea."

"Well, I'm sorry, but I think me letting you cry in your sleep is an even worse idea. I don't like it when you're sad," he frowned. "I want you to get better and you told me that you want to be better."

"But maybe I am getting better," he shrugged. "I haven't heard the voices since that first night. Maybe I was just immensely stressed that day or something."

"Well, while there's no doubt in my mind that you were stressed, that doesn't quite cover all the nights before hand, you know. I'm gonna get you healthy."

"You care too much."

"Coming from the boy who sacrificed himself for me," he rolled his eyes.

"I didn't sacrifice myself. I'm still alive."

"Physically," he finished softly. Kyle sighed and stopped, throwing his arms around the blonde.

"Ken, I told you, I'm gonna be okay," he swayed him back and forth a few times. "Quit worrying."

"I can't help it. Stop meaning so damn much to me and maybe I'll be able to stop," he shrugged.

"Aw, no fair. You're not really giving me a choice here," he stuck out his lips in a tiny, fake pout.

Kenny smirked. "Damn straight I'm not." As they approached the clinic, he felt Kyle growing tenser and he chuckled. "You're gonna be fine, Dear," he pulled his arm and tugged him in through the glass door. They walked up to the reception counter and Kenny smiled at the woman behind the counter.

"Can I help you?"

"Yeah, Kyle Broflovski's here for an appointment," Kenny gestured to the redhead, who was trying to hide his face.

She smiled warmly at the poor boy. "It's okay, Dear. Nothing gets past those doors," she pulled some papers from her side and handed them to him. "Here, just fill these out and we'll call you in shortly, okay? Now, can I get you to spell your last name for me, Kyle?"

"B-r-o-f-l-o-v-s-k-i," he said softly. She nodded as she typed it in and then turned back and smiled at him once more.

"It'll be a bit. You just get those papers filled out, alright?"

"Yeah, thanks," he mumbled, turning away and walking with Kenny towards the row of chairs. They sat own and Kyle held up the clipboard and sighed heavily. "These things are retarded," he grumbled.

"They're just a way for you to pass time," Ken shrugged. "Fill it out anyway."

"See?! They wanna put me on drugs!" he hissed. "I'm not filling this damn conspiracy sheet out!"

Kenny groaned and sighed. "Fine. Give me the damn thing and I'll do it for you." he ripped the board out of the young Jew's hands and started jotting down the information.

"Any surgeries?" he asked.

"Why is that necessary for them to know?!"

"I don't know, Dude. Answer me."

"My kidney transplant, but that's it I think."

"Thought so...," he faded off as he continued to write. He felt rather proud of himself, able to fill out all the information as easily as if it were his own. Kyle leaned his head on his shoulder and watched as he wrote with a small grin playing on the corners of his lips.

"You know me pretty damn well," he laughed.

"Of course. You're my obsession," he smiled back, kissing his curls lightly.

"Kyle Brof...brof...lavsky?" the doctor called.

"Off to a great start," he sighed irritably, standing with Kenny. Kenny laughed as they walked up towards the man. He smiled up at the approaching boys, his hazel eyes glimmering softly in the florescent lighting. His light brown hair was softly spiked, seeming fitting for the looks of his age.

"Which of you is Kyle?" he asked. Kyle gave him a short wave. "Hello, I'm Doctor Joseph Lincoln," he shook the boy's hand. He turned towards Kenny. "And you are?"

"Kenny. I'm comin' with Ky for moral support," he grinned, shaking his hand as well.

"Excellent. Well, come on in," he waved them into the room and shut the door behind them. "Have a seat," he gestured towards the couch sitting in the middle of the room. The boys walked over and plopped down, and Kenny could feel Kyle once again getting edgy.

"It's okay," he chuckled softly. Kyle just looked at him with distrust playing in his gaze.

"Alrighty, finish the paperwork?" Dr. Lincoln asked.

"Yes sir," Kenny nodded handing off the clipboard. The doctor sat in a chair facing them and quickly scanned the notes.

"Aw, man," he looked up at Kyle. "Diabetic, huh?" He nodded softly in return. Dr. Lincoln chuckled. "Well, I was hoping that'd spark a conversation, but obviously I failed." he set the papers down on the floor next to him and sat back up, crossing his legs with a notepad in his lap. "Let's just get right down to it," he grinned. "How are you feeling, Kyle?"

"I'm fine," he mumbled. "How are you?" Kenny smirked. Even his displeased opinion of the man in front of him couldn't deter the Jew's mannerisms.

"Well, I'm doing pretty good, thank you," he smiled back. Kenny looked around the room, admiring the diplomas aligning the wall. How many freaking places did this guy have to graduate from just to ask people how they were feeling?!

"And Kenny? How are you doing?"

He looked up at him, still smirking. "Just fine, Doc."

"Please, call me Joe," he requested. He looked over at the redhead, his smile still strong. "Kyle?"

"Hm?"

"Can you tell me why you're not very responsive?"

"I'm just a quiet person," Kyle shrugged. Kenny snorted softly. If that wasn't an understatement he didn't know what was.

"Why don't you just tell me a little about yourself?" he suggested.

"Like what?"

"How's life?"

He quirked his brow, "If it was good, do you really think I'd be here right now?"

Joe chuckled, "alright, good point. How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"You too, Ken?"

"Eighteen," he smiled.

"You two are lucky. Live it up while you can," he laughed. "Trust me, you hit the thirties and you really regret not going to those parties." Ken and even Kyle both broke into small grins. "So, how are you two connected?" he asked. "Friends? Brothers?"

"Boyfriends," Kenny stated.

"Are we here to work on your relationship?"

"No way," Kyle said quickly. "We're fine," he intertwined their fingers for emphasis and Kenny let out a snicker. Awfully defensive, his little Jew.

"Alrighty," he jotted down some notes. "What's your home life like Kyle?"

"Can't complain," he shrugged.

"Relationship with your parents good?"

Kenny winced as Kyle's fingers tightened around his. "I don't live with my parents," he said evenly.

Joe looked up from his notes. "Really?"

"Yes, really," he nodded slowly. "Me and Ken live together."

"You're seventeen," he raised his brow. "How are you out of your house already?"

"I was kicked out." They watched as Joe quickly scrambled down notes.

"And why is that?"

"That'd be me," Kenny raised his hand. Kyle sighed and tightened his grip around his hand.

"Why? What'd you do?" he asked.

Kenny smirked and took his hand from Kyle's and threw it around his shoulders. "Ky here has the hots for me," he beamed. Kyle laughed softly at his boyfriend's smug appearance.

"Ah. I see," he nodded. "Kyle, how do you feel about what happened?"

"Let's see. My parents whom raised me and told me continually that they loved me and were damn proud of me for seventeen years kicked me out only twenty minutes after I came out to them. How do you think I would feel?" he snapped.

"I'm just trying to get ya talking," he grinned sheepishly. "Okay, so we're mad at the parents. What about living with Kenny? Are you okay with the way that's working out?"

Kyle broke into a small smile, "couldn't be better."

"Well see? There's always a bright light somewhere," he said. "Would you mind if I asked you a rather personal question?"

"Um...I have a feeling no matter what I say you'll ask it anyways..."

He chuckled lightly, "right. Sex. Do you two have sexual relations?"

"Oh Jesus," Kyle looked down and blushed. Kenny, being who he was, couldn't help himself as he pulled Kyle closer.

"Hell yes," he grinned widely. Kyle just shook his head and didn't look back at Joe. "He's damn good at it, too."

"KENNY!" Kyle yelled, breaking away and punching his arm. Kenny laughed as Kyle's face grew redder and redder with embarrassment.

"Love you," he sang. Kyle just growled irritably at him. Joe chuckled softly.

"Well, just from where I'm sitting, I'd say you're in a pretty good relationship," he chortled.

"Damn straight," Ken smiled, looking at Kyle. Kyle gave him a disapproving look, but allowed Kenny to take his hand again.

"So, what's the reason you called me?" Joe asked. "I mean, did the parent situation cause this all or is there more going on?" Kyle sighed heavily and looked down again at Kenny and his hands.

Kenny looked at him and then back up to Joe with a sad frown upon his face. "There's a lot more going on."

"Alright, tell me about it."

"Which part?" Kyle grumbled.

"Start at the beginning. When did you start becoming depressed to the point that it led you here?"

"When I was thirteen."

"Okay, and why was that?"

He sighed in exasperation. "I found out I was gay and life just took a fucking nose dive."

"Why would making that discovery hit you so hard, Kyle?"

He looked up at him. "Did you notice my last name? It ain't a Polish name, Dude."

Joe looked down at the paper in front of him and looked back at him. "Jewish?"

He nodded, "yeah. It's not fun being a gay Jew. And even better is being a gay Jew in this town of redneck hicks."

"I can understand that," he nodded. "Anything else attribute to making it so difficult?"

"Just being a teenager," he shrugged. "You don't gain friends if your name is Fag, Doc." He nodded at him as he wrote. "That and who I liked kinda set me back a bit," he bit his lip.

"Why is that?"

"Because they were best friends and he was afraid that saying something would ruin everything," Kenny answered, looking at his Jew.

"And would this best friend happen to be you, Kenny?"

Ken grinned, "ya got me...I hope."

Kyle laughed, "of course, Dude. What other best friend would I have a crush on?"

"Stan?" he shrugged.

Kyle's eye slightly twitched. "Dude...ew. I mean...ew." Kenny laughed softly at him.

"Kyle, I'm going to ask you a question and I'd really like a truthful answer from you," Joe looked at him seriously.

"What is it?"

"Have you ever hurt yourself?"

"Yes," he responded bluntly with a short nod of his head.

"How severely?"

"He was dead for hours," Kenny spoke softly, looking at the floor. He looked up to see Joe's eyes widening a bit.

"Kyle, why would you do that?"

"Aside from the fact that I lost my parents and the only two means of support I have in my life in a matter of hours? Not to mention that my enemy found out and humiliated me, or that there was a classmate out trying to kill me. Other than that, no reason at all."

"Okay, so we have a few issues to resolve," Joe chuckled softly.

"We're not done," Kenny said quietly.

"Oh?"

"There's been a lot that's happened recently...," Kyle said slowly, tightening his grip on Kenny once more. Kenny took his arms and wrapped them around his Jew and rocked him back and forth slowly.

"What happened?" Joe insisted.

Ken looked up at him with a tired expression, "he was raped," he said softly.

"Was this before or after your suicide?"

"After," Kyle responded, grasping Kenny's shirt.

"Have you gone to police about this?" he put the notebook down and stared at them intently.

"Yes," Kenny nodded. They hadn't really done anything to salvage the situation, but they had called them. "We've got the situation under control."

"Kyle, have you experienced any bad dreams or anything since the incident?"

"Every night," he whispered.

"He cries in his sleep sometimes," Kenny added. "And he's had a few panic attacks."

"That's common in rape victims," he nodded. "What are your nightmares about, Kyle?"

"Usually they're just...dark. And I hear them laughing...and there's screaming...but I'm not sure if it's me doing it," he shrugged. "I feel really suffocated and I can't move..."

Joe jotted this down and sighed. "Well, I can safely tell you that you are traumatized from this. Which should be obvious to you," he added. "What I'd like to do is start you on a dream log. I want you to record these nightmares of yours so we can analyze them and maybe pinpoint everything that's causing you to feel depressed still. I'm willing to bet that a lot of different elements, not just the rape, are playing into this. Would you be okay with that?"

"So...no drugs?" he asked hopefully.

He laughed softly, "no drugs. If these problems persist, we might try a trial period, but we're certainly not going to just throw you onto a prescription, especially since you really seem against it." Kenny felt Kyle relax a bit and smiled softly.

"Ky?" Ken asked.

"Hm?"

"Monday?" he hinted.

Kyle looked up at him and sighed. "I don't wanna," he said.

"Are there other problems here?" he asked.

Kenny looked at him and nodded. "We had a...a bit of a crisis on Monday."

"Crisis?" he leaned forward in his seat and stared at the two. "What happened?"

Kenny looked at Kyle and saw that he was in no hurry to respond, so he took a deep breath. "Kyle was sleeping, but he woke up crying. At first I thought it was just what he'd been doing lately...but he was screaming even after he woke up about hearing voices shouting at him."

"But it wasn't my voice," Kyle added hastily. Joe grabbed his notepad and furiously scribbled.

"What were the voices telling you?"

"To die...and that I'm useless...and a bunch of other stuff that no one wants to hear," he sighed. They heard a small beeping and turned to the clock on the table.

"Wow...that passed quick," Joe laughed softly, leaning forward to switch it off. "Before we depart, I want you to do me another little favor," he looked at the Semite. "Log your dreams, and log the voices should you hear them again. I can only help so much, this is really a personal recovery treatment and I'm just here to grab you if you fall. I can tell that you're a strong willed boy just from the fact that you're here and cooperating. Just don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of all this, I promise," he smiled.

Kyle smiled back meekly as he and Kenny stood and shook his hand once again.

"It was a pleasure meeting you both and I'll see you next week," he grinned.

"Thanks," Kyle said softly. Kenny just smiled at him gratefully, unable to find words beyond thank you when he so desperately needed them. He just nodded and grasped Kyle's hand once more, leading him out of the room.

"Bye," the doctor called out to them.

"See ya," they both responded as they walked out of the room and closed the door. Kyle let out a shuddery breath and Kenny smirked.

"Told ya it wouldn't be that bad."

"Yeah...yeah, you're right. It felt kinda nice knowing that he might have an idea of how to find out what's going one," he smiled softly. "Sorry I doubted you," he pecked his cheek sweetly.

"No prob, you'll make it up to me later," he winked and pinched his ass playfully.

"Dude! Not in public!" he blushed.

"Aw, you ruined my fun. Everyone should see sexy Jew time. It'd make the world a better place, one 'oy vey' at a time," he smiled.

"Even I'm not that Jewish," he rolled his eyes as they walked towards the receptionist counter again.

"Hey, how'd it go?" the woman smiled.

"Fine," he shrugged.

"Good," she replied. "Next Wednesday same time?"

"Sure," he nodded.

"Alright," she typed into her computer and flashed them another toothy grin. "We'll see you then."

"Bye," they nodded as they turned to walk out the door. Kenny swung their hands back and forth as they headed back home and couldn't help but smile at the young Semite. He really wanted to get better, his openness while talking to Joe made that quite evident. He looked up and stared at the clouds passing them by. Who knew? Maybe things would finally start getting back on track.

* * *

The boys sat side by side on the couch, textbooks in hand. Kenny watched as Kyle punched numbers into his calculator, entranced by the subject of his focus as he had been so many times before. Kyle didn't spare him a glance as he furiously punched out numbers and scrawled them down into his practice ledger. Kenny looked towards his own book and sighed. He really couldn't care less about McCarthyism.

"You alright?" Kyle asked, still honed in on the task at hand.

"This shit is stupid," Kenny grumbled.

Kyle let out a little laugh. "Yeah, but you're in the class so you might as well just deal with it."

"But I hate it," he pouted. "The Cold War isn't that important!"

Kyle stopped and looked over, raising a brow at him. "Are you serious? The Cold War is very important! Do you realize were it not for Americans and Russians dueling it out to outdo each other, we wouldn't have made it to space when we did? It was a cause for people to band together against the Communists and try to uphold America's position as a major power in the world and not be shown up by a bunch of vodka-drinking assholes.

"But...it's dumb!"

"Charlie would've hit you for that," he smirked. "Ken, just because we weren't around doesn't mean that it's dumb. You have to take the lessons in order to learn from them. Think about it, Kenny, we're Earth's future. Us especially since we're not leaving," he smiled.

"What do I have to learn from this?!"

Kyle looked over into the section of the text and looked back up at Kenny. "McCarthyism is very important, Ken. It deals with the trust instilled in people within their government and demonstrates the ruthless tension of the time. It's just one example of many, but probably the most prominent."

Kenny rolled his eyes with a smile, "Dude, you're such a nerd." he set the book on the table and leaned back in the couch, staring at Kyle.

Kyle frowned, "I am not. So I know some history, big whoop. A lot of people recognize McCarthyism."

"That's bullshit and you know it."

He rolled his eyes, "okay, maybe not. But I'm not a nerd."

"I don't know why you're being defensive. I like you as a nerd," he smiled. Kyle just shook his head and turned back to his accounting work. Kenny leaned up and watched him, raising his brow in confusion.

"Are you having fun?" Kyle asked, shuffling through his papers.

"Tons. Watching you do just about anything makes me happy," he smiled, kissing his ear. He felt Kyle shudder slightly and dove his nose into the crook of the Jew's neck. Kyle let out a little surprised yelp and tried to close off the area with his head.

"Dude! I'm working!"

"Mmhmm." he responded dreamily, nuzzling closer into him. "I think it's time for a break," he murmured.

"Dude, no...I'm b-busy."

"Kyle, come on...," he whined.

"I...I'm trying to g-get this done!"

Kenny smirked into his skin. He was melting like butter. He took his teeth and gently grazed Kyle's neck, causing him to arch up slightly and gasp. He reached over and gently pried the calculator and papers away from his little redhead and threw them onto the table with his book. "Kenny!" he protested, though was quickly melting into the blonde's touch.

Kenny pushed him back a bit and leaned on top of him. "Please?" he batted his lids pathetically.

"Ken..."

"Come ooonnnn!" he pouted, slowly trailing his fingers up Kyle's shirt.

"What happened to this relationship being at my pace?!" he growled through his teeth.

Kenny froze. Uh oh. He retrieved his hand from Kyle's shirt and sat up off him, quickly backing to the opposite end of the couch as the boy sat up. "S-sorry," he stammered, looking down at the floor. He glanced up at Kyle, who was staring with his arms crossed expectantly.

"Ky...I'm sorry," he repeated, playing with a loose fabric on his shirt. "I didn't mean to...well, okay, I kinda did but I got too carried away. I won't do that again." He refused to look up at him as he felt him get off the couch and walk away from him silently.

He looked back behind him and noticed he was gone. "Shit," he hissed to himself. He clenched the pendant around his neck and stared at it guiltily for a few minutes. He should have known better than to do that...if Kyle said no, he fucking meant it. He slammed his face into his palms and slowly shook his head. "What did I do?" he mumbled quietly. "What the fuck is wrong with me? Goddamn it, I'm so fucking stupid!"

He felt arms creep around his neck and looked to see Kyle standing next to him and then sit on the couch on his knees. "Not stupid, just horny," he gently kissed the side of his head.

"Ky, I really really really didn't....I'm so..."

Kyle held up his hand to stop him. "Don't apologize and don't call yourself stupid again. It's fine, Ken, really," he smiled reassuringly at him.

"Then why are you so mad?!"

"Mad? I'm not mad," he laughed softly.

"Then why'd you walk away?!" he insisted.

"I had to take a piss, Jesus Christ," he laughed harder. "Ken, I'm not mad, I swear!" he gently caressed his face as Kenny just stared back.

"I...I thought I fucked up our relationship just because you went to the bathroom?! Goddammit," shook his head at himself.

Kyle stopped stroking his cheek and cupped his chin to look back at him. "Ken, there's no way that you just doing something like _that_ is gonna fuck up our relationship, alright? In fact, if you did anything, you made it all the more strong," he smiled.

"How?! I...I was halfway to just ripping off your pants!"

Kyle chuckled, "and I would've let you probably. But the fact that I mentioned that and you stopped yourself right there shows that you really do care about keeping us together," he smiled wider.

Kenny grabbed his hand and kissed it, "I really really do," he nodded vigorously.

"Well you know what I think?"

"Probably not because it's probably too full of complicated words," Ken smirked.

Kyle chuckled and leaned up to him and kissed his ear gently. "I think you deserve a reward for being so sweet," he murmured. Kenny turned slightly towards him and kissed the side of his face. Kyle moved his head and met lips with the blonde, outlining the familiar contexts of his mouth. He moaned softly and started sliding his hand from Kenny's chest down towards his jeans.

Kenny tried to move Kyle's shirt up and off him, but the Jew kept pushing his hands away. Damn tease.

He gasped slightly as Kyle stroked the bulge of his pants a few times with his fingertips. He slowly unzipped the older boy's pants and slid them down to mid-thigh to get them out of the way. Kenny tried once again to see some skin from his lover, but apparently that wasn't happening right now.

Kyle broke from his mouth and worked his way down, pecking the head of his cock as he reached it. He took his hand and fondled the hardening shaft, rolling his balls in his palm of the other. Kenny gasped and threw his head back in ecstasy. He let out a loud moan as he felt a tongue brush against the flammable skin. The tongue lapped out time and time again, receiving the salty hue of pre-cum. He shivered at the taste, enjoying it's stinging sensations on his muscle. He changed directives and started suckling on the head of his cock, causing Kenny to moan louder and entangle his fingers in the red mess bobbing on his lap.

"Jesus Christ!" he hissed, breathing heavily as Kyle began to take him in further. Kyle wrapped his small hand around the base of his cock and steadily pumped, following the rhythm of his head. Kenny shuddered violently and moaned out Kyle's name time after time, moving one hand from the Jew's head to grasp the arm of the couch, digging his fingernails into the soft leather.

"Kyle? Ken?" a knock came at the door. Kyle stopped, his mouth still around Ken's throbbing erection. Stan. Shit.

"I know you're in there!" he persisted. They heard a key being placed into the lock and Kyle threw himself off of Kenny, who was now wincing severely with the need for release. Kyle grabbed a blanket from off the floor and threw it around them, over Kenny's lap.

"Sorry," Kyle mumbled, reaching down and zipping up Kenny's pants as best he could. Kenny let out a high pitched whine as the denim crushed into and restricted his cock. "Shh," Kyle whispered. "We're asleep right now," he nodded. Kenny nodded in return, still wincing in pain as they leaned their heads atop each other for their facade and closed their eyes.

Stan and Cartman burst into the room and found the two on the couch and shook their heads. "Jesus Christ, they're lazier than me," Cartman snorted.

Stan laughed, "not possible, Fatass." Kenny heard them approaching and said a silent prayer for Stan's eyes to not travel downwards.

Stan shook Kyle's shoulder gently. "Hey? Kyle?"

"Hm?" he responded in a fake groggy voice. Kenny almost lost it as he slowly sat up off of him and forced a yawn.

"Dude, I don't think this is helping you study for accounting like you said you would," he smirked quietly.

Kyle shrugged and pulled himself off of Kenny. "Let's go into the other room to talk," he suggested pointedly. Kenny started thanking him excessively.

"Nonsense, we wanna talk to Poor-boy, too," Cartman interjected. Oh God. He felt his body convulse and shot his eyes open to Cartman staring at him with a shit-eating grin. "Hello, Kenneh. Welcome to the world of the living," he stated.

Kenny narrowed his eyes at him. "You know, there are more effective manners of waking people up without making them start to think they're epileptic," he wrapped the blanket around himself.

He shrugged, "seemed like more fun this way. Besides, you look like you were well on your way to convulsing uncontrollably anyways," he smirked.

"Whaddya mean?" he raised his brow.

"Oh, you mean other than that little tent you're pitching there? Nothing," Stan laughed, Cartman joining him soon after. Kenny and Kyle looked at each other, the color rising in the smaller one's face.

"Come on, Ky," Stan continued. "Pretending to be asleep? I know you when you wake up and that wasn't it," he chortled. Kyle's blush deepened and he looked at his feet.

"God, you two are like bitches in heat or something," Cartman snickered.

"Shut up, Fatass!" Kyle yelled. Kenny just tried to focus on getting his boner to die down. Wasn't easy with its tingling and Kyle's close body heat.

"Ky?" he asked, though it came out as more of a squeak. "Could you possibly like, scooch over or something?" he massaged his temple to try to concentrate.

"Why?" he blinked.

"You're not gonna like the answer," Kenny warned.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded.

"To be blunt, you're making me hard still so scoot!" He listened to Stan and Cartman's furious laughter as Kyle just blinked at him, slowly edging away. Kenny smiled at him apologetically. As much as he wanted Kyle right now, it would probably not be the smartest of ideas.

"Geez, just go back into the bedroom and finish up or something if you're gonna be so depressed about it," Stan shook his head and laughed still.

Kenny shrugged, "if you insist..." he got to his feet and grabbed Kyle's arm, yanking him towards the room, limping slightly from his boner.

"Dude, I was kidding!" Stan protested.

"I'm not!" he called back, pulling Kyle into the room and slamming the door shut behind them.

"Dude, now you hump on command?" Kyle raised his brow.

Kenny snickered, "no, but imagine their faces right now!"

Kyle contemplated this for a moment before joining Kenny's sniggers. "Oh god, that'd be priceless."

"Oh, I can make it even better," he raised his brow in amusement. Kyle looked at him in interest.

"How?"

Kenny smirked and began, "MMM KYLE!" loudly, making sure that the other two could hear him. "OH MY GOD, KYLE! YOU'RE SO GOOD!"

Kyle slapped his hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter, shaking hysterically with giggles.

"OH GOD! GOD YES! RIGHT THERE! OH JESUS!" he continued, ready to break into laughter himself. Kyle continued giggling and looked up at his boyfriend with dancing eyes, shaking his head in amusement.

He inclined towards Kenny and whispered, "keep it up," pulling back and winking at him as he dropped to his knees and reached for Kenny's jeans, determined to finish what he'd started. He let Kenny's still throbbing member jump out at him before hungrily taking it back into his mouth.

"AH!" Kenny yelled, wincing as he was suddenly thrust back into his pleasure. "Oh God..." he whispered, grasping Kyle's shoulders. Kyle looked up at him as he continued lapping at the skin, reaching up and fondling his balls. It didn't take long for Kenny to feel himself tensing and dig his fingernails into Kyle's small shoulders. Kyle removed himself from Kenny's cock and continued to work on it with his hand, quickly jerking his wrist and looking up saucily at the blonde. Kenny bit his lip and screamed Kyle's name as he exploded, Kyle catching his release in the palm of his free hand. He supported himself of Kyle's shoulders and shakily caught his breath. Kyle smirked and stood, licking a bit of Kenny off his palm and then kissing his forehead sweetly.

"I'm gonna go wash up," he said softly. Kenny looked at him and smiled, planting a kiss on his tender lips before he walked off towards the bathroom. Kenny zipped up his pants and tried to wipe the sweat off his face. Needless to say, he felt much better. Kyle soon emerged once more from the bathroom, a mischievous smile upon his face.

Kenny grabbed him and held him in his arms, looking down on his small frame. "You totally like doing stuff like that, don't you?"

"What? Sucking you off?" he raised his brow.

Kenny snickered, "well, yes but I was actually referring to doing things with others in close proximity."

"Proximity? I'm impressed with your word choice," he smirked smugly.

Kenny pulled on one of his curls teasingly. "Come on, admit it. You like that little feeling of nervousness in that scrawny gut of yours," he poked it pointedly. "Makes ya excited."

Kyle shrugged. "Okay? So what?"

"So I find it quite hilarious," he grinned.

"How so?"

"You know, before we started dating, you didn't even jerk off. I mean, I figured you'd be one of the people who wouldn't even consider sex unless we were married or at least dating a good deal of time and we were in a bed. You seem quite comfortable with it, though."

He shrugged again. "Okay, so I made myself out to be more innocent than I really am. I mean, I'm dating _you_ of all people. I'm smart enough to know that monogamy would not be part of the game, here."

Kenny sniggered again, "True. I'm kinda glad it's not. It's hard enough controlling myself over that tight Hebrew ass of yours and we have fun almost everyday," he winked. "I don't think I'd be able to hold myself back for so long."

Kyle threw his arms around his neck and smiled. "But, you do control yourself. And I'm very pleased about that."

"Well good. Maybe I can think of another way to please you later," he growled suggestively, pulling him in closer.

"Maybe later, we still have company, you know," he raised his brow amusedly.

"Oh yea. I kinda forgot," he grinned sheepishly. Kyle laughed and they intertwined their fingers before emerging from the room.

"You guys think you're so damn funny," Stan quirked his brow at them as they walked over and joined them in the living room.

"Oh? How so?" Kenny asked innocently.

"If anyone was that loud during sex, it'd be fucking illegal," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Hey, it wasn't sex, it was making love," Kenny winked, wrapping his arms around the Jew. Kyle looked up at him and raised his brow with a grin upon his pale face.

"Uh huh. Can we please just talk now that you've got it all out of your system?" Stan pleaded.

"I suppose so," he sighed as he walked with Kyle, still secure in his grasp, and fell onto the love seat. Kyle curled his legs up beside him and cuddled close to the blonde.

"So, how'd it go?" Stan asked.

"How'd what go?" Kyle asked.

"Kyle, don't play stupid. How'd it go?"

He shrugged. "Fine. We didn't do anything but tell him what's been going on. Not much you can accomplish in a half hour."

Stan nodded, "so, he didn't really talk to you about em? He just listened?"

"Yeah," Kenny stated. "Ky has to do dream logs and record what he hears the voices saying should they come back."

"So, they haven't been back then?" Cartman asked.

"Not while I'm awake, no," he said softly.

Kenny turned and looked at him. "You told me they haven't been back at all."

He looked away guiltily. "I...I thought you'd worry too much..."

"Well of course I'm gonna worry," he frowned.

"They only happen during my dreams," he shrugged. "I wake up and I freak out a bit, still hearing em. But then I just get closer to you and they go away."

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"I told you, I didn't want you to worry!" he pled. "I mean, I'm fucking insane, everyone knows it! I don't need to further the idea by waking you up telling you that I want to curl up in a corner and have myself a freak out!"

"I **want** you to tell me that!" he insisted. "I don't care what time it is! If you're having a bad dream, you fucking wake me up, alright?"

Kyle looked from him back towards the ground. "I'm not doing that."

"Ky, you need to listen to him," Stan said gently. "You do need help in this whether you want to accept that or not."

"I don't want to come crying to someone with a bad dream like I'm fucking five!" he snarled.

"Oh, you'd rather just wake him up by screaming your fucking head off?" Cartman asked.

"Who the fuck asked you, Fatboy?"

Cartman snorted, "Like it or not, I'm a part of this too, Jew."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You don't care one way or the other."

"Yes, Kahl, you're right. I really couldn't care less," he rolled his eyes as well.

"Kyle, he's been beside you this whole time, too," Kenny pointed out.

"Yes. Calling me slashy," he growled.

Cartman shrugged, "Jew, you set yourself up for that one. Maybe if you keep hearing it, you'll keep being reminded of it and you might not try it again just for the sake of trying to get me to stop calling you it."

"Your other name for me is Jew! I haven't converted, now have I?!"

"We're still working on that," he smirked. "One day you'll pray to Jesus, too."

"I'm not worshipping a dude with a talk show! I might as well pray to Oprah while I'm at it if I do that!"

"Hey, watch it," Stan raised his brow. "Don't forget that the three of us are Catholic, Dude."

"I know that, Stan," he sighed irritably. "But why is it only I get yelled at for a religious comment?!"

"I yell at him, too."

"Dude! He either calls me Jew or something that only half sounds like my name!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms into the air. "I don't hear you telling him to stop calling me by my damn religion!"

"Hey, you got something to say, you say it to my face, Jew!"

"See?!"

Stan and Kenny chuckled. "Ky, what the fuck does it matter what he calls you? He's still here," Kenny smiled softly.

"You would take his side," he crossed his arms and pouted.

"Aww, I'd never go against my Jewey," he cooed, kissing his cheek lightly. Kyle looked at him and a tiny smile played across his features.

"Wow...," Stan said softly. "Nothing's ever calmed Kyle down that quickly before," he laughed.

"See?" Kenny asked, wrapping himself around Kyle again. "Told ya this relationship would be good for him," he smiled.

Kyle stiffened slightly in his arms. "Wait...what?"

"Ken convinced me at the hospital that this relationship might cheer you up...and obviously it has," he grinned at the redhead.

"So...wait," he furrowed his brows and looked at Kenny. "You're just here to make me happy?"

Kenny shot his eyes open and looked at him. "Well, yeah...and no. I mean, I'm here because I love you, Dude."

"But you're mainly here to make me happy," he repeated.

"No! Not...I mean, not mainly...but I..." his eyes widened as he pulled away from his grasp and stood up, his face red and his eyes burning into his own.

"That's the only reason you're here?!"

"NO!" he insisted. "Ky, I'm not..."

"Not what?!" he interrupted, placing his hands on his hips. Oh god, he was furious. "I don't fucking believe you!" he shouted.

"Kyle, I'm here because I want to be!" he pleaded. "You being happy is a concern of mine but only because I care!"

"Stan wants me happy, too!" he pointed towards said ebon boy, who was looking at him with mild fear in his blue gaze. "And he cares, too! Is that as much as me and you are?!"

"Kyle, you're being ridiculous!"

"Ridiculous my ass! You're basically telling me that you're only here so I'm not so fucking depressed! Is that why we have sex, too?!" he growled. "Is it just so I'll forget everything for a little bit?!"

Kenny jumped up and stared back at him with a mix of fury and desperation. "Kyle, we 'have sex' because I fucking love you! Not just so you'll have a momentary happiness!"

"Uh huh. How many people have you slept with before, Kenneth?! Did you 'love' them as well?!"

"NO!"

"Then what makes us so damn different?!"

Stan and Cartman stood and backed away from the dueling couple slowly. "We're gonna go," Stan said, a bit shakily.

"Yea, have fun," Cartman muttered as they quickly retreated out the door. The lovers stood still, still locked in each other's angry gaze.

"You wanna know what makes us different?!" Kenny growled. "EVERYTHING!" he shouted, sending Kyle flinching a bit. "The fact that we're fucking together right now after a month, that's what's different! I fucking kiss you and it doesn't always lead to sex! I hold you in my arms when you're crying and don't try to make an excuse to get away from you to avoid getting closer to you! I'm fucking taking you to therapy because I want you to be happy again!" He screeched. He reached down his shirt and took out the pendent for display. "You see this?!" he pointed towards it with a shaking finger. "**THIS** is what's different! Goddammit, Kyle, do you think I just wanted you in bed or something?! I fucking said I love you and I fucking meant it and I still do!" he spit, panting heavily. Kyle just stood there, looking shocked and staring at the pendent swaying in the blonde's hand.

"Goddammit, Kyle...," he panted still, tears welling in his eyes. "Why won't you listen to me? I love you...do you know how many people I've said that to?" Kyle didn't respond. "I've said that to my mother, Kyle. Her and only her. Her and you. I...I don't think you get how much you mean to me," he bit his lip and sniffled. "I don't just...throw those words around like they don't have meaning. I only say that to people I truly care about, and before I found you, the only other person in the world that I could ever talk to was my mom, Kyle. My fucking mom!" he paused as he noticed a few tears stray down the Jew's cheeks, and felt his own as well. "Kyle...why are you crying?"

He sniffed and stared into the blonde's eyes. "Because I'm a fucking jackass," his voice cracked. "I'm...God, sorry doesn't even begin to...," he threw his head down and sniffled some more. He wiped his eyes with his arm and looked back up, but not directly at Kenny. "I'm going for a walk. I think I've fucked everything up enough," he said lowly, heading for the door.

"Kyle...I didn't mean to upset you."

Kyle stopped with his hand on the knob and looked back sadly at him. "I know. But I meant to hurt you. I've gotta get out of here before I completely ruin everything." he walked out and softly shut the door behind him.

Kenny stared at the door in silence. His heart pounding heavily in his chest, tears still scrolling down his face. "_I love you..._," he croaked out in a wavering voice. When he realized that he wasn't getting a response, he fell back onto the love seat and threw his face in his hands, letting out heavy sobs as he imagined each step that Kyle took taking him further and further away from him.

* * *

_A/N: Not every relationship's perfect and these two are no exception =)_

_Gotta love the drama, haha._

_Thanks for R&R-ing as always!_

_And thanks to those of you who checked out 'Latency'! _

_Twas totally awesome of you =D_

_PS: the therapy...omg, it was just like my first session. They gave me a medical sheet which I never fucking understood. Why do they need to know my weight and if I'd had ulcers in the past?!_

_And I got to rant and the doc just sat there and nodded and smiled at me. It pissed me off XD_

_Oh wells._


	31. Epitome

_A/N:...not much to say here. I guess this is just gonna be a lot of drama._

_I have no idea._

_Just enjoy_

* * *

He died.

Again. And again. And again.

Death didn't really phase him like it used to. Everything was nothing more than a mass of blood and fire from behind enemy lines. It was harsh, but true.

'_Dude, are you even trying?!' _a voice screamed at him. Kenny sighed heavily and threw his headset to the other side of the room. He flicked off his Xbox just as he had died for the fourteenth time and plopped down on the couch. He laid back with his head propped on the armrest and just stared blankly at the white ceiling.

He'd never felt like this before...well, he had...but this situation was a bit of a difference. At least this time, he was there. Not like last time, when getting to him was damn near impossible. It had been a few hours since Kyle had walked out of the apartment. No texts. No calls. Nothing.

It was starting to really play on Kenny's nerves. He knew what was out on those streets, as did Kyle...but it didn't mean that Kyle could defend himself if it was needed. Kenny's hand subconsciously went into his pant pocket, stroking the cell phone tucked away in there. He desperately wanted to call him, to make sure he was okay...but to do that would mean that if he were okay, he'd probably be even more pissed at him. Kenny sniffed lightly, unable to cry any longer. He'd done that the first hour Kyle was gone.

He turned onto his side and stared blankly at the TV, making out his reflection in the blackened glass. He looked like a fucking disaster. He felt like it, too. His heart kept beating, but ached each time it took a slow thump. He felt cold and numb, as though someone had ripped the life right out of him. It hurt. God, it hurt so much.

He couldn't even really think of a reason they were fighting. Kyle thought he didn't love him...but why? Maybe he was just feeling particularly moody today...or maybe his bipolar was just really acting up...or maybe he really didn't think that. But that didn't make any sense to Kenny. He took every opportunity available to remind him that he loved him, so why would there be any doubt? Maybe he just didn't understand? Maybe he didn't really love him back in the same way...

But he knew Kyle. Kyle wouldn't have thrown himself to rapists for someone he was just cool with. Jumped into a pond, maybe. But not completely degraded himself and leave himself scarred for life. Kyle wouldn't have ever just randomly had sex with someone. He had too much control over himself in that matter. He always told Kenny that he was going to save it for someone he really loved. And all the times they'd made love...it had to mean something other than just two horny teenagers going at it. They made it special for each other; Kenny always made sure Kyle didn't hurt; Kyle kissed him furiously and gave himself completely into Kenny's control, something he never did for anyone else in any other kind of situation. So it had to mean there was _something_ behind it, right?

Right...Kenny hoped.

He sighed again and curled up into himself. He wanted nothing more than to just hit the bed and not come out until he was back in a world where Kyle would wake up with him in his arms. He didn't care how fucking girly that sounded. He was in love, goddamn it. After several minutes of staring and sniffling, he finally peeled himself up off the couch and glanced at the clock. 8:30. Exactly four hours and 14 minutes since Kyle had left.

God, what a disaster.

They had had their share of arguments. Kenny forgot about Kashrut and bought him a ham sandwich once, Kyle had done laundry and thrown in one of his best white t-shirts with the reds...little stupid things that didn't even matter. They'd made up fairly quickly after those bouts and all was forgive and forget from there on out. But an argument between them had never escalated so far. Perhaps Kenny was being a tad melodramatic. It was bound to happen sometime. Every couple goes through this kind of shit once or twice...or in Stan and Wendy's case, once or twice a week.

And what couple was under more stress than them?! Even if everything that had hurt Kyle could be ignored somehow, they lived fairly stressful lives. Bound to the planet, forced to constantly solve puzzles that in the end really have no benefit for them...it was not a fun task. But Kenny could not be more grateful for the job. He got to spend all his time with a little redhead, he got to watch his amazing brain and strength shine through in the most daunting of obstacles, he got to be so close to him. It was beautiful.

He shuffled into the kitchen and yanked a soda out of the fridge. It would have to do for now, Kyle forbade him from drinking alcohol anymore. He was kinda a mean drunk, so it wasn't really a surprise that he'd done that. But god, he'd kill for a beer. He needed something to make the pain go away. He opted for just watching TV...maybe it would dull his senses like Kyle told him it would. He gritted his teeth as he remembered Kyle once again.

He flipped on the television set and started surfing, looking for something with fiery explosions to help calm his nerves. When he finally found a channel with an exploding car, he threw the remote down beside him and snuggled into the couch. It was so cold without Kyle beside him...he watched as a car sped across a finish line after swerving around the combusting vehicle, casually sipping his soda. He wondered how all those people had so much adrenaline. They must not be missing their Jews. This became rather apparent as some blonde bimbo ran up and threw herself onto the man after he emerged from the car, furiously kissing his cheek and neck.

'_Kyle kisses better than that...' _Kenny thought miserably. Kyle's kisses were gentle and sweet...not meant to pop blood vessels like this chick was doing. Goddammit...he flipped to the next channel.

A break up scene. Fantastic. Next.

Kenny furiously flipped through the stations, each one containing something to do with a relationship and it pissed him off. _'It's official,' _he thought. _'This is too overused as a plot device.'_

He switched off the monitor and just laughed in disbelief. It didn't matter what he did...Kyle was always right there, just waiting to make himself apparent again. What a mess. That beer was sounding all the more appealing.

Before he even caught himself doing it, he reached for his phone and dialed a number. He waited for two rings before it finally picked up.

"_Hey there, Kenny!" _a cheerful voice greeted.

"Hey, Butters," he responded, trying to smile, but not seeming able to do it.

There was a slight pause. _"You okay? You don't sound like your normal self."_

Goddamn the kid was sharp. He took a deep breath, "No...no I'm not okay. I wanted to talk to you because you seem to be the only person with sensible knowledge that I know."

"_Aw, well that's awfully sweet of ya, Kenny. What's up?"_

"Ky and I had a fight...and I don't know what to do," he bit his lip, praying that the small boy had some answers for him.

"_What was it about?" _he questioned.

Kenny ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. "Ky thinks that I don't really love him...that I'm just here to keep him out of the hospital again."

There was a short pause, _"oh boy...," _Butters responded slowly. _"Did you tell him that you do really love him?"_

"Yes, of course!" he replied. "I told him...I fucking poured my heart out...and he cried and walked out of the house."

Another pause. _"Oh boy...," _he repeated. _"Well...maybe he just needed time to think, Ken. Maybe he's more angry at himself or something."_

"Butters, who the fuck need four and a half hours to just think?!"

"_Kyle," _he replied simply. _"Kenny, you're forgetting something. Think about who Kyle is for a minute. Kyle's the type of person who mulls over everything. He thinks through every little detail, and you know that. Is this your first fight?"_

"Our first big one, yeah," he stated softly.

"_Well, there ya go!" _he cried out. _"Kyle's probably just as if not more heartbroken than you and he just needs some time to think! Just give him some more time. If he's not back in an hour or so, call him and make sure he's okay."_

"But what if he gets mad because I interrupted his thoughts or something?!"

"_Just assure him that you were calling to make sure he was okay and that's all. I mean, who could get mad over their lover caring about their well being?"_

"Butters, you have no idea," he groaned. He paused as he heard the lock of the door being turned and his heart sped up. "Butters, I think he's home," he said.

"_Good. Talk it through. Make sure you tell him you love him to the point where he can't deny it, alright?"_

"Butters, you're so fucking awesome," he smiled gently. "I'll talk to ya later."

"_Alrighty. Good luck!" _Kenny smiled again and hung up. He watched as the door opened and the redhead slowly stepped back into the room. Kyle looked up at him and Kenny's eyes widened.

"Kyle, what the fuck happened?" he asked, striding over towards him and cupping his face in his hands, staring closely at a large shiner encompassing his left eye. He didn't care they were fighting, that seemed rather irrelevant at this point.

"Stan hit me," he said lowly.

"WHAT?! Why the fuck would he hit you?!" Kenny growled, his anger slowly rising.

"It's not important as of now," Kyle grabbed his hands and pulled them off his face. "Can we talk?"

Kenny could feel his stomach dropping. He did **not** like the way that Kyle had started this off. "Are...are we breaking up?" he squeaked.

Kyle's eyes widened, but quickly dulled down again. "Only if you want to," he whispered, looking at his shoes sadly. "I would break up with me, too," he shrugged.

"I don't wanna break up!"

He looked back into his blue stare. "Really?" he raised his brow, though Kenny could see some happiness lingering in his gaze.

Kenny nodded, "yes, really. Goddammit, I don't wanna lose you! So...can we just talk?"

Kyle nodded and allowed Kenny to lead him towards the sofa to sit. He took a deep breath and looked up at the blonde. "Look, before you say anything, can I just explain why I'm such a douche?"

"Well, you're not, but go ahead anyways," Kenny shrugged.

"Ken, I...I don't know why the fuck I said that of all things I could have said. It just...the idea of you just being here to keep me out of the hospital...it tore me apart," his voice cracked. "I thought...I thought that this was just a one-sided relationship...and you know me. Once I see something in one light it's almost impossible to tear me into the next." Kenny nodded in agreement. "I know that you love me...and I knew when I was yelling at you, too, but I couldn't fucking shut up. It wasn't until you started talking that I finally realized what I had said...and God, I just felt so horrible....," he looked up at him sadly. "And I still do. If you had said something like that to me...god, I can't imagine how you must feel." he slammed his head into his palms and shook it slowly, sniffling slightly.

After a few moments of silence, Kenny took it as his turn to speak. "You wanna know how I feel?" he whispered. Kyle peeked up at him. "Miserable," he said softly.

"I'm sorry..."

"Don't be sorry, listen," he ordered. Kyle sat up and continued to stare at him. "Kyle, I've never felt so lost before. So you said something you didn't mean...okay. All that matters to me is I didn't completely fuck us over. I know you and you do tend to break into rants," he smiled. "Though I can't say I'm thrilled with the subject matter, the fact that you're back here is all that matters to me."

Kyle just stared at him for a few moments. "I don't deserve you," he whispered, shaking his head slowly.

"And I don't deserve you," he placed his hand over Kyle's and smiled. "But we've got each other, so we might as well just try to take it in strides. We both knew that this wasn't going to be perfect. We've just gotta ride it out together, and I think we can. An occasional fight isn't gonna make or break us, I wouldn't think. But I've gotta know something."

"What?"

"You were saying that...but is that really what you were thinking?"

"I already told you no," he said softly.

Kenny shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I mean, did you just start ranting on that because of some other reason that you're hiding from me?" Kyle was silent, so he pressed on, "Ky, I wanna know what's going on in that head of yours. If something's bugging you, I want to know what it is."

Kyle sighed and leaned back into the couch. "Yeah. Yeah, something's been bothering me," he frowned.

Kenny gently intertwined their fingers. "Kyle, tell me about it...please."

Kyle looked from their hands back up to him. "You know how you said that your mom is the only other person you've told that you love them?"

"Yeah," he nodded.

"Well, that's the same for me, too," he shrugged. "Aside from when we called Wendy after I came back, I've never told anyone that I really love them aside from my family. Well...one mistake completely tore them from my life...and I'm afraid that it'll happen again," he said softly. "I mean...everyday we've been together...I've told myself not to get too attached because I'll end up crashing in the end...and I've failed pretty miserably at that."

"Kyle, I don't intend on leaving you," he assured him.

"Whether or not you intend on it is irrelevant," he sighed. "I mean, do you think my parents intended on kicking me out?"

Kenny frowned, "your relationship with me and the one with your parents is a bit different. Ky, you didn't have a choice at living with them, but you do have a choice with me."

"I feel like I don't," he looked at him with glassy eyes.

"Whaddya mean?"

"When I was out...all I wanted was to be back here...to be with you...I felt really...empty. It was just like last month...only so much worse." he laughed nervously. "Did you know that not once have I wanted to be back with my family? I like living here with you...I feel a lot safer," he smiled gently.

Kenny smirked, "you had a security alarm at your house."

"But not someone there to actually help," he shrugged. "I mean, my dad and Ike couldn't fight for anything. And my mom...well, she's my mom. I was the only one who knew how to throw a punch or demand that someone get the fuck away from us. And you know how shitty my defensive skills are," he grinned sheepishly. "We didn't even get the alarm till we were broken into."

"Your house was broken into?! Holy shit!"

Kyle nodded, "yeah. I thought you knew about that...then again, you may have died before I told you and I just kinda blanked on it," he shrugged again. "It was when we were fifteen."

"That's fairly recent," he raised his brow.

"Yeah," he nodded. "My mom was so fucking paranoid after that, even though the situation wasn't too difficult to deal with."

"What happened?"

"Some guy broke into the house to take our stuff and we all heard him. We all went downstairs to see what was goin' on and there he was. Mom held Ike back and they were like, cowering in the corner. My dad started asking him to 'please leave the house'," he rolled his eyes. "He obviously wasn't going to, so I grabbed Ike's hockey stick and told him to get the fuck out before I went Canadian on his ass."

Kenny burst out laughing, "did he leave?"

"After I actually whacked him with it in the leg he did," he grinned. "But had there not been a hockey stick next to me, who the fuck knows what could've happened? That's why I like being with you. I don't always feel like I have to be the one to solve all the fucking problems, at least not alone," he smiled gently at him.

Kenny wrapped his arm around him, "you're right. And that's why I'm trying to get you to tell me how you feel and all that other stuff that pisses you off. I don't want you to do this alone, I want to help you. I know we're dudes and sharing our feelings isn't really our thing...but I think it should be different in a relationship, ya know?"

"Only if you share, too," Kyle smiled.

"You already know my feelings," Kenny grinned back. "Miserable without you, happy as fuck when I'm with you...also occasionally incredibly horny when I'm with you. And just in love with you. How much is that to comprehend?"

Kyle leaned forward, unsure of his actions. Kenny grinned and leaned as well to meet him, gently caressing his lips with his own. Kenny moaned contently into his mouth. That heavy feeling of despair finally lifted from his chest. The mere magic of the moment was almost enough to bring tears to his eyes. He'd never felt so much relief at once. They reluctantly broke apart and stared at each other, noses touching.

"So...why did Stan hit you?" Kenny asked, gently caressing the boy's cheek. Kyle turned red and he broke his eyes away from Kenny.

"We just got into a fight, that's all."

"Over what?"

He looked back up and gulped, "me."

Kenny blinked before meaning finally sunk in. "Oh, Kyle," he bit his lip as he heard his voice cracking. "No...please no..."

"I'm sorry..." he sighed. "I...I guess old habits die hard. It's not like I can -"

"I know you can't die, but I don't like that you feel this way! I don't want you hurting yourself!" he cried.

"I know you don't," he looked at him sadly. "And...and I don't want me to, either...but I'm just so...I don't even know, Ken. I'm sad, but I'm not."

"How are you both?"

He stared at him with soft eyes. "In the past month, I've been kicked out of my house, lost Stan, thought I lost you, I've died, came back, been beaten up, gotten raped, had to give some dude a blow job as he held a gun to my head, been attacked in our house, gotten a death threat...," he paused and chuckled. "Seems like a lot more when you list it. Anyways, but despite all that shit...you were always right beside me. Every freaking time, there you were. And that makes some of the pain go away. So my feelings aren't quite as....mentally destructive as one might think they would be."

Kenny grabbed him and held him close. "And I'm not leaving anytime soon. I'm gonna be right there when you fall and I'm going to catch you, and if I'm too late to catch you, I'm gonna pick you back up, alright?...But you've got to stay with me...you've got to."

"I will," Kyle promised, nuzzling into Kenny's frame. "I will."

Kenny kissed his curls and laid atop his head and sighed. "You do realize that now I have to kill Stan for hitting you, right?"

"Ken, don't."

"No, I'm not letting anyone get away with hitting you, regardless of their status in your life."

"Kenny, I'm okay, it wasn't that big a deal."

"I'm not stupid Kyle. The fact that he of all people hit you probably hurts like a bitch," he growled and tightened his arms around him. "Where is he?"

"I dunno. Probably home," he shrugged. "But don't get into it, Dude. Everything will be okay."

"No, it won't. Did he apologize?"

"No...he just kinda stormed off."

Kenny growled and ripped his phone off the tabletop, dialing a number and ignoring Kyle's protests.

"_Yeah?" _the boy answered.

"Get your fucking ass over here right now, Marsh before I come and drag you here myself," he growled.

"_Maybe I don't want to, McCormick."_

"I don't give a fuck whether you want to or not, get over here NOW!"

"Kenny...," Kyle whined.

"_Look, Kyle won't fucking listen to me!"_

"That's because all you do is tell him that he's wrong! You won't actually listen to him without blowing up at him and freaking out!"

"_Well maybe if he'd just stop freaking contemplating the knife, we wouldn't have this problem!"_

"Kenny, stop!" Kyle yelled.

Kenny marched on, "he's sick, Stan. You fucking jackass, he's sick! His best friend punching him in the face isn't going help him stop 'contemplating the knife'," he mimicked. "Now get over here and apologize to him!" he demanded.

"_I didn't hit him that hard," _he replied softly.

"Maybe you should see that for yourself, Marsh," he spit. "Shiners take a while to develop, ya know."

There was a pause before Stan finally sighed. _"Fine...I was on my way over anyways...I'll be there after awhile."_

"Good," he snarled before he hung up and looked at Kyle, who was looking back with sad eyes.

"I told you it's not that big a deal," he whispered. Kenny grasped around him tighter.

"Is too," he smirked. He heard Kyle gasp softly and looked up to see a painful wince across his face. "Ky? What's wrong? Where does it hurt?!"

"I'm fine," he forced a smile across his face.

Kenny's frown deepened. "Liar. You're hurt." he reached over and tried to lift up Kyle's shirt, but was met with the boy scurrying towards the opposite end of the couch.

"I'm fine!" he insisted.

"Then take off your shirt."

"What? No!"

"Kyle, show me your back," he demanded. "You said that you would share with me now show me your back!"

Kyle looked at him uncertainly before fingering the edge of his shirt. "It's not a big deal," he whispered.

"If it wasn't, you wouldn't have this much trouble showing me," he said gently. "So please, just let me see." Kyle let out a heavy sigh and slowly tore the fabric off his frame.

"Promise you won't freak if it's bad?"

"No, now let's see." Kyle turned and Kenny felt his stomach lurch. Kyle's back was covered in purple abrasions. He lunged towards the boy and gently rubbed each mark, there had to be at least seven fist sized marks and a few other splotches.

"I'll kill him," he muttered, breathing heavily. "I'll fucking tear out his intestines and strangle him with them!"

"Kenny..."

"I'll rip off his balls and fucking staple them to his forehead!"

"Ken, please..."

"That fucker! Who the fuck does he think he is?!"

"Kenny, enough!" Kyle said firmly.

"Kyle! You look like a domestic abuse victim! Where the fuck did he get the idea that this is gonna help you?!"

Kyle sighed and leaned back into him. "I...I don't know," he sniffed. Kenny sighed as well, bringing his hands up to rub Kyle's shoulders, which were tense and rigid.

"Why would he do that?" Kenny asked, mostly to himself.

"I don't know," he repeated. "Maybe he was trying to knock sense into me or something."

"No, he was trying to beat the ever-loving shit out of you!"

"Stan's never hit me before...maybe he's just as tense as I am about this whole thing."

"I'm fucking tense, too, but I'd never hit you!"

"You're not the violent type," Kyle smiled softly. "Stan's a football player. That's how they communicate with each other."

"No, they scream."

"Well, he did that too if it makes you feel any better."

"No, it doesn't make me feel better!" he exclaimed, rubbing his shoulders more vigorously. "How'd you get him to stop? Looks like he was just going ape-shit on you."

"Cartman intervened," he muttered.

Kenny stopped rubbing. "Cartman? As in Eric Cartman? As in, 'I have mile-long lists of ways to torture Kyle Broflovski' Cartman?"

"The one and only," he nodded.

"Wow. What'd he do?"

"Well, they were outside the apartment waiting for whichever of us stepped out because they knew one of us would leave. Then we all started walking downtown talking, and I started getting all depressed...next thing I know, Stan and me are screaming at each other...then I kicked Stan and he hit me and kept hitting when I was on the ground. Cartman shoved Stan off of me and told him to go home and calm the fuck down. After Stan left, I was just lying on the ground still and Cartman picked me up and helped me walk to his house. We hung around for about two hours before I finally felt fine enough to go back out walking."

"Cartman," he repeated. "Cartman...helped you. Cartman."

"Yes, Kenny, Cartman. I'm just as shocked as you, trust me." Kenny resumed rubbing and shook his head in disbelief.

"Wow. Who woulda thunk it?"

"Certainly not me," Kyle sighed. "Sucks the only view I ever got of him being humane was only because Stan beat the shit out of me," he grumbled.

"He's protective of you," Kenny shrugged.

"...Kenny. He's tried to kill me before."

"Yeah, but he's the only one who can in his own little world. Anyone else who touches you in a violent way is messing with his 'propertah'," he smirked.

"I am not his property," he scowled.

"No, but he thinks you are," he winked.

"That's disturbing," he rolled his eyes, leaning into Kenny's firm touch. Kenny leaned forward and kissed his head.

"Not as disturbing as everything else we've seen," he said.

"True," the Semite mused. He let a few moments of silence pass before looking back up at Kenny again. "Promise me you won't kill Stan?"

"Ky, unless he can pull the best excuse in the world out of his ass, I'm going to hit him at least. How hard I haven't decided. But I'm going to fucking smack him around a bit."

"Kenny, please don't," he pled. Kenny kissed his forehead softly.

"I'm not letting anyone smack you around like that," he stated again. "I don't care if he is your Super Best Friend...in fact, that just makes me want to punch him more."

Kyle sighed, "I know. And...I don't think he really meant to. Stan's always had a temperament problem if his fists are raised...maybe he just momentarily forgot it was me?"

"Yes, because you're so easy to confuse with anybody else," Kenny rolled his eyes.

"Look, I don't know why, but please jus-"

He stopped as they heard a knock on the door. "Looks like we're about to find out," Kenny growled, turning to sit normal on the couch, Kyle following suit. "It's open," he called out.

They watched as they door slowly creaked open, revealing a very frustrated and terrified looking Stan. He stepped in and closed the door, and Kenny noticed a shopping bag in his hand.

"Kyle, look...I'm-" he paused as he observed Kyle's lack of a shirt. "Apparently you're not hurt too bad," he narrowed his eyes.

"I'm not half naked for sex, Stan," Kyle growled softly.

"Then what the fuck are you doing?"

Kenny dropped into a deep scowl. "I'm looking at the reason I'm contemplating killing you, that's what."

"What are you talking about?" he raised his brow. Kenny grabbed Kyle and turned him around, revealing his damaged back to Stan's view. He watched as the boy's mouth dropped along with his bag. "Oh god...," he whispered walking slowly towards them.

"You touch him, you die," Kenny snarled.

"Ken, settle down," Kyle said softly, leaning on the back of the couch still.

"Ky...Jesus...what did I do?!" Stan cried out, rubbing his fingers along the marks. "I didn't think that I hit you that hard!"

"You didn't. I bruise easier than other people, you know that," he winced as Stan pressed down on a marking.

"God...it looks like I tried to fucking kill you!" he squeaked.

"Alright, stop touching him!" Kenny growled as Kyle continued to wince. Stan looked shocked for a moment before backing off slowly and sitting in front of them on the coffee table as Kyle turned around and slid his shirt back over his head.

"Ky...I'm so sorry...," he shook his head in disbelief.

"Why the fuck would you do this, Stan?!" Kenny yelled. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't fucking rip out your liver and feed it to you!"

Stan flinched, "I guess I don't have a reason," he murmured.

"You're not helping your case here any, Marsh," Kenny growled.

"I'm sorry!" he pled.

"Yeah, that's really gonna make this all better," Kenny stated.

"Ken, stop," Kyle said gently.

"Kyle...I'm so...God, why haven't you tried to kill me yet?"

"I'm tired," he grinned sheepishly.

"Stop being nice!" he yelled. "Punch my face in or something!"

"Allow me!" Kenny growled.

"What would that accomplish?" Kyle asked softly. "It's not gonna change anything. I'm not really that mad, Dude. I kicked you first."

"Goddammit, Kyle, this is why we were fighting!" he flailed his arms around. "You need to stop being so forgiving and placing all the blame on you! You're not helping yourself any by doing that!"

Kyle shrugged, "is it really so bad for me to do that? I mean, I'm not gonna accomplish anything by acting like Cartman."

"But...goddamn it, I don't even remember doing that to you," his eyes started watering.

Kyle shrugged once more, "So you're like me. You lose focus when you lose your temper and totally get lost in what you're doing."

"That's no excuse for me fucking hitting you so much," he sniffed.

"My thoughts exactly," Kenny nodded.

Kyle sighed. "Look. Am I happy that you hit me? Fuck no. But crying over it or trying to hit you back or something isn't going to change the fact that it happened. It happened, it's done. Super Best Friends forever, right?" he smiled sweetly at the ebon-haired teen.

Stan blinked at him. "Wow. If I was Cartman, you would have killed me by now...Ky, you're too damn forgiving."

"I'm not gonna stay mad at my best friend because of a stupid fight," he shrugged. "Just like I can never stay mad at Ken when we fight."

"But I...I hit you! And kept going when you were down!"

"Okay, I know. And?"

"And? AND?!" he shrieked. "Goddamn it, Kyle!"

"What?" he snapped, thoroughly offended. "Would you rather I tell you to never talk to me again? To just get the fuck out of my life? Do you want me to let Kenny go ape-shit on your ass like he wants to?!"

"I personally believe that's the best course of action," Kenny raised his hand. Kyle gave him a half-ass glare and he sheepishly lowered his palm.

"I just feel so terrible," Stan mumbled.

"Don't. I'm okay. Kay?"

"But-"

"No. I'm fine. Stop apologizing. Stop freaking out. Nothing's broken," he smiled softly.

"I bet your heart is," he muttered.

Kyle burst out laughing and threw a pillow at him. "I'm the gay one, Stan, not you," he winked. Kenny chuckled lightly and even Stan cracked a smile. "Come on, stop being such a pussy about it," Kyle rolled his eyes. "We're dudes. We're violent retards without consciouses. Comes with the territory."

"Yes, Kyle, you're just so violent and unfeeling," Kenny shook his head amusedly.

"Shut up, Ken," he stuck his tongue out and Kenny snuck his arms around him again.

"Can you...can you heal him?" Stan asked.

"I can speed up the process, but not completely get rid of it. I can only do that with open wounds," he replied.

Stan dropped his head down and sighed heavily. "I...I just wanted to stop you..."

"What?" Kyle asked softly.

Stan looked back up at him with shining eyes. "I wanted to stop you," he repeated, his voice wavering slightly. "You were....god, do you even remember what you were saying?!"

"To be honest, no," he shook his head. I kinda don't remember anything said...just what happened."

"Kyle, if I was talking like you were, you would have been trying to knock me the fuck out, too...I just wanted to get you to stop...I was kinda hoping that if you were out, you'd just wake up and think it was a dream or something...you've got a fucking thick skull, though."

Kyle chuckled lightly, "sorry to be that much of an inconvenience."

"Dude, there's no fucking way in the world I can make up for doing what I did..I'm really sorry."

"Stan, for the last damn time, stop apologizing. I know you," he smiled. "you had good intentions behind what you did so I'm not angry or upset or anything. If anything really hurts it's my pride from having to be helped by Cartman."

"He helped you?" he asked, unbelieving.

He nodded, "yeah. He picked me up and we hung at his house and threw some rocks at some cars," he shrugged. "I calmed down a bit and here we are."

"What's in the bag, Stan?" Ken nodded towards the fallen parcel on the ground.

He followed his gaze and chuckled softly. "Oh yeah, I forgot." He stood from the table and grabbed the bag, tossing it at Kyle.

"You got me more ice cream?" he looked up from the bag and smirked.

Stan smirked back, "yeah. I was hoping for some kind of peace offering...I think I'm gonna have to get you a few more tubs before I can even start to make it up to you."

Kyle waved dismissively. "I'm fine. I've gone through worse. With Kenny's power speeding it up I'll be back to normal in no time. Just chill."

He sighed heavily again and turned his focus to Kenny. "You still gonna kill me, Dude?"

"I haven't decided yet. You need to promise me that you'll never do this again. Because if you do, I will pound your face in, are we clear?"

"Kenneth, down," Kyle commanded.

Stan burst out laughing. "Dude, he just fucking called you Kenneth!"

"Yeah, it's my name, Stanley," he stuck his tongue out at him.

"But that's freaking funny!" he chortled.

"Why?" Kyle raised his brow.

"Ky, no one calls him Kenneth, alright? It's like you're his parent or something."

"My parents called me Shithead," Kenny rolled his eyes. "Besides," he smirked mischievously, "I like it when he calls me that. Makes him sound so authoritative..." he slid closer to Kyle and played with his curls. "Makes me hot as hell," he murmured.

"Aw, dude, not cool!"

"Right. He's on fire," he winked at the grossed out boy. He felt Kyle press his lips against his cheek and turned back to smile gently at him. Kyle smiled back and leaned his head on the blonde's shoulder and nuzzled into him. Kenny's grin grew; he had his Kyle back. For a first fight, it really wasn't that bad. Only one questioned circled around Kenny's mind: was this merely a little bump in the road or would it become a regular occurrence with everything slowly building up into their lives? Oh well, at that point it didn't matter. All that truly held any significance was that they were back together, right where they belonged.

* * *

"Ya know, Stan was right," Kenny said quietly as they sat in the kitchen together, eating a late dinner.

"'Bout what?"

"You're too damn forgiving," he smirked, leaning back and chomping on his food. "Any normal boyfriend would have told me to make my own damn dinner," he laughed.

Kyle raised an amused brow. "Two problems with that statement. One: I'm not mad. Two: It's not like I really cooked anything. I just ordered the damn Chinese."

"Yeah, but it was thoughtful, nonetheless," he smiled. "I do love it when you take care of me," he smirked.

Kyle rolled his eyes in good humor. "Well God knows someone needs to."

"You make such a great little housewife," he teased. "You cook for me, clean with me, and you're just oh so pretty."

"Ya know, you were doin' okay till ya said that," he quirked his brow.

"Aw, you still love me and you know it."

"True. But still, I'm not your housewife."

"Housejew?"

"...hm."

Kenny chuckled, "can't decide which one you like better, hm?"

"Well it's not my fault you gave me pretty crappy options there, Ken," he frowned as he shoved some rice into his mouth.

"Aw, come on," Kenny smiled. "You know I don't mean you're a girl. I just think you're beautiful, is that so wrong?"

"Would you be happy if I called you beautiful?" he asked.

"Never thought about it. But I don't give a flying crap what you call me so long as it doesn't lead to a breakup."

"You'd break up with me over a name?" Kyle leaned his head into his palm.

Kenny shrugged, "I doubt it, but you never know with either of us. We both seem to have relatively short tempers."

"What on Earth could I possibly call you to lead you to want to leave me?" he asked.

Kenny looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "I dunno...call me a cheater and we may have some problems," he looked at him firmly.

"Kenny, I would never accuse you of cheating on me," he swore. "...unless you like, come home with a condom on your head or something. Then we may need to talk a bit."

He chuckled, "I would never cheat on you. I've experienced life without you for five hours today and it was the worst experience of my life. Trust me, I would not make that kind of mistake."

Kyle smiled sweetly at him, "good to hear."

"Would you ever cheat on me?"

Kyle's smile dropped off instantly. "Jesus Christ, of course not!"

He smirked, "just checkin', Love. I know you wouldn't."

"I would hope so!" he stated, his face still looking slightly scandalized. Kenny chuckled and stood, walking over behind Kyle and draping his arms across his small shoulders.

"I know you wouldn't," he repeated, nuzzling his face into his. "You're too sweet to do that."

Kyle leaned back into him and sighed. "Ken, you know how to sweet talk your way out of anything, don't you?"

"Not really. You still make me do homework," he pouted.

Kyle laughed and pecked his cheek. "I just wanna make sure that you get a decent education. A high school diploma isn't as much as one could hope for, but it's better than nothing."

"Yeah, I know. You're just looking out for me," he smiled.

"Of course," he grinned back.

"Sooo...." Kenny started swaying him back and forth.

"So?"

"So...we had a fight today."

"Yes we did," Kyle nodded his head slowly, his brow quirked in confusion.

"We worked it out though, right?"

"Well, yeah."

"Cool....," he smiled devilishly at him. "Can we have some hot make up sex?"

Kyle chuckled and shook his head. "Kenny, you amaze me sometimes."

"You amaze me all the times," Ken smirked, leaning down and locking lips with him. Kyle turned in his chair and grasped the back of his neck, mashing their lips closer into each other. Kenny pulled back slightly and licked his lips. "You taste like Chinese."

"So in Wong's dialect, that means I taste like shit, right?" he winked.

"Don't care what you taste like, so long as I'm the only one tasting it," he grinned maliciously.

"Of course," he smiled sweetly as Kenny lunged back forward towards his face. He gently pulled Kyle up slightly from his seat and then kicked the chair away from him, causing him to fall backwards. He pulled back a little and panicked slightly as he fell and Kenny grabbed the back of his head and gently lowered him to the floor, leaning on top of him, still holding his mouth tightly against his.

"Told you I'd never let you fall," he murmured.

"I know," he replied softly. Kenny pulled back and looked into his darkened eyes and smiled. Kyle brushed some hair out of the boy's face and returned his expression. Kenny leaned back down and slipped his tongue into the Jew's mouth, slowly grinding their hips together as he went. Kyle purred softly and Kenny swallowed the cute sound eagerly, working his way down towards Kyle's pants button.

Kyle broke off a bit and gasped as Ken worked his way down to his collarbone. "Dude, in the kitchen?!" he hissed.

"Mhmm," he licked the skin tenderly. "You're my favorite treat."

"But...the...the germs...," he trailed off as Kenny chewed on his collarbone.

"We'll mop later," he murmured, unbuttoning the boy's jeans and sliding them down his smooth thighs. Kyle skillfully kicked them off and returned Kenny's head towards his and took hold on his lips again. Kenny ran his fingers over the growing member repeatedly, feeling as Kyle's hips eagerly jerked into his hand. He ripped off the boys boxers and smiled as he felt the Jew's face burning with that passionate blush. He felt him trying to reach for his pant button but kept rising his hips to keep away his hands, only to firmly grind back into him, his coarse denim scraping roughly against Kyle's soft flesh.

"Goddammit, take off your pants," Kyle frowned.

"Not till you're done," he said softly, brushing his lips chastely. He squeezed Kyle's balls in his palm, listening to his soft moans excitedly. He lowered himself down, lying in-between Kyle's legs and teasing his hardened cock with his fingers, tickling up and down the blazing skin. He kissed his way up the skin and hungrily engulfed him, smiling as Kyle let out a loud, sensuous moan and bucked his hips softly. Kenny softly twirled his tongue around it, relishing in its flavor. He took both his hands and gently pumped on the bottom of the shaft, welcoming Kyle's surprised and passion-enflamed gasps with open ears. As time passed, he steadily increased his pace, listening to Kyle's breathing speed and his body tense more and more. Kyle's whimpering became more frequent and he tore his lips of of Kyle, fluidly running his hand up and down the hard member. He pushed himself up towards Kyle and stared into his deep eyes and looked down on him saucily.

"That feel good?" he asked.

"N-no sh-shit," he panted. Kenny smirked and leaned towards his head, resting just in front of his ear.

"Then show me," he dared. "Come for me." Kyle let out a louder whimper, his hips jerking uncontrollably into Kenny's shifting hand. "Come on, Kyle. Let go. Come for me," he demanded. Kyle did indeed, releasing with a euphoric moan into his boyfriend's patient palm. "Atta boy," he nodded, catching the release and waiting for Kyle to stop. When he did, he ran his fingers through the soft curls as he licked his fingers clean.

Kyle caught his breath and smiled up at the blonde. "Your turn?"

Kenny smirked. "You really have to ask?"

Kyle sat up and tackled him, kissing his neck furiously. Kenny's head fell back and allowed Kyle to kiss deeper and deeper into his skin as he unbuttoned the blonde's jeans and moved for a moment to let him kick them to join Kyle's discarded pants on the far side of the tiles. As Kyle continued to nibble at his throat, Kenny smirked, licking the palm of his hand and lubing up his throbbing member. After he finished, he grabbed Kyle's sides and moved him in position above his body. He cupped the Jew's chin and pulled him back up to meet his lips.

"Hey," he murmured. "question."

"What?" he panted into his mouth.

"You like kabobs?"

Kyle pulled back and blinked at him. "What the?" Kenny smiled maliciously and grabbed his hips and pulled him straight down onto his cock. Kyle let out a surprised yelp and grasped the sides of Kenny's ribs to steady himself from the sudden intrusion. "Jesus Christ," he panted. "Some warning would have been nice!"

"Yeah, but not nearly as fun," Kenny grinned. Kyle winced and sat up fully as Kenny grasped his hips in his palms. He started guiding the Jew up and down his shaft as Kyle grabbed his arms for some balance. He shut his blue eyes for a moment and breathed shakily before looking back at his bouncing lover. He couldn't hold back licking his lips, seeing the lust-induced face upon the boy, his mouth partially open for his moans to gently escape his soft lips. The hard tile of the kitchen slapped coldly against his skin as he began bucking his hips to match Kyle's rhythm.

"Holy shit...," Kyle gasped, biting his lip and looking down on Kenny's face hungrily.

"Love me?" Kenny grinned, still slamming into him.

"You need to ask?"

"No way...," he panted. "Nothing but love could feel so. Fucking. Good," he thrust harshly into Kyle's bowels, prompting a throaty gasp to escape.

"Goddamn," he looked down at him, wincing slightly.

"You okay?"

"God...it feels so much bigger like this," he laughed in broken breaths. Kenny smirked and hit him harder a few more times. Kyle yelped and flung his head back to try to get his hair out of his eyes, whimpering lightly. "Ah, God!"

"He's not here, quit saying his name and not mine," Kenny smiled jokingly, still guiding the boy's hips and thrusting into him.

"Ah...ahhh....Go-Kenny" he breathed out.

"There we go...just you and me, Kyle..." The boy just whimpered in response, slamming down into Kenny's golden skin. Kenny felt himself tensing after awhile, still staring up at the redhead. "Ah, fuck," he moaned, quickening his pace and feeling as Kyle clamped his muscles down around him.

"Come on, Kenny," Kyle taunted, mimicking him from earlier. Kenny looked up at him and smirked. "Come on...you need to..."

"Heh...," he panted, "I've got endurance. You can't make me go on command, silly Kyle."

"Wanna bet?" he raised his eyebrow in challenge.

"Talk dirty to me," he smiled. Kyle's expression changed into one of amusement.

"You like this, don't you?" he whispered over the sound of colliding skin. Kenny nodded and bit his lip. "You love feeling me all around you," he murmured softly. "I'm yours Kenny. All yours for the taking." Kenny let out a high pitched cry, feeling himself nearing his edge rather quickly. "Come on, Ken. Show me that you love me. I want to feel you explode inside of me. Please."

"I...I..." he stammered, battling his mind for any comprehensive statements and coming up short.

"Come inside me," he smirked down at the struggling blonde. "Please. I need you. Hard and fast. Please...," he smiled wider as Kenny shot his head back and twitched uncontrollably.

"Ah...Ahh fu- KYLE!" he exploded harshly inside of the Jew, panting heavily as Kyle moaned at the feeling of his warmth cascading into his body. Kenny trembled as his body tried to come back to reality. Kyle pulled himself off of him and sat off to the side of Kenny, gently stroking his head.

"Did I do good?" he asked innocently.

Ken looked at him and smiled widely. "Holy fuck did you ever. Where'd you learn to talk like that?"

"You," he laughed softly. "You talk in your sleep, ya know."

"Why are you listening to me when I sleep?"

"Because I can't always sleep and I like listening to you mutter my name. Makes me feel special," he smiled softly.

"Creeper," he smirked, sitting up slowly, still breathing heavily.

"I know," he giggled. "But I can't help it," he shrugged. "You're like a fucking addiction, I swear to God."

"You mean like not being able to get you out of my head and thinking about you and your hot body every fucking minute of the day? Yeah, I think I have the same issue." Kyle smiled and pecked him on the lips, leaning against his clothed chest.

"Ken?"

"Hm?"

"Are you still upset about earlier?"

Kenny cupped his chin and pulled his head up to meet his vision. "Kyle, I'm not gonna lie to you, what you said hurt. I mean, it hurt more than anything that's ever killed me in the past....but you know that what you said wasn't true and I know you too well for your own good. You just said that to hide what you were really thinking. I'm just glad everything's finally getting back on track," he smiled. "I love you."

"I love you too," he sniffed at him happily. Kenny smiled wider and pulled him close into his chest. "What time is it?" the redhead murmured sleepily.

"'Bout midnight. Bedtime," Ken stated getting to his feet and helping Kyle up as well. He grabbed a dishtowel and threw it on the floor, swabbing up the release that escaped onto the tile. "Go get cleaned up," he directed at Kyle. "I'll take care of this and I'll be there in a minute."

Kyle nodded and gathered up their discarded pants and carried them into the bedroom. Kenny smiled to himself as he continued to clean. Kyle. His Kyle. That argument was a big bowl of stress over nothing. They were fine. No real hurt feelings and the only person who caused any physical harm wasn't even directly in the actual fight. And Kyle forgave him and was healing fairly quickly anyways, so it really wasn't that big a deal.

He finished up and walked into the bedroom, greeted by a pair of boxers flying at his head. Kyle smirked at him as he pulled on his own clothes. Kenny pulled on the shorts and laid back on the bed. Kyle joined him and they cuddled in close to each other, staring up at the ceiling.

"Long day," Kenny commented quietly.

"Longest. Ever," Kyle concurred with a soft laugh.

"Yeah. But we made it through," he smiled, twirling one of Kyle's curls around his finger. "I think we're gonna be okay."

"I hope so," he mused.

"Are we always gonna have sex like that if we fight?" Kenny asked.

Kyle looked at him and smirked. "We don't need a fight to have sex, Ken."

"I know, but come on. Fiery passion of hatred spun with lust? Your face starts to match your hair," he laughed.

"Who asked you?" he stuck his tongue out at the teasing blonde.

"No one," he sighed, wrapping his arms around the Jew and pulling him close, nuzzling into his hair. "Let's not fight like that again."

"It's bound to happen sometime, Ken."

"I know...but let's try not to."

"Ha, deal."

"Night Ky," he yawned.

"Night Kenny."

* * *

He felt some movement beside him, but paid little mind. He snuggled deeper into his pillow, breathing steadily and trying to regain his completely unconscious state. He felt the temperature drop just slightly as the bed moved a bit. He moaned softly and tried to delve himself deeper into the soft cushion under his head. He felt a harsh gust of chilly air blow over him, causing his curiosity to spike. He very slowly creaked his eyes open, finding himself staring at a glowing 4:46. He shifted slightly, noticing that a certain someone was not beside him. Kenny sat up slowly and tried to adjust to the dark and bleary surroundings.

"Ky?" he croaked out. He turned towards the balcony door, noticing it was cracked open. He swung his feet out of the bed and with a heavy yawn started trudging to the door. He opened it and found Kyle sitting on the cement, staring into the sky.

"You okay?" he asked. Kyle shot his head around in shock.

"Did I wake you?"

"Nah, I was kinda restless anyways. What's up?" he asked, his consciousness finally setting in.

Kyle just shrugged. "I dunno. I couldn't sleep and I thought that it might be nice to be out here," he smiled softly.

"It's fucking cold out here. You're gonna get sick again," he lectured.

"Heh, I think being sick would be the least of my problems," he smirked. "I'm okay, go back to bed."

Kenny plopped down beside him, "nah. I don't like that bed without you. Too big and too Jew-less." Kyle chuckled lightly and leaned against him. "So why can't you sleep?" he asked, wrapping his arms around his narrow shoulders.

He sighed heavily. "I had another dream."

"Figured. What was it about?"

"Everything," he muttered.

"So...McCarthyism was involved?"

He laughed softly, "okay, so not everything."

"Tell me what happened," he said, pulling him in closer and leaning them back against the brick wall.

"We...we broke up," he started.

"I already hate this dream," Kenny grumbled.

"Yeah. I did too. Anyways, we were apart...then all of a sudden I couldn't see...I was kidnapped or something, I have no idea what really happened. But something knocked me over...and I hurt a lot."

"Where?"

"Everywhere. It wasn't just another rape dream, ya know? It was like, torture. Like someone was fucking holding me down and making sure that every freaking part of me was harmed in some way...I don't know. It was weird."

Kenny stared at him sadly. "I'm sorry, Ky."

Kyle looked up at him and quirked his brow, "about what? Not like you could do anything about it. Maybe I just have an overly sadistic mind or something..." he sighed and grasped Kenny's hand, looking at their fingers melded together. "It was just a dream though." Kenny bit his lip, realizing he was just trying to convince himself of that fact.

"No one's gonna hurt you like that," he lifted their hands and kissed the frail one on top. "I promise."

"I know, not if you're around," he smiled back. "Sorry I woke you up."

Kenny waved dismissively, "Dude, I told you. If you can't sleep, you wake me up, alright? I _want_ to be a part of this. Because nothing bothers _my_ Jew without having to deal with me."

"So next time me and Cartman fight you'll beat him up for me?"

"If you so desire," he smirked.

"Sweet. I'll hold you up to that one day," he grinned. Kenny laughed and pulled him in a bit closer.

"As much as I love snuggly time, we could do this on the bed or couch where it isn't three degrees, ya know."

Kyle chuckled a bit. "Alright, alright. Come on, let's try to sleep again," he stated, starting to stand with Kenny still wrapped around him. As they got to their feet, Kenny pulled him to the edge of the balcony and tightened his grip around the small frame.

"This shit hole of a town looks a lot better up here," he mused.

"Different perspectives change everything."

"Yeah....yeah they do," he let his gaze fall towards the oblivious Jew. He lightly kissed his curls and looked back down towards the city. Something caught his eye and he smirked, "well, well, well."

"What?" Kyle asked. He pointed down towards the walkway across the lawn of the complex. Kyle broke into a smile, "Ah. That's what."

"How old do you think he is?" he asked, leaning his face into his palm atop the railing.

"I dunno...twenty...two?"

"I was thinking twenty four, so we're probably about right."

"Why do you think he's stuck?"

"Hm...he...lost his comb on a subway because he threw it at someone talking about McCarthyism."

"Oh get off your damn soapbox," he laughed.

Kenny smirked and squeezed him. "Nah, I wanna try that passionate speech thing you tend to have goin' on. Now come on, let's get our shoes and go get him." He started leading the boy back into the house, but Kyle planted his feet on the ground, staring up into the sky.

"I'll be there in a second...," he half whispered.

Kenny looked at him for a moment before releasing his hold on him. "I'll get our stuff." He walked into the room and grabbed his and Kyle's shoes. He fumbled getting his on, but once he succeeded, he walked out towards Kyle, still in the same position, and placed his shoes down beside him. He glanced down towards their spirit, who was still just sitting on the ground, then he looked back towards his lover. "Ky, are you alright?"

He was silent for a moment. "We...there's just so many," he shook his head slowly. "God, Ken, there's just so many...," he looked down at the blonde with eyes glittering in the downpour of silver moonlight. "Do you think we'll ever get them all?" Kenny paused for a moment before realizing his meaning. He snaked his arms back around him and kissed him lightly.

"I dunno," he murmured. "I doubt it. But...even if we don't, at least...at least we're still together, right?"

"Yeah...we're the epitome of 'together forever'," he smirked gently.

Kenny snickered and pulled him in closer. "I personally wouldn't want it any other way."

* * *

_A/N: Apologies for the long wait for an update. I've been a bit...really stressed. Like, Kyle-leveled stressed, so writing was not really at the top of my list at that point._

_Anyways, yes. They had a fight. But it resulted in hot makeup smex. What more could one ask for? Aside from a stripper Kyle...I would totally ask for that XD_

_...Course I had him talk like a dirty slut, haha. I personally love that scene, how about you? XD_

_Kays, thanks for everything cuz you're awesome._

_PS: I told you all that the smex would pick up after the rape was over, but you didn't believe get it like every chapter now. Don't you not believe me, mortals! I hold the mighty power of Kenny's sex drive in the palms of my perverted hands! Rawr!_

_...God, I tend to act like a fucking retard when I'm depressed. Apologies once more -_-'_


	32. Hypothetical

_A/N: Hi again =D_

_New case. Yays. Maybe some other stuff. Dunno =)_

_Enjoy_

* * *

_Anthony Georgian. Birthdate: February 17th, 1963 Deathdate: June 3rd, 1986. Reason for being stuck:_

Kenny stared at the blank line in the notebook and bit his lip. A day had passed so far and nothing more had been revealed about the man lounging on the chair next to him and Kyle on the couch. Their visions hadn't been all that revealing. Kyle merely saw him die, a tragic death in a house fire. Kenny merely saw...nothing. It was just blank for him. He just stood there, looking back and forth, scratching his head in the emptiness.

Anthony was a twenty three year old man who was originally from right outside of Houston. He had a wife and two kids, both of them boys. He had died in a fire in his two story house, luckily his family had escaped just before hand, but while trying to save their dog, he had gotten blocked in by a support beam falling in front of the door. Kenny leaned his head onto his shoulder and sighed. Though the tale of the man told a good deal, it didn't do much to aide his cause.

"Sorry I'm causing ya so much stress, Kid," Anthony laughed. Kenny just smiled softly at him.

"Nah, it's not you. Just the situation you happen to have placed us into," he motioned towards the redhead slumbering on the opposite end of the sofa.

"Sorry," he shrugged. "I just don't know how to help you two."

Kenny sighed and leaned his head back onto the couch. "It's fine. We'll figure it out. Ky can think of something."

"And you can't?" he raised his brow.

"I'm not the smart one, I'm just the perv," he smirked.

Anthony chuckled, "well, that happens. So, what are we up to today?"

"Trying to figure out why you're still here, I guess," he shrugged.

"Ooh, exciting," he rolled his eyes with a grin. "Don't you two have a social life?"

"Nah. Ky has a job but he doesn't have any hours for awhile," he shrugged. "Our friends are all in classes, so ya know. Can't do much."

"Lots o' fun, hm?"

"Hey, I don't mind just hangin' with Ky. He's pretty awesome to be around."

"Oh yeah, seems like he's just the life of the party," he smirked, gesturing towards his gentle snoring.

"He's exhausted. The kid had a lot to do at work today."

"Heh, whatever you say," he stood and stretched. "Well, I'm bored outta my mind. Mind if I step out a while?"

"Where the fuck are you going?"

"Hey, I came here as a tourist and I want to see some stuff before I actually pass on. So, I'll be back after a bit?"

Kenny waved him away, "fine, fine. Just make sure you're back or else I'm comin after ya, got it?"

"I'm terrified," he rolled his eyes. "See ya after while." He sauntered away through the door. Kenny sighed and looked at his Jew, curled up on the end of the couch, his arms folded underneath his head on the arm, his breathing slow and even. He slid a little closer and stared closer at him, smiling as he observed the cute expression overshadowing his features. His mouth was slightly open and his fists were curled loosely, his shoulder twitching occasionally.

"Ky?" he whispered. He slid his hand smoothly up the boy's side feeling his muscles soften slightly. "Come on, Dude. Wakey wakey."

Kyle moaned softly and curled further into himself. Kenny leaned forward over top him and gently kissed his ear a few times. Kyle moaned again and tried to close off his ear. "K...Kenny...," he murmured softly.

"Come on, time to get up," he muttered, still nibbling on him.

"Is Anthony gone?" he mumbled.

"Not yet."

"Well wake me up when he is," he sighed, turning over a bit, his torso meeting with Kenny's.

The blonde laughed and pecked his nose, "you wish it worked that way. Now come on, Sleepy head. Don't make me ravish you just to get you up."

Kyle opened his eyes and looked deep into Kenny's. "I'm sure you'd enjoy that too much."

"Damn straight I would," he smirked. "I love me some hot Jew in the morning."

Kyle looked over at the clock. "Too bad it's four, Dude."

"Morning, evening, what the fuck ever. I love me some Jew all the time. Better?"

He chuckled softly. "Sure, why not?...why are you on top of me?"

"'Cause you're sexy," he smiled, nuzzling into his chest.

"You're also about twenty pounds heavier than me. Off with you."

Kenny looked up at him and pouted, "ya know, you never tell me to get off of you during sex."

"That's because you're not lying on top of me completely!" he protested.

"But...but...you're comfy!"

"Are you calling me fat?"

Kenny laughed and buried his face into the boy's chest to wait until his laughter subsided slightly. "I told you you're like my little housewife. Actually asking if I called you fat? Come on Ky," he grinned.

Kyle poked his head pointedly. "Ya know, one good move of my knee and your balls are gonna be inert."

"You wouldn't do that to me."

"How do ya figure?"

"You love me and my sex ability too much," he smirked. Kyle just rolled his eyes with a small grin.

"But I don't love you for the sex, you perv. Now get the hell off of me before I call Stan to drag you off of me."

"You really think he'd do that?"

"I think he'd be more than happy to. He's still a bit freaked over us."

"That's Stanny for ya," he laughed, pushing himself off of the boy. He held out his hand and helped him sit up.

"Mm, with the way you keep throwing yourself on me he has good reason to act like he does."

"Oh don't pretend you don't absolutely love it."

He snickered softly, "alright, so I don't mind it that much." He looked around the room and frowned, "where's Anthony?"

"He went out tourist-ing. He'll be back eventually. So, what are we doin' while we're on our own for awhile? Sex?"

"Ken, does your libido ever die down?"

"Not so long as you're around, my dear," he grinned.

"Oh lucky me," he rolled his eyes, I get to deal with your constant sex drive for the rest of eternity."

"Aw, come on. My sex drive makes you a very happy Jew and you know it." Kyle shook his head amusedly.

"Ken, you're impossible."

"But you wuv me anyways," he grinned.

Kyle opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the phone blaring it's tone. He looked over in annoyance and reached over the back of the couch to grab it.

"What?" Kenny smirked. What mannerisms he held when he was annoyed. "Ike?" his expression brightened quickly. "Hey, Dude. Yeah. How are you?..." Kenny smiled as he saw Kyle's eyes lighten significantly. "I'm fine. Yeah. Yeah, I'm doing just fine, Ike, calm down," he laughed softly. "You okay?..." his expression dropped a bit. "A...a fight? Why? About what?...O-okay, dude. Come over to the apartment, okay? We'll talk it over. Yea...582 at Mountain View. Ike, stop worrying, we'll talk this over. Okay? No, no I'm not mad at you. Okay, just come over. Soon as possible. Alright. See ya soon." he clicked off the phone and stared blankly at the table.

"Who's fighting?" Kenny asked. Kyle just continued to stare at the furniture.

"My parents," he muttered. "He wouldn't tell me what about over the phone, he said they were too close and that they might hear him. He'll be over soon," he looked back up at the blonde confusedly.

"Huh. Well...why do you think they're arguing?"

"Probably over me," he muttered. "Trying to decide the best hit man to take me out so I don't destroy Judaism beliefs or something."

"Well...that kinda isn't going to work," he smirked.

"Yeah, lucky me," he rolled his eyes.

"Nah, they're probably just fighting over your mom burning the gefilte fish or something retarded like that."

Kyle sighed heavily, "I doubt it. Oh well. We'll figure it out sooner or later. Want some food?"

"Fuck yes," he smiled.

"Whatcha in the mood for?"

"I dunno...Kabobs?" he smiled devilishly.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Dude, stop thinking with your dick for just once in your life?"

"Please?" he batted his lashes. He viewed Kyle's unamused expression and broke into soft laughter. "Okay, okay. Later. Your brother may not appreciate coming over and seeing you coming over," he winked.

Kyle shook his head, "I guess the idea of tact is a foreign concept to you."

"Heh, sorry. Force of habit. I don't really care about food...you choose."

He leaned his cheek into his palm against the back of the couch and looked at him thoughtfully. "I have a box of Mac and Cheese in the cabinet," he shrugged. "Feeling up to something simple?"

"Sure. I'll make it if you want," he smiled.

Kyle smirked at him, "How about we make it together?"

"Don't trust me, huh?"

"Not in this area I don't." He stood and held out his hand and pulled Kenny to his feet. "Come on, let your damn wife teach ya how to not burn a house down," he winked.

Kenny smirked as he stood and yanked him closer towards him and pecked his lips. "And what a beautiful wife I have." Kyle smiled back and they walked hand in hand into the kitchen.

"Okay, get the pot from the cabinet," Kyle directed. "I'll get the stuff ready." Kenny nodded and did as he was asked. He threw the pot onto the stove top and watched as Kyle rummaged around the fridge. "Fill it with water and boil it, Dude," he ordered, his nose still buried in the icebox.

"Bossy, bossy, bossy," he teased. He filled up the pot and set the stove on high, letting out a large yawn.

"Didn't know cooking with me was so boring," he commented walking up beside him.

"Nah, watching you keeps me entertained." he pinched his ass and prompted a small squeak to escape from his mouth.

"Goddammit, Kenny! No molesting me in the kitchen!"

"You weren't saying that two nights ago," he raised his brow. Kyle gave him a deadpan expression.

"Okay. No molesting me in the process of making food, alright?"

"Oh, fine. I thought that love was supposed to be spontaneous," he crossed his arms.

"Our love is plenty spontaneous," he rolled his eyes. "You just have a few inappropriate moments."

"I've always been like that and you knew that when you and I got together."

"Yes, but I was hoping you'd settle down a bit," he smirked, turning his attention towards the water.

"Nah. Things are a lot more fun when you're a raging hormonal machine."

Kyle snickered lightly, "then you must just be having a blast twenty four seven since you can't seem to keep your hands off of me."

Kenny twirled a copper curl around his finger. "Damn straight. Why would I want to? I'm damn proud that your fine ass is mine and mine alone."

"I think I have some ownership in it as well," he quirked his brow.

"Fine. I share with you. But only I can relish in it's beauty," he smirked.

Kyle shook his head again. "Ken...something's seriously wrong with you," he chuckled.

"You know, they say that a watched pot never boils."

"And a boyfriend that you never watch ends up watching your ass nonstop," he retorted. "Now get me a quarter cup of milk before I smack you."

"Ooh, somebody's frisky today," he smiled, walking over to grab a measuring cup from the cabinet.

"Oh, yes, of course," he muttered sarcastically. "Nothing gets me goin' more than boiling noodles."

"If that's the case we're having pasta for breakfast, lunch, and dinner so I decree," he smiled widely.

"'So you decree?'" he asked, dumping the pasta into the water. "So are you declaring yourself king of the castle or what?"

"Nonsense. This is our relationship, not mine. I just like it when you're in the mood, that's all," he winked as he handed off the milk.

He chuckled, "I would say that I like it when when you're in the mood too, but since that's all the time, you might get too many ideas."

"True," he mused. They turned to look out the inlet window as they heard the doorknob being jingled around before a key was slid in. Kenny noticed Kyle shake slightly with wide eyes. He pushed him back behind him and grabbed a knife from beside him, slowly edging his way around the corner with Kyle trailing him a bit hesitantly. "Stay back," he muttered, pushing him away. Kyle did as he said and stayed behind, holding onto the wall and looking around the corner fearfully.

"Dude, be careful," he stated shakily. Kenny looked back and nodded at him. As the door opened he raised the knife and held his other in the air in front of him, shaking a bit heavily.

"What the fuck?! Ken, what's wrong?!" Stan shouted, backing up quickly from the door. Kenny and Kyle both let out large sighs.

"We...we thought you weren't...oh Jesus...," he dropped the knife to his side and let out a shaky breath.

"Jesus, McCormick, simmer down," Cartman laughed, stepping through the door with Stan following behind.

Kenny looked back behind him towards Kyle, who was trembling harshly behind the wall still, his eyes shut and head leaning against the frame. He sniffled lightly and Kenny rushed to his side, throwing the knife down on the counter and throwing his arms around him. "It's just Stan and Cartman," he whispered, swaying him back and forth.

"I-I kn-know...," he sniffed, clasping him back.

Stan and Cartman's faces fell drastically. "Kyle, we didn't mean to scare you," Stan assured him, speeding over to his side. "I'm sorry, we'll knock from now on, I swear."

Kyle just sniffed louder and dug himself into Kenny's shirt. "Dude," Kenny started, stroking Kyle's hair. "It's fine that you just wanna walk in, but next time, at least shout that it's you, alright?"

"Y-yeah, I will...sorry, Dude," he mumbled, looking down at Kyle.

"Shh...it's okay...it's okay...," Kenny muttered desperately, trying to settle the shaking redhead down. Kyle let out a heavy sob and fell downwards. Kenny fell with him and leaned the boy into his frame, still swaying him.

"Jesus Christ...," Cartman muttered. "Jew, calm down. No one's hurting you."

"I...I know....," he sobbed.

"Hello?" a voice called into the room. Stan, Kenny, and Cartman looked over to see Ike standing in the doorway. The young Canadian's eyes widened as he saw his older brother broken down on the floor. "Holy shit...Kyle, what the fuck happened?!"

"We'll explain in a minute," Kenny muttered. He looked up towards Stan. "Stan, we have a pot of boiling water on the stove. Go turn it off, will ya?" Stan nodded and headed into the kitchen. Kenny turned his attention back to the Jew. "Ky, come on, stand up. It's okay." Kyle sniffled and allowed Kenny to pull him upright, still not releasing his hold on the blonde's shirt.

"I'm...I'm s-sorry," he sniffed.

"It's alright...it's just people we trust. It's gonna be okay. I told you I'd protect you," he murmured.

"I know...I know..."

"Come on, we'll calm ya down," he said soothingly, gently tugging him towards the bedroom. He turned back as he was walking. "Stan, Cartman, fill him in," he nodded towards Ike as he pushed Kyle into the room and shut the door behind him. He led him to the bed and sat him down, pulling him in to hug him tightly once again.

"Kenny, I'm sorry," he cried.

"Don't be sorry. It's understandable you're like this. Those idiots should have known better than to just come barging in like that."

"It's not their fault," he sniffed, pulling away and looking into Kenny's eyes. Kenny's heart sank as he observed the strong glisten accompanying the emeralds. "I just need to stop being so fucking paranoid."

"No, it's fine to feel like you do. I would too, trust me."

"No you wouldn't..., you're brave. I'm a fucking coward."

"No, you're not. You do more and have been through more than any of them could possibly ever imagine, alright? You're a lot braver than them and a hell of a lot more than me. Look, with what happened with Mitch...it's only natural that you'd be a bit freaked by our door just randomly being opened, okay? Don't you feel bad because of that."

"God, now Ike's gonna think I'm a fucking lunatic...," he dropped his head into his palms and shook it back and forth slowly.

"Stan and Cartman are explaining what happened, he's not gonna judge you for that. The kid's a Broflovski, too. He's got the smarts," he smiled. "He won't think you're crazy for acting like this in a situation like that, alright?"

"I...I hate being like this, Kenny..."

"I would hope so," he mused.

"I hate feeling so...weak. I'm so sick of every little thing reducing me into..this," he gestured towards himself.

"Ky, you've been through a lot. Time will pass and wounds will heal. You know that getting better wasn't gonna happen overnight. We'll work on it together, I promise," he interlaced their fingers for emphasis. Kyle looked down at them and then back up towards the blonde, forcing a small smile upon his face.

"I'm sorry," he stated again.

"Stop being sorry," he smirked. "Come on. You've got a little bro out there who needs ya. Where's that supportive Kyle I know?" Kyle smiled a little more realistically at him and Kenny smiled right back. "There he is. Now come on. Let's go, shall we?" Kyle nodded and Kenny pulled him to his feet and led him back out the door.

"Ky, are you okay?" Stan asked.

He sighed heavily and nodded. "Yeah...yeah, I'm okay. Sorry."

"Don't be." he replied softly. Kyle lowered his eyes and met the dark brown shade of his younger brother's and smiled softly at him.

"You holdin' up alright, Kid?" he asked. Ike blinked at him before running towards him and throwing his arms around the redhead.

"Dude, are you?!" he asked, hugging him tighter.

"I'll be fine," he laughed softly, prying his arms from out Ike's grip and clasping him back.

Ike pulled back and stared at him sadly. "Jesus, Kyle. Sounds like you've had a hell of a month," he said softly.

"Kid, we didn't even tell you the half of it," Cartman muttered.

He looked at him unbelieving. "Seriously?" he squeaked.

"Not important right now," Kyle growled, pulling the younger boy's attention back to his brother. "Ike, what's going on at home?" Ike blinked at him for a moment and Kyle led him to sit on the couch next to each other. Kenny plopped down on the other side of Kyle as Cartman went into the kitchen to secure some drinks for them all and Stan sat on the coffee table.

The ebon boy sighed heavily before looking into his brother's eyes. "To be honest, I'm kinda pissed at you right now."

"What'd I do?"

"They're fighting over you," he said softly.

Kyle looked over at his boyfriend and smirked, "Called it," he said simply. Kenny just shrugged and they both turned to look back at Ike.

"Why are they fighting over him?" Stan asked.

"There's...there's a few reasons," he bit his lip.

"Okay?..." Kenny urged him on as Cartman walked back out and handed out sodas to everyone.

"For one, there's you being kicked out. Dad...Dad doesn't really think that they handled the situation too well," he explained. "He thinks that they overreacted a bit."

"No shit," Kyle scoffed.

"He thinks that there should have been more talking...and that Rabbi Wertheimer should have been called to...um..."

"Fix me," he finished, taking a large gulp of his drink.

"Well Dad likes to phrase it as 'guiding you spiritually', but yeah, that's the vibe I'm picking up from it."

"What about the bitch?" Cartman asked.

"She's...well, she's still a bitch," he shrugged. "She thinks that Kyle's just acting out against her and Dad and against Judaism out of some teen angst problem or something. I dunno. She thinks that Kenny convinced him to turn gay."

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" Kyle exclaimed. "If that freaking bitch would have ever taken the time to freaking talk about it instead of just kicking me out, she'd know that she missed it by a mile!"

"Exactly," Ike nodded, sipping his cola. "That's what Dad's been saying this whole time."

"So...okay. Does he support me or not because I'm really freaking lost, here." Kyle raised his brow.

Ike looked up at him sadly. "Um...I don't think he does. I think that he just wishes he could have 'fixed' you instead of adding on rent expense to the family income."

Kyle sighed irritably. "I guess I couldn't expect anything more."

"Kyle, can I ask you a question?" Ike asked.

"Sure, what?"

"Who's Mitchell Derrick?" Everyone froze.

"W-why?" Stan asked, watching as Kyle took a large swig to calm his nerves a bit.

"Well...every time he's mentioned around the house, Kyle's name pops up, too. I haven't really caught the whole story."

"Why is his name floating around?" Cartman questioned.

Ike blinked. "Well, he's one of Dad's clients." Kyle spit his soda across the room in shock, looking at his brother shakily.

"Please...please...tell me you're joking," he begged.

"N-no...Kyle...did you like, get in a fight with this guy or what?" Ike asked. Kyle didn't respond as he jumped to his feet and paced in front of the coffee table, yanking his hair.

"I don't believe it," he murmured. "I don't fucking believe it! He's actually...oh my god!"

"That fucking jackass!" Stan gritted his teeth harshly. Kenny and Cartman stared at the floor, their fists shaking.

Ike looked between them all in confusion. "Did I miss something here?"

"Ike...," Kyle started. "He...he and a friend of his...no...me and Ken...we...they...oh Jesus," he said sadly, slamming his face into his palms.

"Ike, you have to get your dad to not defend him no matter what you do!" Stan said firmly, grasping the boy's shoulder.

"Why? What the hell's going on?!"

Kenny sighed and scooted over closer to the boy, staring at him. "Look. We have a problem here." He gestured towards the still-fretting Jew. "Mitch is the guy who broke into the house and caused him to have his freak-out earlier."

"Oh...well, that shouldn't be that much of a problem to fight against right?" Ike shrugged. "He just broke in."

Kenny sighed heavily and vigorously shook his head. "No Ike, he didn't just break in. He...last month..." he looked up at Kyle, who was looking at his younger sibling sadly with shame tracing his features. He turned back to the Canadian and stared deep into his eyes. "Last month, Mitchell raped Kyle. He broke in a little while ago and hurt him again. Do you get it now?"

Ike looked at him in shock and then looked up at Kyle. "Holy...holy shit...," he shook his head. "Kyle...holy shit!" Kyle looked at him and just shrugged.

"Your dad cannot defend this nutcase!" Stan pled. "That'd mean that he'd have to deny Kyle being so hurt!"

"Well what do you expect me to do?!"

"Talk him out of it! He...he can't go against his own son!...Can he?!"

"What do you want me to say?!" Ike asked.

Cartman stared at him, "Ike, this is easy. You say: 'Dad, this guy made Kyle his bitch, so you can't defend him!"

Kyle glared at him and his face turned red. "Find a better way to phrase it you fat fuck!"

Cartman looked at him and blinked. "What? Isn't that what he did? He fucked you in the asshole. That makes you the bitch."

"FUCK OFF!" Kyle screeched, Kenny saw his eyes starting to tinge red and he stood to intervene.

"Cartman, shut the fuck up," he spat. He turned and placed his hands on Kyle's shoulders. "Ky, calm down," he looked quickly towards Ike a few times. Kyle caught onto his meaning and took some deep breaths, Kenny watching as the red started to disappear. The blonde smiled gently at him before turning his attention back to Ike. "Dude, listen. I don't know how, but something has to be done...I mean...there's just no way he could do that to Kyle!"

Ike nodded. "R-right. I'll see what I can do..." he sighed. "That's another thing they're fighting about, though."

"What?" Kyle asked shakily.

"Dad still wants to do this case, regardless of the fact that it's you he's up against. Mom keeps telling him not to, because despite what happened, you are still 'technically' related."

"So...wait. They...both have things that they want to...," he paused and tried again. "Okay, so they both care...," Kyle stated slowly. "And yet they both still hate who I am with the utmost passion?"

Ike nodded, "It would seem that way, Bro."

"God, what a mess," he groaned. "I don't know what the fuck to do anymore."

"You do what you think is right, that's what you do," Kenny said firmly.

"Kenny, I can't stand up to my father in freaking court!" he exclaimed.

"Why not?" Cartman asked. "Just tell him what happened."

Kyle looked at him and narrowed his eyes. "Oh yes, that would go over splendidly. '_And what did he do to you?_' 'Oh, he just tied me up and fucked me for hours then came back again to rape me with a pistol, but you know. Nothing too major or humiliating or anything'," he spit sarcastically.

"You'll have to be more detailed than that in court," he smirked back.

"Cartman, stop fucking smiling!" Stan growled.

"Don't you get it, Fatass?! This isn't just about what happened back home! This is everything being laid out in front of my _mother_ of all people!"

"What does she have to do with a testimony?" Ike asked.

"She'll use it against gays!" he exclaimed, waving his arms around fanatically. "Think about it! Who raped me?! **Guys**. This wasn't a typical tough guy and small girl situation! This was two _dudes_ and a weaker _dude_! She'll use it to say that homosexuals are violent or it promotes rape or something absolutely insane that everyone will believe just because she'll say it into a microphone!"

"Well, we have plenty of gays in this town and that hasn't happened," Stan shrugged.

"None of those gays have happened to be _her_ son," he growled through clenched teeth. "You know that something is only wrong if me or Ike does it! I'm gay, therefore being gay is wrong. Ike wanted to eat ribs once, so she went on this spiel of trying to ban pork from South Park. I mean, come on! Everyone in the fucking world is entitled to their rights as a person unless they're a Broflovski!"

"I'd have to agree with him there," Ike nodded. "We don't really get to live our own lives."

"Exactly," he stated. "We were raised to be the good little Jewish children who held the Torah to us as closely as nerds hold Harry Potter. We're supposed to stay within those guidelines and should we stray, the world is to blame..." he laughed humorlessly. "I think that they kinda missed the point of being Jewish."

"To handle finances?" Cartman said. Kyle threw a pillow at him and scowled.

"No, you fucking bigot," he snarled. "To be a fucking person. To be one, connected with others in the community and ultimately with God, but most of all to be just one person...I don't think Mom and Dad will ever understand that. They focus too much on not pissing God off and we end up in situations like this over and over again."

"Oh boy, here we go," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"What now, Fatass?"

"Now you're gonna hit your 'there is no God! There's no logic behind Him!' speech and then you'll hit some epiphany later on and your faith will be restored."

Kenny came dangerously close to reminding him that Kyle worked for fucking Satan, but then remembered that Ike happened to be in the room. Little inconvenience. Kyle blinked at him.

"You know, Cartman, nobody asked you," he said quietly. He sighed and looked back at Ike. "Dude, please please please for the love of God or Moses or who-the-fuck-ever...get Dad to drop it. Please."

Ike nodded slowly, "I'll try...are you sure you want me to tell him what happened to you though?"

"Try without actually mentioning...that. If it doesn't work...I guess it'll have to be the trump card," he sighed. "I'd rather he didn't know, but if that's what it takes then so be it."

Ike looked up at the clock and stood. "Okay," he nodded. "Sorry that happened to ya, Dude."

Kyle just shrugged, "Not like it was your fault. These things happen."

"Not to you, usually," he raised his brow.

"You'd be surprised," he smiled gently. Ike walked over and they gave each other a quick embrace before parting and letting out simultaneous soft sighs. Kyle patted his shoulder and looked at him with a soft grin. "Try not to get into too much trouble. I'm not there to make up lies for you anymore."

Ike chuckled softly, "Yea, I kinda miss you not being around to tell the 'rents that I have chronic diarrhea to cover for me sneakin' out."

"I can't believe they actually bought that one," he laughed.

"Well, they've never been all that bright," he smirked.

"Not like the Broflovski boys," Kenny grinned. Ike looked at him and raised his brow with a smile.

"True. Don't pound into Kyle too hard. He's too fragile."

"IKE!" Kyle said, slapping him upside the head. "Learn some goddamn decency!"

He broke out into chuckles and rubbed his head. "I would say I'm sorry, but I'm totally not. The look on your face was worth it."

"Shut up, Ike."

"Don't worry, I'm not too rough," Kenny winked at the ebon-haired boy.

"Kenneth...," he growled.

Ike laughed softly, "Good," he nodded at Kenny. He turned back to his red-faced brother and smiled at him. "I gotta get home. I'll call you later and keep ya up to date, alright?"

"Thanks, Dude," he grinned gratefully. "Take care of yourself, alright?"

"Will do. See ya all later," he waved as he headed towards the door.

"Bye, Ike," Stan waved back.

"See ya, midget Jew," Cartman nodded.

Ike turned back around as he stepped out the door and frowned at him. "Better to be a midget Jew than a fatass Nazi. At least I can outrun you, Thunder Thighs."

"Ooh, I'm scared," he smirked back.

Ike chuckled again. "See ya, Ky." he shut the door softly behind him and walked away. Kyle walked towards the door and locked it after him, leaning against it afterwards and taking some shuddery breaths.

"I don't believe it...," he whispered, shaking his head.

"What's up?" Stan asked.

He laughed a bit and looked at him. "My father. Jesus Christ, that's just fucking...God, this is such a disaster."

"Maybe Ike can change his mind," Kenny inputted softly.

"I doubt it," he said softly. "My dad gets on a case and he doesn't back down. So long as he gets paid, I don't think it would matter if he was going against a three year old."

"Can I ask a hypothetical question here?" Cartman asked.

Kyle looked at him suspiciously. "Depends. Does this question involve Jews dying in any way?"

"Maybe on the inside," he shrugged.

He sighed, "Alright. Go ahead."

"Let's say that he can't convince him to back off. What are you gonna do?"

Kyle blinked at him for a minute, then towards the other two as well. "Do I have a choice as to what I do?"

"You need to take the stand, Kyle," Kenny said softly. "We need this guy put away and you know it. You're really the only one who can do much about it."

"What about you three? Kenny, you were there the first time. And all three of you were here when he was attacking me again!"

"They'd want an actual testimony from the victim, though," Stan stated.

"Ken was a victim," he murmured.

"Not like you though," Kenny replied gently. "I wasn't hurt nearly as bad as you. Besides, they could use the fact that I suffered a blow to the head against me."

"Cartman and I saw him holding you down and threatening you, that's about it," Stan started. "While that is illegal, it doesn't exactly put him behind bars for life. You're the only person who can testify to what he really did, Kyle."

Kyle's face paled and his eyes dropped to his feet. "I...I...I don't think I can...," he said softly. "I really don't think that I could tell a room full of people about it."

"Ky, I know it's hard, but you need to," Kenny urged. "We'll find you a good lawyer, too. Maybe there's a way we can tiptoe around it?"

"Considering the subject revolves around it, I doubt that'll happen," Cartman muttered.

"Well hold on now, we don't know that," Stan said. "Damien just said that he manipulated the cops into thinking that they arrested Mitch. He never said under what charges. Maybe this is only for the break in."

"Then we're umping the charges," Kenny growled, getting to his feet. "We're going to watch this guy be lugged away for life if it's the last thing we do."

"Ken, I don't know if we can," Kyle responded softly. "It's _my_ father. He's a jerk but he's also a really great lawyer. He could find a way to make it so we can't escalate the case to that extent."

"Not necessarily," a voice boomed from behind the couch. They all turned to see Damien standing by with his arms crossed and a small smile across his face. "Kyle, the case is already there," he said.

"What did you have them think, Dude?" Kenny asked.

"Mitchell Derrick is under arrest under charges of the kidnapping and assault of Kenneth McCormick and the two incidences of assault and rape of Kyle Broflovski," he grinned. "Good enough for you?"

"So...I'm screwed?" Kyle asked softly.

"Yup, you're stuck in this till it's done, I'm afraid," he nodded.

"Goddammit," he hissed.

"Look, Broflovski, it won't be that hard," he replied. "Just tell them what happened."

"Damien, you don't understand either," he pouted. "I...I really don't want these people to...my reputation is fucked up enough!"

"Kyle, you have to," Stan said firmly. "I know it sucks, but once you testify, it'll be over and done with. You won't have to worry about him anymore, okay?"

Kyle looked at him sadly. "I know...but Stan, it just...I don't want..."

Kenny walked over to him and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Dude, look at me." Kyle hesitantly raised his line of vision into that of Kenny's. "Look," he said sternly. "It'll be okay. No one's going to judge you or anything like that for telling people what happened. However, they _will_ judge you if you don't speak and that lunatic is allowed back into the streets. Kyle, you are the key element in this whole situation, you have to tell the truth about it, regardless of how embarrassing you may seem to find it. You know I'll be right there with you, right?"

He nodded softly, "I know," he whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Kyle, for God's sake, stop apologizing," Stan shook his head.

"Yeah, really. If you're gonna apologize for anything, apologize for killing Jesus," Cartman inputted.

Kyle glared at him as he grinned back triumphantly. "Anyways," Damien stepped in, "I actually came in to see just how everything's going."

"Fine," Kenny nodded. "We're working on a case now."

"Where are they?" he questioned.

"He went out to look around town," Kyle said softly.

"You give them a lot of freedoms, don't you?" he smirked.

"Well, we don't own them," Kenny shrugged. "They're still their own person regardless of the fact that we're helping them."

He nodded, "True. Alright, well if all is well then I shall take my leave of you. Oh, and I have someone for you."

"Someone?" Cartman quirked his brow.

"Indeed," he smiled. "I'll send him up to you later. So long, all," he waved as he vanished from the room.

"That was a quick visit," Stan muttered.

"Eh, he tires of us just as quickly as we tire of him," Kenny grinned.

"So why are you two here?" Kyle asked the other two.

"We just came to talk," Stan shrugged. "We were bored. Who knew that everything would become interesting so fast?"

"Stan, you're talking to immortals here," Ken smirked, pulling Kyle in closer. "No moment is ever dull around here. We fill the void of dullness with sex."

"Dude, not appropriate," Cartman gagged.

"Oh, get used to it, Cartman," Kyle shook his head. "I have to."

"You choose to," Stan raised a brow in amusement. "I'm surprised you haven't bashed his head in from all his perverted comments towards you."

"He loves 'em," Kenny smiled, kissing the boy's burning cheek.

"Sure. Keep telling yourself that, Ken," he replied, looking up at him playfully.

"You know you do, my little Kosher boy," he pinched his cheek gently. "One day, you'll be comfortable enough with them to make some yourself."

"Nah, I have this little thing called dignity," he poked his ribs. "Not much of it's left anymore, but I'm trying to preserve all I can." Kenny just chuckled and kissed his hair before they sat back down on the couch together.

"So, all's well and good back here I'm going to assume?" Cartman asked.

"Yessir," Kenny nodded with a grin. "We celebrated with kabobs and everything." He almost burst out laughing at the sight of Kyle desperately trying to control his blazing rouge toning. The redhead gave him a little glare and he just smiled back merrily.

"Kabobs sound really fucking good right now," Cartman said dreamily.

"Dude, they do!" Stan agreed. Both Kenny and Kyle snorted back their laughter. Kyle slammed his hand over his mouth and forced out a few coughs to calm himself down.

"What's so funny?" Stan blinked.

"Nothing. Nothing at all...," Kenny replied, waving his hand at the boy, still trembling with unshed chortles.

"Uh..."

"Dude, inside joke," Kyle finally choked out.

Cartman raised his brow. "You have inside jokes about food?"

"Hey, you get as close as us and you start to joke about everything," Kenny commented with a sniff.

"True," Stan said with a smile. "Me and Wends do that, too. Though we don't have many since our senses of humor vary by a good bit," he shrugged.

"That's the problem with chicks," Kenny inputted. "They're too..."

"Girly?" Kyle suggested with a shrug.

"Yea, too girly," he nodded. "How one cannot see the humor in fart jokes is beyond me."

"That's just how they are. There's a reason girls were kept down in society for so long," Cartman stated.

"Just because they didn't laugh at farting?" Kyle asked with a quirked brow.

"No, they just call everything gross or icky or whatever. They're weird."

"Hence the reason I prefer dudes," Kenny said.

"So are you full blown gay now or what?" Cartman asked.

"Well, boobs certainly don't get me going like they used to," Kenny responded. "The only thing that gets me up and ready is my little Jewboy," he kissed him on the lips sweetly.

"Jesus, you little attention-starved puppy," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"I'm not attention starved," Kenny pouted. "Ky gives me all the attention I could ever want and then some."

Stan snickered lightly, "in other words, he has you whipped already."

"Coming from the boy who waits on a certain lady of his hand and foot," Kyle smirked.

"Hey, that's a ten-year relationship that's been goin'," he defended. "You two are like..."

"Two months and three days," Kenny beamed.

Kyle looked at him and blinked. "Wow, I'm impressed," he grinned.

"You think I'd forget that?" He asked. "Come on, Dude. Give me some credit here."

"I didn't say anything, you're just making implications," he said gently.

"Nonetheless, Kenneh, the Jew's got you on a freaking choke chain," Cartman smirked.

"Nah, Kyle's not kinky enough to use something like that."

"Ken!"

Kenny smiled sheepishly at his boyfriend. "Sorry." Kyle just shook his head at him with a disapproving smirk.

"Why do I put up with you?"

"Cause you love me with all your little heart and soul," he cooed, pulling the boy onto his lap.

"Do you guys even technically have souls?" Stan questioned.

"Good question," Kyle frowned.

"I think we do. Satan just owns 'em," Ken shrugged. "Whatever. Doesn't really matter. Not like we need to trade or anything."

"I still think it's just so weird what you two do," he shook his head in disbelief. "I'm just waiting to wake up from some way too complicated dream, ya know?"

"Heh, we know the feeling," Kyle mused with a grin.

"I hope I'm not dreaming," Kenny said softly, snuggling into Kyle. "I wouldn't wanna wake up from this."

"God, he turned you into a pussy, too," Cartman laughed. "You're supposed to be the man of the relationship, aren't you?"

"Cartman, it doesn't work like that for gay couples," Stan interjected.

"Bullcrap. Kyle's on the bottom, so he's the girl of it all!"

Kyle looked at him in annoyance. "Who the fuck told you I was the bottom?"

"It's not hard to figure out, Jew," he said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Besides, Kenneh told all of us not too long ago."

Kyle shot his head towards his boyfriend and scowled. "You did what?"

Kenny looked up at him and swallowed. "Um..."

"Kenneth!"

"Uh oh, Poor boy's in trouble now," Cartman sang.

Kyle got up off his lap and scooted to the opposite edge of the couch with a stern look on his face and his small arms crossed. "Kenneth, there's making lewd comments and there's going too far. That was going too far."

"Uh...sorry?"

Kyle sighed heavily, "We don't need everyone to know what goes on behind closed doors, alright?"

He nodded, "Yeah, I understand...sorry."

"Is this 'Kenneth' thing a regular now or what?" Stan asked with a raised brow.

"Only if I'm in trouble," he smiled sheepishly.

"Understood. If we hear the name, we hit the deck," he smirked at the redhead.

"Damn straight," he smirked right back. Kenny and Kyle looked towards the door as they saw Anthony strolling back in.

"Hey, Dude," Kenny nodded. Cartman and Stan looked towards that direction, finding nothing and sighing.

"I think we should at least be able to see 'em," Stan muttered.

"Yeah, really. This is fucking annoying," Cartman agreed.

"Sorry guys," Kyle said sympathetically.

"Friends of yours?" Anthony asked.

"Yup. Stan and Cartman," Kenny gestured to the two of them.

"Uh...hi?" Stan said, waving and looking in a few different directions.

Anthony chuckled, "They don't have your little gift, hm?"

"Nope, they're pretty much useless about this," Ken grinned.

"This is really weird," Cartman murmured.

"Ah fuck," Kyle stated. Kenny looked over at him and saw a splotch of brown over his chest.

"What'd you do?"

"Spilt my goddamn drink," he sighed irritably, getting to his feet and prying to wet tshirt away from his skin. "I'm gonna take a shower I guess."

"Do you boys need me anymore tonight?" Anthony asked.

"Why?" Kenny raised his brow at him.

He shrugged, "I have a lot I wanna see. There's some weird club that I wanna check out. That okay?"

"Yeah, sure. So long as you promise to come back," Kyle said.

"No prob," he nodded. "I'll be back at midnight-ish," he waved and walked back through the door.

"Well isn't he the party animal?" Kenny laughed.

"It would seem so," Kyle mused. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna get this soda off," he leaned down and pecked Kenny on the lips before heading off to the bathroom. Kenny watched and let out a gentle sigh as the door closed behind him.

"_Whichet," _Cartman imitated.

"He does not have him whipped Cartman," Stan shook his head amusedly.

"Nah, he totally does," Kenny shrugged. "I don't care though, I like it like that. It proves that I'm not the dominant one of our relationship."

"But you are," Cartman raised his brow.

"Just because I top doesn't mean that I pull the strings in everything we do," he replied.

"But it makes you the man."

"No, it doesn't. It just makes me the top. The end."

"...which is the man."

"Goddamn it, Cartman, no!"

"Why don't you just let Kyle top or something so there's no room for anymore debating?" Stan asked with a groan.

Kenny looked over at him and fumbled for a response. "Uh...um..."

Cartman burst into laughter. "I get it! You're afraid to bottom! You think it's gonna hurt, don't you?"

"N-no!"

"Yeah you do," Stan smirked. "You think that it'll hurt either your pride or it'll actually physically hurt."

"Well...would you?"

"Psh," Cartman scoffed, "we're not fags."

"No, but let's say you were," Kenny started. "Would you be okay with the concept of something going in and out of your ass?"

"Kahl seems to accept it," Cartman raised his brow.

"I didn't ask about Kyle," he growled.

Stan leaned his head back and laughed softly. "Depends on the person I would be with, I guess."

"Really?"

"Sure," he shrugged. "Give me a person."

"Um...Tweek."

"Tweek?!" Cartman laughed harshly.

"Well?" he urged.

"Tweek...I'd top," Stan shrugged.

"You seem oddly comfortable with this, Stan," Cartman commented.

"Dude, I'm straight, okay? Hypotheticals don't send me hurling like they used to. It's kinda like 'Would you Rather' or some dumb game like that."

"Good idea," Kenny grinned maliciously.

"How so?"

"Let's play that with this. We go around and name people for the others to answer as to whether they'd top or bottom."

"Dude, there's gotta be a more productive way to spend our time," Stan replied.

"What else do we have to do?"

"...touche."

"Okay. I'll go first. Stan already answered. Cartman?"

"I'd top, duh," he rolled his eyes.

"You go, Cartman," Stan nodded. The chestnut-haired boy leaned back slightly and pondered this.

"Hm...Butters."

"Top," they responded simultaneously and laughed softly. As if that wasn't predictable.

"Okay," Stan began. "How about...Craig?"

"Craig?" Kenny repeated. "Well...you kinda know my answer for that, you saw it first hand," he smirked. Stan shuddered a bit.

"Oh yeah...kinda forgot," he stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Cartman?"

"Top."

"Dude, are you gonna say that every time?" Kenny asked.

He shrugged. "Name someone who isn't such a pussy in my eyes."

"Token?" he guessed.

He looked upwards thoughtfully on that one. "I don't know, alright?" he sighed in exasperation. "Sure, maybe I'd bottom, maybe I'd top, I don't know."

"I'll accept that," he smirked. "Stan?"

"Uh...I'd definitely try for the top?" he shrugged.

"Okay, Clyde," Cartman kept the game going.

"Top," Stan said softly.

"Yeah, definitely," Ken nodded in agreement.

"Pip?"

"Oh come on, Stan, that's not even worth asking!" Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, really," Kenny snickered.

"Alright, alright, bad choice. Ken, your turn."

Kenny looked up at the ceiling and bit his lip thoughtfully, bouncing his leg atop his other. He looked back down at them both and smirked, "Kyle."

"Dude! That's your freaking boyfriend!" Stan cried out.

"Yeah, I know," he shrugged. "That doesn't mean I can't ask. Would you top or bottom with Ky?"

"Psh, you know my answer," Cartman scoffed. "While I'd rather never touch the filthy Jewrat, if I had to, I'd fuck him in the ass a million times before even letting the idea of him touching me like that cross his or my mind."

"How very profound of you," Ken raised his brow. He turned his attention to the other blue eyed boy, who was looking rather pale. "Stan?"

"Uh...I...pass?"

"Uh uh," Kenny shook his head. "Answer straight up for me."

"Why?"

"I'm curious. Would you play domineering jock boyfriend or would you cater to letting Kyle have his moment as the strong one?"

"Dude, he's my best friend," he said slowly.

"Yeah, I know. Now answer."

Stan sighed and massaged his temples. "I...I really have no idea."

"You'd actually consider letting that little stick top?" Cartman asked in disbelief. "Dude! If his dick is in proportion to the rest of him you won't be feeling much."

"Would you like to see and test out this little theory of yours?" Kenny challenged. "Because I assure you that you're wrong."

"Sure I am," he rolled his eyes with a sick grin. "Answer the question, though, Marsh."

"You pussyfooted your way around Token!"

"Yeah, but I genuinely had no idea. You just refuse to give a real answer."

Stan blinked at him, then at Kenny. "I...I don't know. I guess...um...I would top...maybe let him once in a while," he shrugged.

"Really? How come?" Kenny blinked.

"Well, think about it," he started. "All those other guys I don't really know. I could easily just go. But I know Kyle better than anyone else, I'd have trouble making it so I was perceived as more manly or something than him."

Kenny stared at him for a moment. "You...you think he wants to?"

Stan shrugged, "How the fuck should I know? Maybe suggest it to him or something."

"Are we seriously giving sex advice here?" Cartman asked.

"We're dudes," Stan grinned. "Sex is always something we can talk about."

"Unless my boyfriend happens to actually be in the room at the time," Kenny smirked.

"Well that just makes it awkward for you two. He'll 'Kenneth' you like there's no tomorrow," Stan chuckled.

"I told you, I like it when he does that," he smiled warmly. "He's the only one who calls me that and it's kinda cool."

"You think your name is cool?" Cartman asked.

"Nah, but I like how he has a different name for me when he's upset with me versus when we're kissing or whatever," he shrugged.

"Oh I'm sure there's all kinds of names he has for ya then," he rolled his eyes.

"Wanna hear a few?"

"No, that's okay," Stan said quickly. "Remember, we don't need to hear about behind your closed doors," he waved his hands in front of him.

Kenny snickered lightly, "yeah, yeah. I don't need Kyle running out here and handing my ass to me anyways."

"He'd hand his to you before he did that," Cartman commented.

"Only cause he loves me," he smiled. "That reminds me...," he turned to Stan. "Stan, dude I never got the chance to ask you. When you...when you were hitting Ky to try to knock him out...what was he saying exactly?"

Stan's face drastically fell. "He...he was talking about how much he hated himself. He kept calling himself retarded and worthless...talking about picking up a knife again...Kenny, he said so much and God, did it hurt to hear." he looked at the blonde sadly.

Kenny nodded at him slowly. "I can kinda see why you did what you did, then. I mean, I'm still pissed that he came home with bruises all over him...but I'd rather he be knocked out than bleeding on the floor or something."

"Right," he nodded back. "You know that I would never hurt Kyle just to hurt him."

"Yeah, I know," he smiled softly. "I told you when me and him got together that I would be depending on you to help pick him back up if we had issues. I can't say I'm completely satisfied, but at least you tried."

"If there's a next time, I'll try to be a little more tactful."

"Well, let's just hope there isn't a next time, hm?" Cartman interjected. Kenny nodded along with Stan. Shame though. Hope only gets people so far in the long run. A lesson that Kenny had been learning the hard way.

* * *

"God he's fucking loud," Kyle commented as they lay awake in bed, listening to Cartman's nighttime mumblings from the living room.

"Eh, whatever. You invited em to stay the night," Kenny commented, sitting up and stretching to pop his back.

"I honestly wasn't expecting them to take me up on it," he admitted, looking up at his lover.

"Well next time don't ask unless you mean it," he playfully ruffled his curls.

"Well I thought it would be the polite thing to do since they've done so much for us the past few months."

"And it is. We owe them a lot," he concurred. Kyle sat up and cuddled in close to him and sighed.

"Yeah...Why do I have a feeling I'm going to end up Cartman's slave or something?"

"You're not. I'll kill him if he tries to swing like that."

"Yay," he said sleepily, delving himself deeper into Kenny's chest.

"Dude, you need to sleep."

"I'll wait with you for Anthony to show up," he replied. "I'm alright."

Kenny wrapped his arms around him and laid them both back down with Kyle still laid upon his chest and gently stroked his hair. "Well, whaddya wanna do to pass time then?"

"I dunno."

"You heard the voices lately?"

"Last night," he murmured.

"And you didn't wake me because...?"

He was silent for a few moments. "Sorry," he finally muttered.

Kenny sighed. "Kyle. Wake me up. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Kenny."

"I care about you."

"I know, Kenny."

"And I want you to let me help you."

"I'm sorry, Kenny."

"Stop talking like a goddamn robot."

"Sorry, Asshole," he smirked.

"That's more better," he tugged his curls a bit. "What'd the voices say to you?"

"All the usual stuff," he replied quietly. "But...it...it hurt."

"Physically or emotionally?"

"All of the above," he sighed, tracing Kenny's abs lightly with his fingertip. "It like, combined that dream I had from a few nights ago and melded it with the words...it sucked to say the least."

"I bet," he murmured. "You record it?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good boy," he patted his head affectionately. "Maybe Joe will be able to help you."

"I hope so...though I can't say I trust him to do so. I'm pretty fucked up."

"Ky, you're not fucked up," he sighed. "Everything will be alright."

"I don't know...and neither do you," he said, looking up at him sadly. "With...with this whole thing with my dad being thrown in here...," he sighed heavily. "Things just don't seem to be letting up."

Kenny hugged him tightly. "Don't worry. Problems will come undone one thing at a time. I mean...look at the Toby scenario. That's out of the way, right?"

"Right..."

"See? It's just a matter of taking things one step at a time. Things will be okay in the end, I promise."

"Ken, you love to promise me things, don't you?"

"I love to see your eyes light up when I promise you things," he smiled. "Even if I'm wrong...if things do still give us problems, I'll be right here the whole time. You know that, right?"

"Of course I do," he smiled.

"I'm back," a voice entered the room. They turned and saw Anthony standing at the door waving.

"Have fun?" Kyle asked.

"Tons. I'm gonna hit the hay. Night."

"Night," they responded, watching as he shut the door quietly. Kyle sighed again and laid his head back onto Kenny's chest.

"So what are we gonna do about him?" he muttered.

"We'll figure it out eventually," he shrugged. "As of now, it's time for sleep." he reached up and turned off the lamp. He felt Kyle moving to lay down beside him and clasped him tightly against him.

"Ken?"

"If you wake up, I'm gonna know," he said firmly. "Besides, I like you being so close to me. You're warm and cuddly," he smiled.

Kyle chuckled. "Alright. But if you drool on me or anything don't be surprised if I sock you in the jaw."

"Kay," he leaned forward and pecked the boy's head. "Love ya, Ky," he mumbled, sinking his head back into the pillow.

"Love you, too," he took a deep breath and cuddled into his torso. Kenny smiled as he felt the fingertips just barely tracing his stomach. Falling asleep to that all-too-familiar fluttering feeling seemed too good to be true, and yet here he greeted the sixty-fourth consecutive night with the butterflies to accompany his journey into dreamland. He let his eyes droop, thinking of the sixty-four thousand more that he could enjoy should he keep his promises to the little redhead clasped against him.

* * *

_A/N: I'm sick again and want to freaking off myself. My voice is so far off from what it usually is I sound like I'm going through puberty again -_-_

_Anyways! Anthony's story is coming to fruition as of next chapter. This chapter was actually just for shits and giggles on my part XD...aside from the whole Ike thing. Yeah. Kind of vital here._

_No smex? Aw. I'll make it up to you next time...pinky swear =)_

_Thanks for all of what you tend to (sometimes) do!_


	33. Wanting

_A/N: So I'm sitting in my Film Literature class typing this...let's hope that my teacher doesn't walk by XD_

_Enjoy Anthony's tale of woe and tragedy...or not. Heh, you'll just have to see, won't you?_

* * *

"Are you two ever gonna get up?" a voice rang through their ears.

"Nope," Kenny replied groggily. "Too damn tired."

"Lazy asses," the voice muttered, approaching them. Kenny creaked his eyes open to see Stan staring down on them. "Get up, guys. It's like, ten."

"Come back at eleven," Kyle murmured from Kenny's chest.

"Come on you two," he rolled his eyes and tugged on Kyle's hair a few times. "We're goin' out for breakfast, remember?"

"No...no I don't remember that," Kenny said. "Therefore it's not true. Sleepy time."

"Don't make me force you two to get up," he raised his brow.

"I'm scared," Kyle mumbled, inhaling Kenny's scent and snuggling into him.

"One..."

"Go away, Marsh," Kenny replied.

"Two..."

"Breakfast is only for people who like to eat," Kyle whined.

"Three," he finished. He leaned down and grasped Kyle around the waist and drug him off of Kenny's form to pick him up.

"Hey! Not cool!" Kyle protested as Stan slung him over his shoulder.

"Told you I was gonna force you," he grinned.

"No kidnapping my boyfriend!" Kenny half-yelled, swinging his feet off the bed.

"Well, if he weighed more it wouldn't be so easy," he smirked at the boy over his arm.

Kyle looked at him unamused. "Ha ha ha. Just doing this to make fun of my size are we? Real mature, Stan. Put me down."

"How come?"

"Because I don't appreciate being woken up in the morning just to be kidnapped. It kind of interferes with the rest of my schedule if you don't mind." Stan snickered and lowered him gently to the floor.

"Kyle, gain some weight and we wouldn't have this problem," he poked his flat stomach.

"I don't need to," he pouted.

"Yeah," Kenny agreed, standing up behind him and clasping his waist. "I love him just the way he is. My twig is just perfect."

"You had it going alright, ya know," Kyle sighed.

"Aw, come on! I just called you twig! Not like I called you my wife or anything again!"

"I'm not sure which is worse," he rolled his eyes.

"You know what a best part about being a twig is?" he murmured into his neck.

"What?"

"No annoying leaves to cover up their natural beauty," he growled seductively, sliding his hand up Kyle's shirt.

"Okay, I'm gone," Stan claimed, quickly walking out of the room with a slightly terrified look upon his features. Kyle laughed softly after him and turned back to Kenny.

"You sure have a way with getting people to leave, don't you?"

"There was somebody here?" he blinked innocently. "Why my dear little Kyle, I couldn't care less who watches. The more the better. Everyone should see what a fine little Jewboy I happen to have wrapped around me every night." he lightly kissed the boy's neck.

"Ken, I don't think this is the t-time," he gasped as Kenny bit down on his tender skin.

"Sure it is. You were almost kidnapped and that's not cool. You need reassured that I'm here for you."

Kyle snickered, "What if I say I already know that you are?"

Kenny smiled maliciously and pushed him down on the bed, throwing himself atop the boy. "Well then we just need to reenforce the idea, don't we?"

"Kenny...Stan and Cartman are out there," he protested.

"Let 'em hear us. They should know what they're missing out on."

"EW!" Kyle stuck his tongue out and made a gagging noise.

"So...no foursome?"

"Kenneth!"

"Kidding, only kidding," he laughed, leaning down and brushing his lips tenderly. "You're more than enough for me," he growled. Kyle shook his head with an amused grin upon his pale face. Kenny gently began tracing up his abs. "You sleep alright last night?" he asked as he nipped at the boy's collarbone.

"Mhmm," he moaned, letting his head fall back and his arms working their way up to the back of Kenny's head.

"No bad dreams or anything?"

"Nothing," he sighed contentedly. "Best damn sleep I've had in months."

"Excellent," he murmured, gently lapping at his neck.

"Dude...are you sure?..." he asked, glancing towards the door.

"Love, I've never been more sure about anything," he purred, looking up into Kyle's eyes, which were dark but had tints of doubt about them. "'Member the twins?"

"Uh, yeah..."

"Well we're just gonna play that game again," he smirked. "We're gonna play 'make Kyle scream'."

"How about not?" he frowned.

"Aw come on, you know that that was a hell of a good time and you loved every agonizing minute."

"...that's beside the point."

Kenny snickered and roughly brushed his palm across Kyle's crotch, listening as he let out a small gasp. "You want this just as much as I do," he growled.

"But..."

"No butts but yours and mine, got it?"

"Aren't we controlling this morning?"

"Otherwise you won't do anything because you're too damn innocent," he chuckled, working the boy's shirt off. "They won't walk in or anything," he assured him.

"And how do you know?" Kyle asked as he shook some hair out of his face after the removal of his clothing.

"Because the idea of us two grosses them out too much, so they won't be peeking on us anytime soon," he winked. "Though I can't understand why..." he leaned down and suckled on the boy's ear. "You're too beautiful for anyone to not wanna see." Kyle merely sighed happily and turned his head to capture Kenny's lips for his own.

"We've got breakfast to go to, you know," he murmured into the blonde's lips.

"I've already got the best damn tasting thing around. Fuck pancakes." Kyle chuckled and relaxed more into his touch as he worked on peeling the Jew's boxers off his spindly legs. He pushed his own down and kicked them down beside the bed. Kyle sat up slowly, still locked in Kenny's magnetic kiss, trailing his hands up and down his abs and gently grasping his shoulders. Kenny broke off for a moment and reached over to get the lotion from out his bedside drawer. He took the bottle and poured a glob onto his finger tip, running the cooled gel over the head of Kyle's cock teasingly. Kyle moaned softly and gently dug his fingers into Kenny's broad shoulders. After swirling his finger around Kyle's cock time after time, he slathered a bit onto his own and positioned himself, still locking lips, and pushed into him.

Kyle broke off slightly to gasp, finding himself staring into Kenny's hungry gaze. Kenny began his usual rhythm of thrusting, still locked into Kyle's gaze. "Much better than pancakes," he murmured.

Kyle laughed a bit, moaning quietly as Kenny increased his pace. "Oh Jeez," he purred, leaning his head back and taking a shuddery breath. He locked his legs together behind Kenny and pulled him in further. Kenny trailed kisses across his chest and neck, causing the boy's body to tremble heavily with the need to shout. Kenny reached under his moving stomach and found Kyle's cock pressed between the two bodies. He gently ran his hand up and down it, pressing the head in-between his fingers.

"That feel good, Ky?" he asked slyly.

Kyle looked down towards him and shook his head. "Ken..." he panted. "Don't."

"Come on," he urged. "You love this and you wanna shout it from the rooftops."

"Kenny...Ken...oh God....," he shuddered as Kenny drove harder into him. "Nn-nngh...don't tease me," he panted in-between breaths.

Kenny smirked and tickled his balls and squeezed them in his palm. "But you love it," he insisted. "You love me. You love this. And you especially love when I do this..." he bit down on the boy's neck and began steadily pumping his cock. Kyle yelped and his head flew back onto the bed, his nails digging further down Kenny's back. Kenny continued to nip and suckle hungrily, savoring the flavor of Kyle's clean skin. His hand skillfully wrapped itself around the Jew's manhood time and again, his caressing increasing alongside his continuous thrusting. Who the fuck said that guys can't multitask?

"Ah...oh Jesus, Ken," he purred.

"God, I love this, Kyle," he breathed into his skin. "My perfect little Kosher boy," he murmured affectionately, nuzzling into the crook of his neck as he drove harder.

"Are you boys gonna get out he-" a voice began. Kenny stopped and they both looked over to see Anthony staring at them with wide eyes.

An awkward silence filled the room, Kenny's cock still buried into Kyle with his legs locked behind the blonde's back. Their hearts' rapid beating the only recognizable sound.

"Um...do you mind?" Kenny blinked. Kyle just stared at the spirit, frozen in time, wanting for this to be nothing more than a dream.

"HOLY SHIT!" Anthony's mouth dropped. "You two are...oh good Lord!"

"Dude, we're kinda in the middle of something!" Kenny spat at him, though he could tell that this little rendezvous had completely destroyed the mood. Kyle slowly unwound his legs and Kenny pulled out of him, still staring at the intruder, who was looking rather sore.

"I don't believe it. What the fuck do you two think you're doing?!"

"Um...having sex?" Kyle shrugged embarrassedly.

"You...my God someone has to do something," he blurted out. He walked over to the bed and grabbed Kyle's arm, starting to haul him off the bed. "Come on," he yanked him away, "we need to talk about something."

"Goddamn, let me get some pants!" Kyle reached for his boxers and slid them on awkwardly as Anthony continued to roughly pull him away.

"Hey, hold it!" Kenny shouted after them, grabbing his own shorts and pulling them on. Anthony ignored him and tugged harshly on the boy, causing him to plummet forward onto his knees. The man continued to drag him towards the door, slamming it open and taking him out into the main room.

"What the fuck?" Stan murmured, watching with Cartman as Kyle was dragged across the floor by the invisible man. Anthony swung his arm forward and sent him crashing into the floor in front of the couch in a clumsy heap on his back. He looked back up at the towering man in front of him with the stern look across his face and gulped, propping himself up with his arms behind him and a confused look upon his face.

"What do you think you were doing?!" he spit.

"We...uh..." he fumbled.

"We were kinda having private time in case you didn't notice," Kenny yelled at him as he stepped into the room.

"Ew, nasty," Cartman gagged.

"What right do you have to drag Kyle across the fucking floor?! **I'm** the only one allowed to give him rug burn!" Kenny stated loudly. Kyle looked at him and blushed deeply.

"Carnal pleasures with another boy, Kenny?" the man shouted. Oh fuck.

"Oh boy...," Kyle murmured.

"How could you do something so...repulsive?"

"What's the difference between banging Kyle and banging a chick?!" Kenny shouted. Kyle frowned at that as Cartman broke into snickers and Stan just looked at him confusedly.

"What's the difference?!" he spat. He reached down and grabbed Kyle again, holding him up for display. He pulled down Kyle's boxers, revealing his still semi-erect cock. He squeaked and grabbed his underwear back, yanking them back up with ruby staining his delicate cheeks. "That's what's different! You shouldn't be with another male for something like that, Ken!"

"Listen, let go of him now, Dude," he growled.

"Nonsense. I'm going to help make him better," he said indignantly.

"Better?!" Kyle yelped. "I'm fine, let go!"

Anthony tightened his grip on the boy's wrist. "Kyle, you don't understand what you're getting yourself into!"

"I understand that you're fucking hurting my arm!" He snarled.

"You're being sinful!"

Kenny groaned. "Dude, no. No, no, no, no, no! Don't give us this biblical shit, alright?! We're fine the way we are!"

"God made a man and woman to conceive, not two boys," he retorted.

"Well explain where Cain's wife came from," he shouted angrily. "The Bible's full of holes, so don't base your entire argument on **that**!"

_"If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them,*" _he quoted spitefully.

"Problem with that," Kyle argued, still trying to wrestle out of his grip. "We're immortal, so you're pretty much screwed there, aren't you?"

"We can still cleanse you both," he said firmly. "The Bible is law."

Kenny rolled his eyes. "Yet another problem. Kyle's Jewish!"

Anthony paused and looked at the boy. "Jewish? You doubt the divinity of Jesus?!"

"Uh...I believe that would qualify me as a Jew, yes," he nodded.

"SINNER!" he screamed, flinging the boy back onto the ground.

"Dude!" Stan rushed over to his side.

"Jeez, Dude, stop the goddamn Bible shit already!" Kenny protested. "The damn thing says that nonbelievers should be killed, too!**"

"Not a bad idea," he growled looking at Kyle on the ground, who looked back up at him angrily.

"I think I like this ghost," Cartman looked at the Jew smugly.

"Oh Jesus Christ, shut the fuck up, Cartman," the redhead growled. Anthony turned behind him and kicked him in the chest, leaving him coughing for air.

"Do NOT take His name in vain, Kyle," he warned. "He will come down and purge the world of sinners such as the two of you."

"We're not sinners!" Kenny exclaimed.

"To lay with another male is a sin, Ken," he replied smoothly.

"To work on Sunday is too***, but we do it anyway."

The man ignored his retort and looked back down on Kyle, who was beside of Stan on his knees and looking back up towards him. "You're being foolish, Kyle," he growled, yanking him up closer to his face by his hair. Kyle just blinked at him, unmoved by his violent disposition. "You've given up your manhood just for pleasure!"

"...WHAT?!" he shouted back.

"You laid under him and seemed to enjoy it!"

Kyle blinked at him. "Uh...yes?"

Anthony growled and pushed him away, raising his fist to hit the boy. Kenny grabbed it and yanked him around, socking him in the jaw and sending him stumbling to the side. Kenny stepped in-between him and Kyle and snarled. "No one fucking touches him, do you understand me?!"

"Whose better advice to take than your own?" he replied. "What you two are doing is absolutely disgusting!"

"No, it's not," he responded firmly. "What _is_ disgusting is people like you who haven't even the slightest clue as to what goes on in our lives telling us that we're 'sick' and 'wrong'. We're just living. Why do you have such a problem with that?"

"It's a Christian's job to defend the word of God," he sniffed.

"Defend all you want. Grabbing my boyfriend and yanking him across a room isn't defending, it's fucking assaulting!"

"Sometimes that happens," he muttered. "Sometimes people won't listen unless you show them that you're in control of the situation."

"No, they just don't listen to babbling retards with no true concept of what's going on!" Kyle interjected, getting to his feet and standing beside Kenny.

"I am so confused right now," Cartman blinked.

"Apparently the ghost's a homophobe," Stan muttered quietly.

"And an anti-semite," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Ooh, sounds like you two will be best buds, huh Kahl?" Cartman grinned.

"Shut up, Cartman," he growled.

"Listen to me boys, what you're doing is sick and wrong. Nature doesn't want you to go about that way. Let me help you. I think Ken will be fairly easy to cleanse, though Kyle may take longer."

"Why would Kyle 'take longer'?"

He shrugged, "he's the one submitting to you."

Kyle blinked at him as Kenny felt his blood boiling. "You asshole," he growled. "That has nothing to do with anything!" He wrapped his arm around the boy's waist protectively.

"It has a lot to do with it. You haven't sacrificed your manhood, have you?"

"That's irrelevant," he spit back.

"Kyle has been defiled in ways no _man_ should be," he responded cooly. "He's willingly became that of the weakest element of our species."

"A girl?" Kyle blinked.

"Yes, precisely," he nodded.

"T-that doesn't make me a girl!" he argued, his face glowing vibrantly.

Anthony stepped closer to them and grasped Kyle's chin in his hand. "See? See how uncomfortable this is making you? It isn't natural to feel such ways if you are with someone you are meant to be with."

"What the fuck do you know about who I should be with?!" he hissed, pulling back from the man as if the contact burned.

"I know that you shouldn't be sacrificing what makes you a man for mere confused feelings. Perhaps you were just alone or you couldn't find a girl that fit what you wanted in a relationship or..."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Kyle screamed at him. Stan and Cartman stepped back, confused as to the sudden spike in his voice and a bit scared. Kenny looked at him, stunned by his reaction. "You have no fucking idea what you're talking about so you can just back the fuck off!"

"I am well aware of what I-"

"No you're not," he interrupted. "You have no idea you fucking jackass! I'm with him because I **want** to be with him. Not confusion, not a lack of contact with anyone, just the mere fact that I want to be here with him!"

"Because you're lonely," he continued.

"Because I love him you fucking retard," he spit back.

"You're just confused, Kyle." Kenny shook his head in disbelief. Didn't this sound familiar...

Kyle growled and stepped closer towards him. "You think I'm confused, do you?"

"I know you're confused."

"I think **you're** the one who's confused," he poked his chest pointedly. "You've built all of your values around an outdated book and now you can't see an inch past your own goddamn nose!"

"That 'outdated book' is the very source of decent society, in which it states that men should not lie with other men!"

"Well guess what, Buddy," he retorted angrily. "you're shit outta luck because this is what we are and we intend on staying as such."

"Yeah," Kenny pipped up, wrapping his arms around Kyle's.

He observed this quietly and shook his head. "Boys, you're in deeper than I thought."

"You have no idea," Kenny stated.

"I know what love is and it isn't what you two are!" he exclaimed.

"Define it then." Kyle crossed his arms.

"What?"

"You know what love is? Please, enlighten us disgusting beings," he gestured between himself and Kenny.

"You can't define love," he replied.

"Hm. How interesting. We don't know how to describe it either," Kenny raised his brow. "All we know is that it's there and we're quite happy with the feeling."

Anthony sighed heavily and massaged his temples. "Boys, boys, boys."

"What?" Kyle snapped.

He looked up at them and shook his head. "You'll be damned."

"We already are you dumbshit," Kenny responded. "We work for the goddamn devil! Satan has us on speed dial!"

"That's not the point."

"That's your entire point!" Kyle screeched, flailing his arms. "You just want people to follow you because you think that you're so high and mighty with your 'knowledge' of some old book! Why is it that you think your religion is oh so loving when anyone who disagrees with you is told they're going straight to Hell?! Where the fuck is the logic in that?!"

"Told ya it'd happen," Cartman snorted at Stan, who nodded in agreement.

"I don't know how the fuck your family lived with you if you treated them like this," Kenny snarled.

"My family loved me."

"Did they love the bigotry that came attached with you?" Kyle asked. "Because it sure as hell seems hard to believe."

"My family loved me," he repeated.

"Oh, so they had problems with the fact that you're a fucking asshole, too? I don't know these people but I like them already," Kenny growled, pulling Kyle closer into him.

He sighed heavily, "what do they have to do with anything?"

"A lot," Kyle responded. "If they thought you were a jackass, maybe you should have changed or something."

"They accepted me and that's all that matters in the end."

"Unless you drove them to the point of no return with your insanity," he replied.

"We had arguments, so what?"

"So I wouldn't be surprised if one of them set your house on fire in the first place!" he exclaimed angrily. Both of the boys blinked and stepped back as he began to glow pink.

"Whoa...," Kenny murmured.

"Holy shit, I wasn't serious!" Kyle stated.

"What the?...," Anthony looked at them. "What the hell's happening? I feel strange."

"We figured out why you were stuck...," Kyle said softly.

"Wait...what?!"

"I...I guess you were stuck because you didn't know what caused the fire that killed you...or maybe that you didn't know the extent to which your family could be pushed," Kenny shrugged. "It's one of those, though, I'm sure."

"I have to ask...where...where am I going?" he looked at them.

"You're going straight to Hell," Kenny said.

"We all do. Unless you're Mormon," Kyle shrugged.

"I...I...well, fuck," he muttered.

"Don't worry, Hell's pretty awesome," Kenny stated. "I always had fun down there. Maybe you will, too."

"Lucky me. I just wasted my life living by a book that really didn't mean anything in the end to me."

"Not necessarily," Kyle said. Anthony raised his brow towards the redhead. "Though I still think you're a fucking asshole, religion is a good thing if it promotes some degree of love and respect. I'm sure it was for a good cause at some point in time."

"It was," he nodded. "And I still think you need to be cleansed."

"We couldn't care less what you think," Kenny stated. "We love each other and no fucking Bible or Torah or any other book is gonna change that."

"You'll regret it one day."

"Then let it be our day to regret," Kyle looked at him sternly as he faded away into emptiness.

Kenny turned the boy in his arms around and pulled him tightly into himself. "So you're here 'cause you love me, hm?"

"Mhmm," Kyle nodded, clasping him back and cuddling into him.

"Yays," he grinned.

"So...what just happened?" Stan asked.

"Asshole's gone now," Kyle looked over at him. "He's no longer stuck so he's out of our hair."

"Well...that's good," he nodded at them.

"Very much so. Fucking jackass telling us how to run our lives." Kenny muttered.

"He thought he was my mother," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Do you two plan on dressing yourselves anytime soon?" Cartman asked impatiently. Kyle and Kenny looked down and realized they were still in their boxers.

"Heh, oops," Kyle blushed.

Kenny smirked wildly. "Don't deny it, Cartman. You're just jealous of our hot bods, right?" he swung himself and Kyle so they were facing the other two directly.

"You're both built like freaking posts. Why would I be jealous of that?"

"Hey, I've got muscle," he frowned playfully. "Just look," he took his arm off Kyle and flexed. "See? Kyle loves me for my strength, don't you?" he smiled at the boy.

"Sure, why not?" he shrugged.

"Well if it wasn't for my muscles I couldn't do this...," he swung down and picked Kyle up.

Kyle laughed. "I could live without it. You're gonna hurt yourself one of these days."

"Not unless you start packing on the pounds and I don't see that happening anytime soon," he commented, kissing his nose gently.

"Dudes, just go make yourselves decent, will ya?" Stan pled.

"Yeah yeah yeah, we'll be back in a minute," Kenny rolled his eyes and walked back into the room, kicking the door shut. "Freaking bossy," he murmured. Kyle laughed and kissed him sweetly on the lips.

"I'm the only one who can boss you around," he smiled up at him.

"Damn straight," he grinned back, lowering the Jew to his feet and yanking his chin upwards to meet lips with him again. "Ya know...," he murmured, "we never got to finish."

Kyle chuckled and broke off of his mouth, looking into his deep blue eyes. "We will eventually, I promise. But those two will come and dress us themselves and drag us out if we don't hurry. You know how Cartman gets if he doesn't eat every fourteen minutes." Kenny snickered and pecked his forehead.

"I'm gonna hold you up to that promise."

He scoffed, "yeah. Because I have so many issues with us sleeping together," he rolled his eyes.

"Never know with you, my moody little Jew," he smiled. Kyle stuck his tongue out at him and they laughed together before separating to grab some clothes.

"Goddammit," he heard Kyle mutter.

"What's up?" he asked, sliding his jeans on.

"I need to do laundry. All my shirts are dirty."

"Re-wear one," he shrugged.

"I would, but they're all sticky from the one I threw in the hamper last night," he sighed irritably. Kenny grabbed one of his shirts from out his drawer and threw it at him.

"There ya go, problem solved," he smirked.

Kyle smiled back, "thanks, Dude," he nodded, sliding the shirt over his head and running his fingers through his curls to straighten them out.

"Insulin," Kenny reminded him.

"Oh yeah," he grumbled and sighed. "I'll meet ya out there," he said before leaving the bedroom and shutting the door behind him. Kenny sat on the bed to begin pulling on his shoes and couldn't help but smile.

'_I'm with him because I __**want**__ to be with him!' _Kyle's words echoed around in his head for awhile. He sat up and sighed happily, looking around at the bedroom. It seemed so far from where he was a mere two months ago. The room itself was bigger than the main room at his old house. It was warm, it was a wonderful place to call home. Best of all, it had his Kyle that came along with it. Kenny grabbed the pendant from his nightstand and clasped it around his neck with a small grin upon his features. Anthony was right, you can't define love, but there was something definitely felt between him and the small Jew, and he couldn't get enough of it.

* * *

The boys sat around a large booth at Shakey's, talking and laughing just like old times. Kenny sat with Kyle comfortably under his arm, while Stan and Cartman sat across from them.

"Okay, okay, I got one," Cartman started. "There's an Orthodox priest, a Catholic priest, and a rabbi."

Kyle raised an eyebrow at him. "Cartman...," Stan warned.

"It's cool, Dude, just hang on. Okay, the Catholic and the rabbi ask the Orthodox what he does with the collection money. He says 'I divide it all into a big pile and a small one. The big one's for the church, the small one's for me.' The Catholic says that he divides it into two even piles for himself and the church. They ask the rabbi what he does and he says 'I put all the money on a tray and throw it into air. What God wants, God keeps'."

"Goddammit Cartman!" Kyle yelled and kicked him under the table.

"Jesus, Kyle, it's just a joke," he massaged his shin.

"Learn some better ones!" he commanded.

"Aw, come on," he whined. "That was brilliant and you know it!"

"It was bigoted, that's what it was!"

"Kahl, you know that bigoted is my game."

"Well play something else for once in your lifetime, Asshole!"

Kenny and Stan chuckled lightly. "Will you two ever change?" Stan asked, shaking his head softly.

"Depends, will the Jew convert?"

"Will Fatass drop a hundred pounds before we graduate?"

This sends Stan into a smile. "Dude...we graduate in a month," he leaned back with his hands behind his head.

"God I am so ready to get out of there," Kenny grinned with him.

"You don't even go to the damn school anymore," Cartman raised his brow.

"And he does twice the work that you do," Kyle replied. "Ken's been working his ass off so he can get some extra credits in."

"What does it matter?" Stan asked. "You're not going to college anyways."

"I might one day," he shrugged. "I mean, maybe I'll just take a break and try to figure out what I wanna do with my life."

"That's a good idea," he nodded. "So, you decided where you're going for college, Ky?"

He shrugged, "I'm just gonna go to the Park County College."

"Kyle, that's the lowest ranked college you applied for...why would you go there?"

"I get to stay home," he replied.

"What are you planning on studying?" Cartman asked.

"I think I wanna try writing," he mindlessly stirred his soda.

Cartman burst out laughing. "Writing? What the fuck for?!"

"Um...because I want to?"

"I think you'd be great at it," Kenny nodded. "I read your English papers all the time and they're always awesome," he smiled and squeezed his shoulders.

"I don't think that's raising up to your potential, Ky," Stan commented.

"What, pray tell, is my potential Stan?"

"A doctor or a...um..."

"Just say it, Stan," he sighed.

"A lawyer?"

"Stan, I don't want to live like that. I mean, with this job of Ken and mine's...I deal with the lives of people enough. I couldn't handle the possibility of leading people to their death, especially if I'd have to end up helping them completely go later on..."

"That's understandable," Kenny mused.

"I want to do something with my life that's productive but that I still enjoy, ya know?"

"Yeah...I guess so," Stan stated. "How about you Cartman?"

"Huh?"

"What are you studying in college?" Kyle elaborated.

"Oh...um, I'm going to the Milwaukee School of Engineering," he shrugged.

"Engineering?" Kyle blinked. "Oh God."

"What are you wanting to study?" Stan asked.

"Architecture. Red's gonna study nursing at the same place."

"So when you fall off the scaffolding she'll be able to help you at a discount?" Kyle smirked.

"Damn, you figured out the scam," he rolled his eyes amusedly, taking a small bite of his pizza.

"Why architecture?" Kenny asked.

"I dunno, I've just always liked building stuff, so it just seems like a pretty good idea to me."

"You're not gonna design a concentration camp, are you?" Kyle asked.

"Maybe one just for you," he smirked.

"Oh thank you," he rolled his eyes at him.

"Sweet, you can design all our houses then, huh?" Stan commented.

He leaned back in the booth and pressed his fingertips together in contemplation. "For a price I might."

"And what price would that be?"

"Kyle admits that Hitler was the coolest person to ever grace the Earth with his presence." He smiled at the Semite. "OW! Goddammit, Kahl, stop kicking me!"

"You're lucky I don't bash your face in, you fat fuck!"

"Alright, alright, everybody calm down," Kenny laughed. "Stan? What are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm going to Park County, too. I'm just taking some basic courses, though," he shrugged.

"What about the whole football thing?" he asked.

"Well, they want you to have a decent education, too," he rolled his eyes. "I have to pick an actual major and play football on the side since my grades suck hardcore."

"Hey, we got the astronomy grade back up at least," Kyle smiled.

He returned the expression, "Yeah. I can't thank you enough for that, Dude. I get to play our last game and damn am I excited about it."

"As well you should be," he nodded. "You'll kick their asses."

"Are you still running track, Jew?"

"Hm? Oh. I go every now and then. Coach thinks I'm a liability, though," he shrugged. "I'll race our last race probably and that'll be the end of it. I just want my damn scholarship."

"What are you majoring in, Stan?" Kenny asked, gulping down the last of his pizza.

"I don't know. Doesn't really matter to me. I plan on ditching the school soon as I can."

"You should still pick something you're interested in," Kyle said softly. "How about history?"

"Kyle, I hate history."

"But you're really good at it!" he insisted. "That paper you wrote on the Depression was incredible, Dude. You really have a knack for it."

"I'm not a nerd."

"I never said you were. And what's so nerdy about history?" he frowned.

"Everything," the other three responded together.

"History's probably the most important thing we learn in school," he argued.

"Yeah," Ken snorted, "because McCar-"

"Kenny, if you reference McCarthyism one more time I will knee you in the balls," Kyle growled.

Stan and Cartman looked between them confusedly. "Why is he referencing Cold War stuff?" Stan blinked.

"See?!" Kyle exclaimed. "You're damn good at history! Dude, just take some classes at college, you'd be so awesome at it!"

Stan blinked at him and sighed, "I'll think about it."

"Good," he smiled back.

"God, one month," Kenny shook his head dreamily. "One month and we're free."

"Can't wait," Cartman agreed.

"I can," Kyle grumbled.

"Well that's 'cause you gotta make a big-assed speech to everyone," Stan beamed at him. "You'll do fine, Ky."

"I hate public speaking though," he groaned.

"Aw, come on. Can't be that bad," Kenny commented. "How long does it have to be?"

"Minimum of ten minutes," he sighed.

"Damn," Cartman said. "But you like to rant, so it shouldn't be that hard of a problem."

"It is for me," Kyle replied. "I have to compliment the living hell out of the school. There's not a lot for me to compliment!"

"So just ramble a bit on every subject," Stan shrugged. "It'll be alright."

"Until everyone starts throwing things at me," he muttered. "I'm still not exactly Mr. Popularity."

"So?" Kenny said. "Just remember that you're above all of them so their opinions don't matter. While they're working the pumps at a gas station, you'll be rolling in riches from writing the next great American novel," he grinned sillily.

"Kyle wouldn't roll in the riches," Cartman scoffed. "He'd stow it all away in a safe and bare his teeth at anyone who came within seventy feet of it." He shot his arm down and caught Kyle's foot as it flew towards his shin. "Heh, nice try, Kahl," he smirked.

Kyle growled and took his leg back. "You fucking asshole," he grumbled.

"Yeah, I know," he smiled superiorly.

"You know what I think?" Stan said suddenly.

"Hard to tell with the way your mind works," Kyle grinned.

"I think that we should take a senior trip after we're done with school," he declared. "No parents or any of that shit. We just pick a place and go for a week. I think it'd be awesome."

"Where would we go?" Kenny asked.

"How about we go back to California and actually do stuff like we wanted to last year?" he shrugged. "It's a fairly quick trip and there's a lot that we can do."

"How about Mexico?" Cartman suggested. "Tequila for everyone!"

"Dude, we can get that in Cali, too," Kenny raised his brow.

"True," he mused.

"Come on, guys, I think we should," Stan continued. "I mean, this could be our last summer ever together all four of us. We need to go out in style."

"I think that's a great idea," Kyle nodded. "And Cali seems like a good place to go, too. It wouldn't take a hell of a lot of money to get there and we kinda have a basic idea of what's there, so why not?"

"What about your twos' job?" Cartman raised his brow.

"There are dead people in California, too," Kenny shrugged. "We'll deal with them as we find them, but I think a vacation sounds fucking awesome."

"So when should we go?" Stan asked.

"Well, I have to get time off of work, but that shouldn't be too hard," Kyle shrugged.

"We need to plan around the court date," Cartman stated. "That should be fairly soon, though, so I wouldn't worry much."

"Do you think that July would work out for us?" Kenny asked.

"Maybe," Stan nodded. "I say we all just look around for stuff to do and collaborate on it later. We'll set a date sometime soon."

"Sweet," Cartman grinned.

"Hey, guys," a voice announced overhead. They all looked up to see Craig Tucker standing at the end of their booth.

"What do you want, Tucker?" Stan growled. Kenny tightened his grip around Kyle a bit.

He sighed heavily. "Look, I don't need the third degree from you people. I just want to talk to Broflovski."

"Then talk," Kenny ordered.

"Alone," he added.

"Fuck no!" Ken growled.

"About what?" Kyle raised his brow, slowly scooting closer towards his boyfriend.

"Look, I'd really really rather not discuss this in front of them, okay?" he looked at the redhead pleadingly. "I just need to talk to you about something."

"You can talk right here!" Kenny stated.

Kyle looked from Craig to his seething boyfriend and smirked softly. "It's okay," he said softly, squeezing his thigh. He looked up at Craig and shrugged. "Fine, we'll talk," he agreed, leaving Kenny's grip and following Craig towards the back of the restaurant.

The remaining three stared after him. "I say we spy on 'em," Cartman suggested.

"That'd just piss Kyle off," Stan said, returning his glance towards Kenny. Kenny looked back before sighing and starting to whirl the straw in his glass thoughtlessly.

"If he says anything about Kyle being dead...," he muttered.

"We'll kill him," Stan finished. Kenny back towards him and smiled.

"Whaddya think they're talking about?" Cartman asked.

"Craig's probably trying to get answers for a calc test or something," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Wouldn't surprise me. He's such a fucking asshole," Kenny said.

"Didn't you like, fuck him though?" Cartman raised his brow.

"Doesn't mean I thought he was nice or anything," he shrugged. "I was horny and so was he. The rest writes itself."

"You're always horny," Stan smirked.

Kenny smirked right back at him, "yeah, but Kyle makes sure that that's taken care of properly."

"Gross!" Cartman winced.

Stan just shook his head. "Ya know, I have a feeling that I'm going to have to get used to you talking about your sex life all the time, aren't I?"

"Well if Kyle wasn't so damn good you wouldn't have to."

Cartman looked at him with disgust tracing his face. "Dude, what the hell? He was a fucking virgin when you got together. He can't be that amazing."

"Well, I offered him the chance to prove that wrong to the both of you but he refused the invite," he snickered.

"You seriously did not...," Stan started.

"Oh dude we talk about stuff like that all the time," Kenny laughed. "Remember who I am," he winked.

"I don't know what the fuck Kyle sees in you," he mused with a small grin.

"I honestly don't either. But whatever it is, it's working for me, so I intend on staying the way that I am."

"Well, it's definitely not for your brains," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Or your tact," Stan added.

"Or your income."

"It's for my looks, I bet," Kenny winked again. "He did say I was the hottest guy in school."

"Yeah, but he has to say that since you're dating," Stan laughed.

"I dunno. Wendy says that Kahl's hot," Cartman snickered. "She may be dating you but I bet she'd drop your ass if he put his on the straight market."

Stan frowned at him. "Wendy wouldn't dump me for Kyle. You heard her, she just thinks he's nice looking."

"No, she thinks he's fucking hot," Kenny corrected. "And damn is she right."

"Alright, time for a subject change because I really don't need to hear about the Jew's sex ability anymore," Cartman held up his hands in defeat.

"Wanna hear about his kinks instead?"

"Kenny!" Stan exclaimed.

He laughed softly, "alright, alright, sorry. So, how about them power tools?"

Stan and Cartman blinked at him. "What?" Stan asked.

"Well we're all manly men and we need to discuss manly things because some of us are uncomfortable with talking about sex," Ken smirked.

"You're so fucking retarded," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"You talked to your parents lately?" Stan asked.

Kenny looked at him for a moment before laughing in disbelief. "Where did that come from?"

He shrugged, "I guess I was thinking about the situation with Gerald and I kinda just drifted over towards you."

"My ma called me on my birthday, but that's about it."

"You'd figure you'd talk to em more," he replied softly.

"Dude, I rarely talked to them when I lived under the same roof as them," he quirked his brow. "Dad was always drunk and Ma was just trying to stay out of his way with the rest of us. I don't expect much else than the occasional call."

"Well...sorry," he shrugged.

"Don't be. I don't really care," he shrugged back.

"They coming for graduation?" Cartman asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, ma sent a letter with the check. Her and Pops are coming back for a few days."

"Well that's good," Stan smiled softly. Kenny returned his smile and looked over to see Kyle heading back towards their table quickly, a frustrated expression upon his face. Oh God.

"Ky?" Stan asked. Kyle didn't respond once he got back to the table. He quickly ripped out his wallet and threw a fifty dollar bill down on the table.

"Come on," he commanded, grabbing Kenny's hand and roughly yanking him out of the booth.

"Kyle, what's wrong?" he blinked. Kyle ignored him and grabbed Stan's sleeve, pulling him off the seat as well.

"Let's just go," he stated. "You too Fatass," he muttered before walking off and dragging Stan and Kenny behind him.

"What'd Tucker do?" Stan asked.

"Nothing. Keep going."

"Kyle, what's going on? What'd he say to you?" Kenny demanded.

Kyle kept his grip strong on them and pulled them out of the doors with Cartman trailing behind them confusedly. "It's nothing. I just felt claustrophobic," he muttered.

"That's bull," Stan frowned, trying to pry his sleeve from Kyle's grip. "You only feel claustrophobic in airplane bathrooms." Kyle remained silent, continuing to lead them down the street.

"Ky, stop for a minute!" Kenny pled. "Come on, just stop."

"I will once we're out of here," he replied smoothly.

"Where are we going?" Cartman asked, following right on Stan and Kenny's heels.

"Starks," he mumbled. "It's quiet there." They all blinked at him and glanced at each other. They shrugged and turned to keep their eyes on the little redhead with the strong stride. Kenny and Stan allowed him to lead them since he wasn't seeming to even think about releasing them.

As they approached the pond, Kyle's walking slowed slightly and he let out a heavy sigh before finally releasing his grip on the two larger boys. He turned back to look at them tiredly as the other three stared back quietly.

"What'd he say?" Kenny asked lowly.

"Nothing."

"You're lying," Cartman added, taking a small step towards him.

"No, I'm not," he shook his head.

"Then why are you so distraught?" Stan asked.

"I just am," he looked towards the ground.

Kenny sighed and grasped the boy's chin. "Kyle, what did he say to you?"

Kyle looked back at him with heavy eyes, "Ken, he didn't say anything," he stated. Kenny dropped his grasp and massaged his forehead. This was getting them nowhere quick. He looked back up towards the boy and noticed something.

"Ky, what's under the shirt?" he nodded towards his collarbone.

"Um, nothing?" he blinked at him.

Kenny reached out towards him and he took a step backwards. There was something there, alright. "Kyle, let me see," he commanded.

"Kyle...," Stan warned, stepping towards him with the blonde.

"Dude, back off," Kyle narrowed his eyes at them.

Cartman sighed. "There's an easy solution for this," he muttered. He stepped towards the redhead and grabbed him in a full nelson.

"Cartman! Lemme go!" he yelled. Cartman just held him still and rolled his eyes.

"Just hang on until their done with their worry session and I'll let you go. Now shut up, Jewrat."

Kenny and Stan stepped right up in front of him. Kenny gingerly lowered the neck of the shirt and raised his brow at a red splotch on his collarbone.

"A bruise?" Stan blinked.

Kenny felt his blood rising violently. "That's not a bruise...," he growled through gritted teeth. "That's a fucking hickey!"

"Holy fuck," Stan gaped at Kyle. "You were having a make out session with Craig?!"

Kyle's face dropped into horrified shock as Cartman released his grip on the boy. "You did NOT just fucking say that, Stan!"

"Well what the hell happened then?!"

"You're insinuating that I'm cheating on Kenny!" he yelled.

"Kyle, what did he do to you?" Kenny breathed heavily.

"He fucking gave me a fucking hickey," he looked towards the ground angrily.

"Why didn't you yell for help?" Stan demanded.

Kyle looked up at him with fury in his emerald eyes. "It's hard when a hand's slammed over your mouth, Stanley," he spat. Stan just blinked back at him.

"What did he say to you?!" Cartman asked.

Kyle massaged his temples. "He didn't _say_ anything."

"But obviously something did happen by the way you said that," Ken raised his brow.

Kyle looked up at him sadly. "Yes."

"Okay, what happened?" he pressed. Kyle sighed and took a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and threw it at him, running his fingers through his curls. Stan and Cartman gathered around him and they found Craig's handwriting scrawled messily in crooked lines along the page.

_Broflovski, _

_I'm sorry about the whole issue with Token. It wasn't supposed to go that far. It was kind of trying to convince ourselves of the same thing. Life would be pretty sucky without you around._

_I have to ask you a question though. Why McCormick? What the fuck has he ever done for you? For anyone for that matter? I mean, he let you hurt yourself and now you're holding hands with him? Broflovski, you're smart enough to know that that doesn't make any fucking sense no matter how you look at it. You deserve better. He'll just take you for your body and throw you away like he does everyone else._

_You need someone who'll actually care if you're upset. Someone who'll actually catch on when you're in pain. I knew that you were fucking depressed, why didn't he? The way that you told me that you didn't care about the calculus assignment the night of was a true indicator that you were upset. How did he not catch something so blatant and yet so subtle? I think it's rather obvious._

_He doesn't care, Kyle. He really doesn't. He just wants to fuck you a few times, make you develop feelings for him, and then leave you behind in a trail of tears. Do you really want that? Do you want to end up hurting yourself again? Kyle, that's not right for you. I can help you escape him. I know someone who does care and who will get him out of the way if you just give him the chance. Think about yourself for once. You know what's best for you._

"I asked him if it was some kind of joke," Kyle muttered quietly as Kenny slowly tore his gaze from the letter. They met eyes and stared at each other sadly. "Next thing I know I'm up against the wall and he's trying to fucking eat me."

"How'd you get away?" Stan asked quietly.

He shrugged. "I kneed him in the balls and when he backed up I punched him in the face. He went unconscious and I went out to grab you guys."

There was a heavy silence for a moment before Kenny cleared his throat lightly and looked over at Stan and Cartman. "Can you guys give us a minute?" he asked. Stan nodded and dragged Cartman along with him towards the other side of the pond. "Can we sit?" he asked Kyle, gesturing towards a bench not far from them. He nodded and they walked and sat down together.

"You okay?" Kyle asked.

"Ky...," he started. "You don't...you don't really think that I...."

"Kenny, that letter is a load of shit," Kyle frowned. "I could never believe that you would just leave me behind for no good reason. We've stuck together through all this shit and we've had one fight and it was completely my fault," he grasped Kenny's hand. "Ken, I know you care about me," he smiled. "You never let me forget."

Kenny looked at their hands then back up at him. "He was right about one thing, though," he whispered.

"What's that?" he blinked.

Kenny turned his arm around in his hand and gently stroked the exposed inside of Kyle's forearm. "I had no idea...," he whispered, feeling tears welling in his eyes. "I really didn't...it never even crossed my..."

Kyle grasped his chin and pulled it up, smiling gently. "Ken, I didn't know at the time. Look, he's just trying to find a way to drive us apart. I personally think he's just jealous of me because I got to keep you and he didn't."

"He's crushing on you," Kenny muttered miserably.

"So he has a crush on me," Kyle shrugged. "So what?"

"So you may leave me for him," he sniffed. Kyle looked at him, appalled.

"Kenny, I would never even think of leaving you! Especially not for someone like Craig Tucker!"

"But he's hotter than I am," he whined.

Kyle raised his brow. "Kenny, no one is hotter to me than you. I personally think he's fucking gross looking. Besides, I'm not with you for your looks you damn moron," he rolled his eyes.

"Then why?"

Kyle blinked at him for a moment before sighing and leaning his head on the older boy's shoulder. "I dunno. Maybe it's how you're always there for me. Maybe it's the way you can always make me laugh. Maybe it's just because you're so interesting. I can't say for sure, Ken."

Kenny leaned his head atop Kyle's and intertwined their fingers. "I feel the same about you," he smiled softly. He noticed Stan and Cartman approaching and he sighed gently. "Guess everyone's got their eyes on you, my little Jew."

"You're the only one that matters, though," he responded. Kenny couldn't hold back a larger smile from spreading across his face.

"We okay to come back?" Stan asked.

"Yeah, whatever," Kyle shrugged.

"So...we gonna kill Craig?" Cartman asked.

"No," Kyle said firmly. "No one's hurt. Nothing's broken. It'd be stupid to just run off and attack him."

"He attacked you," Stan pointed out.

"Yes, but I attacked back."

"You defended yourself."

"By attacking," he finished. "Look, he won't bug me anymore. I think he's got the message that I'm not interested in him."

"Like that's ever stopped a hormonal teen," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Come on," Kenny sighed irritably, taking Kyle and standing up with him. "Let's go do something to get our minds off of it, shall we?" Kyle looked up at him and smiled softly, squeezing the blonde's hand gently. Kenny smiled back, lost in his thoughts. He desperately wanted nothing more than to punch Craig's face in, but he was starting to see just how little good it would do him.

He'd come to find that there seemed to be a constant pattern in his actions of defense: Take one down and three more come back up. It was scary as hell, seeing Kyle so susceptible to attack. But what would taking matters into his own hands cause? The last two times he had tried, he'd only mattered to make things worse for both himself and Kyle. Perhaps it was time to step aside and let nature run its course, only standing up to danger when it was staring him in the face and was holding his Jew at its mercy.

* * *

_A/N: Did I pull off a good homophobe? Haha._

_Ah, Craig is after Kyle's tight Jewish ass too XD...it's really not gonna be that big of a plot point, but it's just something on the side for some interesting future conversation and turns in the story._

_So...yeah. I gave all the boys some futures...what the hell is with Cartman and Stan's careers? XD...randomoscity is my game ;)_

_Thanks for everything! (And my teacher didn't see the sex scene, so I'm safe, haha)_

_* Leviticus 18:22_

_** 2 Chronicles 15:12-13 NAB_

_*** Exodus 35:2_


	34. In Control

_A/N: I want some nachos. I don't care that that has nothing to do with anything. But I'm SERIOUSLY craving nachos DX_

_Okay, fast forward to Wednesday here =)_

_Enjoyyyyyy_

* * *

_The air was muggy, heavy to breathe in. He looked around for some sort of escape, finding only a small beam of light shining through what seemed to be a hole in the invisible wall surrounding him. He bent down to peer through it, squinting to focus his eyes better. He could just barely make out a form on the other side before his vision suddenly faded into a turquoise shade, overpowering his other senses and sending him falling back in confusion. He shut his eyes for a moment before reopening them and gaping at a shining light amidst the blue-green surroundings. The light came closer as slowly, he found himself staring at a pale redhead with a gentle smile on his face. The air cleaned into a crisp, fresh scent, so much so he could practically taste its purity._

"_Come on," he redhead smiled still, holding his hand out towards him, his voice rebounding around the space. "I won't bite," he promised. The fallen form grabbed the boy's hand and allowed him to help him to his feet. As he gained ground, they continued to hold hands still, staring into each others eyes intensely. A grin broke across his face as well as they leaned in closer to each other, close enough to count the other's eyelashes. "I like being here with you," the redhead said sweetly, a coy smile playing across his lips._

_The other reached up and played with a lock of the fiery hair, slowly pulling him in closer and making contact with the other's lips. "So beautiful," he murmured, running his hands through the plush curls. The redhead took his hands and gently grasped the boy's face, letting his fingers linger on the narrow cheeks as they continued to press into each other. They broke apart slowly as thick smoke began to surround them. They looked around confusedly before the redhead was forcefully ripped away from his grasp. They held hands together still as he tried to pull him back into him, but the other force proved too much and eventually he was completely torn apart from the small form. He ran after him, but lost him in the smoky surroundings._

"_Where'd you go?!" he shouted._

"_HELP!"_

"_Where'd you go?!" he repeated with more desperation edging his voice. "I can't find you!"_

"_Help me!" the voice echoed._

"_I'm trying!"_

"_Lemme go!"_

"_Hello?!" he screamed, turning around repeatedly as he ran in random directions, trying to find the source of the sound._

He felt his body shaking immensely, but couldn't tell if it was himself or an outside force.

"_Kenny?"_

_He tried to respond, his voice merely a squeak._

"_Kenny?!" it repeated, this time louder. "Ken, please! I need you," it cried._

He shot his eyes open, finding himself back in the room, his body pouring with sweat. He looked up to find Kyle staring down at him with large fearful and tearstained eyes.

"What's wrong?" he shot up in the bed and looked at him.

Kyle sniffed and threw himself into his chest. "I had a bad dream..." he snuggled in close to him. Kenny sighed in relief and wrapped his arms around him, rocking him back and forth.

"I'm here, Ky, it's okay."

"I'm scared," he shuddered.

"Don't be," he stroked his hair, shuddering at the familiar texture that he had experienced in his dream. "I'm not gonna let anything hurt you."

"They're back," he whispered, trying to dig himself deeper into Kenny.

"The voices?" He nodded against his torso and shook. "What're they saying?" he whispered.

"I can't tell," he sobbed. "There's so many of them!" The blonde reached over and flicked on the lamp beside him, wincing at the sudden intrusion of brightness. He reached under Kyle's chin and brought his head up, meeting stares with that of somber navy iris' once again. His face fell in concern for his love, and he brought his lips down to meet his forehead.

"They're not gonna get you," he whispered.

"What do they want?!" he cried again, throwing his head back into Kenny's frame.

"I don't know."

"I just want them to leave me alone!" he tensed under Kenny's grip.

"We'll find a way, Ky, I promise," he tightened his grip around the shaking boy.

"How? Why won't they leave me alone, Kenny?!"

"I don't know," he repeated, his voice cracking slightly. "I'm gonna help you. We're gonna get rid of them for good, I promise," he rubbed the poor kid's back. Kyle just continued to cry into his toned form, all the while Kenny fought back tears of his own. He wished that he could hear these voices, too, so he could scream at every single one of them to stop fucking around with his Jew. God it hurt to hear him like this. They sat together huddled under their covers, trying to calm themselves down. Kenny watched the clock silently, observing a full hour go by before Kyle was finally asleep again. He looked down at the boy and sniffed loudly, trying to not break down himself.

He slowly lowered the slumbering redhead down back onto his pillow and gingerly got off the bed and walked out of the room, softly shutting the door behind him. "Shit," he muttered, shaking his head as he plopped down into the chair. He placed his face into his palms and let out a dry sob.

"You're not handling this well," a voice pointed out. He turned to see Damien sitting on the couch with a concerned look across his features.

"Would you?" he whispered.

"Probably not," he shrugged. He looked towards the closed door and back towards the sniveling blonde. "He gonna be okay?"

"I don't know," he cried. "I don't fucking know anymore. It seems like he's getting worse and I don't know what to do about it!" Damien sighed and got up to sit on the arm of the chair and comfortingly pat Kenny's shoulder.

"Just hang on for him," he said gently. "He'll get better. It's just gonna take some time."

"But it's been two months and he's just falling over and over again!"

"Sometimes the healing process has some falls before it actually starts to work," he replied.

"But how far will he fall?" he whispered. "What if he does it again, Damien?"

"McCormick, he can't..."

"I know he can't!" he spat angrily. "That doesn't make the goddamn situation any better!" Damien blinked at him a moment before nodding slowly in agreement.

"Yes...yes, you're right. In fact, that seems to make it worse."

"Exactly," he sniffed. "God, I'm so fucking paranoid about it. I have trouble not following him to work anymore, ya know? I'm so afraid that he's gonna hurt himself again and I'll just get a call from the hospital."

"Look, I think you're underestimating the daywalker," he said sternly. "I have my doubts about him as well, but you can tell that he's trying to pull through this."

"But it's not working!"

"And it may not for quite some time," he shrugged. "Broflovski's got a lot on his mind. It's a lot to juggle for a kid."

"He's always been amazing at juggling things though."

"Not things like this, Ken," he looked at him sympathetically. "I think this is going to be a case of trial and error. Just ride out the therapy sessions for awhile and see if he gets any better."

Kenny sighed heavily and leaned back into the chair. "I...I don't know what to do," he repeated softly.

"And you may never know. This is a personal problem for Kyle. You just happen to be there for his back support."

"Just his support...," Kenny's face fell further.

"Hey, without back support, no one could stand. Life would be nothing to the motionless," Damien reassured him. "What you're doing means more to him than anything else. Just you being with him is enough to keep his emotions on the lighter side of things, never doubt that."

"Re...really?"

He nodded and broke into a smile. "Trust me. Last time he got angry was when that Craig dude tried to claim him." Kenny's brows furrowed at the mention of the boy's name. "But when he's with you, he's still a bit restless, but he feels much better. Trust me," he repeated.

"Damien...," he paused, taking a deep breath. "What do you think will happen?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"Do you think he's going to be alright?"

The ruby-eyed boy paused for a moment in contemplation and sighed. "I don't know him like you do, Ken. I honestly couldn't tell you. While I certainly hope that things will work out for the best, I know that that's not something I should be trying to guarantee you."

Kenny sighed in return. "This blows, Dude. I...I just want him to be okay again."

"He will be so long as you protect him from not only others but himself as well. Give him some time, McCormick. You have eternity to work this out...I'm sure he'll be okay with some patience on both of your parts." He clapped his shoulder a few times. "I have to get back, are you gonna be okay?"

"I hope so," he shrugged. "I'll see ya around," he nodded at him.

"See ya," he replied as he faded from view. Kenny just dropped his head again and sniffed. Time. What was time anymore? Did time really matter in the grand scheme of things for himself and Kyle anymore? After all, it was merely one large span of moments. They weren't at the risk of life suddenly being taken away...so the word time seemed to hold little significance in the blonde's mind.

"Ken?" a voice croaked out. He looked back and saw Kyle standing in the doorway with red eyes.

"Kid, why are you up?" he asked, getting to his feet.

"I...I couldn't stay asleep," he shrugged. "I'm sorry I woke you..."

He walked over and grasped the boy in his arms. "Don't be. I'm glad you did like I asked," he smirked. He stared deeply into his eyes and sighed in relief. "So the voices stopped."

Kyle sniffed and nodded. "Yeah, they finally shut up," he tried to smile, but failed miserably and dropped his head in a defeated sigh. "Kenny, what's wrong with me?" he asked softly.

"Absolutely nothing," he assured him.

"Then why do I feel so...," he sighed angrily. "Why am I so helpless about this whole damn thing?"

"Ky, you're a bit traumatized," he said softly, pushing his red locks back. "This isn't going to be a walk in the park."

"I just hate not being in control of so much," he mumbled miserably. "I used to actually pull the strings on my life and situations in my life and now...now I feel like I don't know anything about myself," he looked up at him with shining eyes.

"I know a lot about you," he replied softly. "You're Kyle Broflovski. You're 17 years old and you're 128 pounds. Your best friend is Stan Marsh and I'm your boyfriend, the one you lost your virginity to," he smiled softly. "You hate steak and rap music and you love to draw. You've won seventeen art contests since high school started even though you think that your work isn't very good. You have type one diabetes and it pisses you off that you can't eat sugar with the rest of us. You're the smartest damn kid at South Park High and you've even earned valedictorian with absolutely no competition standing in your way. You're incredibly caring and it tends to get you into trouble," he squeezed him tighter. "You've been through the most hellacious two months of your life and yet you still try to maintain a strong stance despite how saddened you are by the entire situation...And you're the boy I love and that I never want to change."

Kyle looked up at him and smiled gently. "I love you too," he said softly, leaning up and meeting his lips. Kenny pressed back eagerly, devouring the sweet taste of Kyle's lips. His eyes flashed up to the clock on the wall, reading 5:43.

Worked for him.

He pulled the boy in closer and forcefully pushed back into him, running his fingers through the thick curls pressing their bare chests together tightly to mold them into one torso. As they continued to lock lips, he slid the boy's pants down, revealing his now semi-erect cock and gently ran his finger over it. Kyle trailed his fingers lightly down Kenny's sides and ran them under his boxer's waistband, tracing around his waist lovingly before finally prying the fabric away and letting it drop to the floor. They stayed standing like this for awhile: their bare forms locked together, soft moans escaping from their throats as their tongues explored each other's mouths lovingly.

Kenny pulled back a bit and licked his lips as he stared into Kyle's eyes, offering him a gentle smirk before kneeling down in front of him. He took the boy's hardened member into his hand, gently squeezing on the blazing flesh before running his tongue along it, listening to the Jew's purrs with excitement. He fully engulfed him, smoothly bobbing back and forth, playing with his balls as he went. Kyle's fingers tangled into his hair, finally sliding down to across the blonde's shoulders as he pulled away from his cock and stood in front of him. Kyle looked at him confusedly as Kenny quickly pressed his lips.

"You're in control now," he whispered.

Kyle blinked at him as he grabbed one of his pale arms from off his shoulder, grasping the hand and kissing it gently, running from the back to the tip of his fingers. He took the boy's index and middle finger, suckling on them sweetly all the while observing Kyle's look of shock with a sultry gaze.

"Are...are you sure?" Kyle blinked.

"I am," he pulled off the boy's digits. "I'm not the only guy in this relationship," he smirked. "Come on, be my first," he winked. Kyle broke into a smile and leaned up to kiss him once again. Kenny welcomed his mouth, all the while slowly backing them up towards the arm of the couch. His stomach fluttered in more ways than one. He had absolutely no idea what to expect, but Kyle seemed to like it...so it shouldn't be too bad...hopefully. They broke apart once more and Kenny turned around, leaning his stomach over the arm and propping his upper body with a pillow.

Kyle gently stroked his back and ass and laughed softly. "I'm telling you...this is gonna hurt like a motherfucker the first time around."

"I can tough it ou-!" he stopped mid-sentence and gasped lightly as Kyle inserted his index finger into his entrance and rubbed. After he adjusted to the first one, Kyle very cautiously placed in his second finger, scissoring him as gently as he could. "Jesus Christ...," he bit his lip as he felt it stinging.

"You okay?" Kyle asked in concern.

"Fuck yes, keep going!" he ordered, pressing his hips back into Kyle's fingers. The Jew laughed softly.

"Guess so," he mused, he continued thrusting his fingers in and out of the Kenny, watching his facial expressions contort occasionally, only to bring him into a look of pleasure as he roughly scraped against his prostate. The blonde moaned softly and clung onto the pillow beneath him, looking lost in a dream.

A rumble emitted from his throat as Kyle leaned down, still fingering him, and began kissing and nipping his back. "Oh god...," he mumbled. "Mmm...Kyle...Kyle..."

Kyle pulled back a bit and laughed, his breath hot against Kenny's already blazing skin. "You seem to be enjoying yourself," he whispered.

"Kyle...," he panted. "Kyle...fuck me?"

Kyle paused for a moment as Kenny looked back at him desperately. "You're absolutely positive?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, yes!" he bit his lip, pleading with his stare. Kyle nodded and removed his fingers, gently running them up Kenny's spine and sending tingles throughout his body. He leaned back down and kissed the nape of his neck.

"Ready?" he whispered. Kenny nodded vigorously, grasping tighter onto his pillow as holding it closely against him. He bit down on it as Kyle started to bury himself into him. He felt tears stinging at his eyes as he was invaded, prompting a large dose of excruciating pleasure to course through his body. Kyle paused as he reached more than halfway into him, looking at Kenny for any sign of pain or doubt. He wasn't going to find any. Kenny wanted this. To urge him on, Kenny impatiently thrust his hips back, completely swallowing Kyle into him. He let out a soft yelp into his pillow and shook a little.

"Come on...fuck me...," he whispered. Kyle obliged, slowly thrusting in and out of him, careful not to go too fast and hurt his boyfriend. It continued to sting, though Kenny could feel small flashes of pleasure meeting him, and yearned to feel more. He gave Kyle complete control, letting him take it slow until he believed that Ken was ready to keep going up in speed. The blonde's eyes rolled upwards in bliss as Kyle increased his pace, gently tracing his sides with loving fingertips.

"Oh god...," Kyle whispered, continuing to pound into the larger boy.

"Nn-nngh...," Kenny agreed. He tried to come up with a comprehensive statement, but any thoughts were soon thrown away at the feeling of Kyle's hot skin flying in and out of his own body. He clawed harshly into his pillow and sunk in his teeth as Kyle increased once more. He listened to his balls slapping against his own skin and licked his lips hungrily. "Ahh...ahh...," he moaned softly in a high pitched voice. "God..."

Kyle chuckled as he continued to drive into him, reaching under him and starting to jack his cock. Kenny gasped and arched up. "Holy fucking Jesus!" he cried out.

"Most intelligible thing you've said so far...," Kyle panted in response.

"Sh-shut up," he bit his lip as Kyle continued to work on him. He clenched his fists together and tightly shut his eyes, rocking his hips back against Kyle with the want for more. Kyle thrust into him just as harshly, roughly hitting his prostate and prompting several yelps to escape him.

"Love you," Kyle smiled at the whimpering boy.

"God do I know it...," he grinned wildly, turning his eyes up towards the redhead. He quickly re-shut them however as he felt himself tensing up. "Ahh...ahhhh....," he moaned loudly.

Kyle let out a few small purrs, still going at it harshly as he approached his own ending.

"Mmm...Kyle," he licked his lips. "Harder..." Kyle obeyed, thrusting with all his might into the blonde, earning himself several gasps and a few swear words. "God, yes...," Kenny panted. He sounded like a twenty dollar whore, but why shouldn't he? This was fucking incredible!

"Oh Jesus...," Kyle licked his dry lips and continued going, tugging harder on Kenny's aching cock.

"Oh...oh God...," Kenny whimpered, arching his back up and supporting himself on straightened arms. "I'm...I'm gonna...oh fuck, KYLE!" he screamed euphorically as he released into Kyle's hand. He trembled heavily, still feeling Kyle's thrusts as he finally stopped releasing. He began to shake even more vigorously as he felt Kyle exploding deep into him, muttering his name time and again and clasping him around his waist. They both stayed like that for a minute, trying to regain their breath before Kyle pulled out of him. Kenny straightened up and turned around, grabbing him and throwing him onto the couch before leaning over top him and locking lips with him. He pulled back and they shared smiles.

"That was fucking amazing," he grinned toothily. "God, no wonder you like this so much!"

Kyle laughed and played with some of his hair. "So happy to have made you happy."

"And how did you like your first time topping my love?"

He looked up thoughtfully for a moment. "It was fucking awesome," he nodded. "Though I have to say I think I like it the other way around more."

"Really?" he asked with a quirked brow.

"Mhmm," he nodded again.

"Why?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I guess I just like it when you're in charge of how I'm feeling," he smiled sweetly at him. "This is one of the few things in life I don't need control of because you're the expert in the subject," he winked.

Kenny looked at him for a moment before sitting up and staring at him. Something about that comment...

"Ken? You okay?" he asked, sitting up on his knees and gazing in concern at the blonde.

"I...I dunno. I've kinda...I'm wondering something," he stammered out.

"What's that?"

"Am I different than we were two months ago?" he blurted out.

Kyle raised his brow and cocked his head slightly. "What do you mean?"

"You're...you're still the smart one. Stan's still the jock...and Cartman's still the insensitive asshole..." he looked back into his green eyes sadly. "Am I still the whore?"

Kyle's eyes widened and he scooted closer to the blonde, placing a comforting hand on his knee. "Ken, I didn't mean it like that," he said softly.

"I know you didn't, but I'm just wondering. Am I still considered the whore of us? I mean...I'm not anything else...I never have been."

Kyle frowned. "No, you're not a whore. You're a perv, but we never called you a whore."

"Cartman did on plenty occasions."

"Cartman called me a dirty Christ killer, and that's not true, is it?"

"Well...there was that one time when you really did kill-"

"Okay, bad example," he interrupted before sighing heavily and wrapping his arms around him. "Ken, you're not a whore or anything of the sort. You did have quite a few...flings back then but that's over with now. You didn't sell yourself, you merely did what made you feel good. I don't judge you for that. If you did it now, I would. But the past is the past."

"But...then what am I?"

Kyle kissed his cheek sweetly. "You're the joker. You're the shameless pervert. You're the one with the most knowledge about the real world. The partier. The crazy one. The sweet one. The cute one," he nuzzled into his shoulder. "You're everything, that's what you are." he finished softly. Kenny smiled and turned to pull him into a warm embrace.

It was amazing. Not just an hour ago was Kyle crying over hearing things, over seeing horrible things repeatedly in his head and clinging to Kenny for comfort. Yet now, here he was, doing the exact opposite. He held onto Kenny and gently stroked his back, as if trying to reenforce his words, to assure him of his feelings. It wasn't necessary, however. Kenny knew that he held what he said to be true. He held the Jew in his arms for God knows how long, clinging to each other, each trying to silently convince the other that they were there for them, that they had nothing to worry about.

But they already knew. There was never any doubt.

* * *

Kenny impatiently bounced his leg atop the other, staring intently at the clock. "Dude, calm down," Kyle instructed, flipping through a magazine beside of him.

"I'm fidgety," he frowned.

"So I noticed," he smirked back. He turned back to his magazine and sighed. "Why are you fidgety?"

"I dunno. Guess I'm a little anxious for Joe to look at your stuff...can I read it before him?!"

"No," he said firmly. "To be honest I really don't know if I want you to know my dreams at all."

"Why not?"

"Because my dreams are fucking insane anymore. I swear, it's like an obsession of mine or something for bad things to happen. And some of them are just plain weird," he shrugged.

"Like?"

"You'll see after awhile," he sighed again, casually leafing through the pages. Kenny frowned and turned back towards the front, crossing his arms. He felt Kyle lean onto his shoulder and loosened up a bit, opting to look at the pages with his boyfriend.

"Only you would pick up National Geographic when there's a Hot Rod right beside it," he smirked.

Kyle looked up towards him and returned the expression. "I already have a hot rod in my life. Why would I need a magazine?" Kenny laughed and they met lips softly.

"Kyle?"

They looked over and saw Joe standing and waving at them. They broke apart and smiled sheepishly as they walked over towards him. He waved them in the door and they walked over to plop down together on the couch, sending Kenny into a slight cringe and placing Kyle on the brink of laughter.

"So how are the two of you?" he smiled as he joined them around the area.

"We're okay," Kyle smiled softly.

"Good," he nodded. He looked at the notebook in Kyle's grasp and smiled a bit brighter. "Your logs?" he asked. Kyle nodded and handed them over to him. He leafed through the pages, his grin fading slightly as he read on. He looked up towards Kyle in concern. "Are these down to the last detail?" he asked softly.

"As much as I could remember," he shrugged.

Joe leaned back and took a deep breath. "Boys, are you doing anything after this?"

"Um, grocery shopping," Kenny shrugged.

"Can I get you to stay for an hour this time?" he asked. "I really want to tackle all of this in one sitting if we could." Kenny looked at Kyle for an answer.

"Uh...s-sure...," he bit his lip. "Am...am I insane?"

"Not by a long shot but you're certainly developing some rather disturbing traumatization-induced thoughts," he looked at the poor boy seriously.

"Um...I'm sorry?" he shrugged for lack of anything else he could do.

Joe regained his grin, though it was noticeably sadder. "Do not apologize. We're not here to make you feel bad or like you did anything wrong because trust me, you didn't. We're here because we want to make you healthy again, alright? So no more apologizing."

"I'm sorry," he said softly.

Joe laughed and shook his head before looking back down at the notebook. "Alright. We have seven days worth of dreams. We're going to take this one day at a time. We're going to analyze each part that we can and then we're going to see what aspects of your life have played part into the dream. Are you okay with us doing that?"

"Yes."

"Are you alright with Kenny being in here as we do it?"

Kyle let out a sigh. "He's the one who helps me get over them, so he might as well know what it is I'm freaking out over." Kenny wrapped his arm around the boy and pulled him into his form, allowing him access to cuddle into his chest as he often did in need of reassurance.

"Alright. Wednesday night," he handed the book back to Kyle. "Tell me about it." Kyle looked down at his notes and kept his focus down there as he started to speak.

"It started out seeming like it'd be a good dream," he shrugged. "It was like...green in color. Me and Ken were there, we were walking...everything seemed fine," he looked up at the man jotting down notes and over towards the blonde with a small smile before it faded into a saddened frown. "Then...then we broke up. I don't know how. We just started fighting and we were apart. Then something happened..."

"What's that?"

"I was...I was kidnapped or something. Something grabbed me and held me down. Then everything started hurting. It felt like someone was stabbing me over and over again. I swear, it was like they were torturing me or just trying to make me suffer...," he trailed off and looked over towards the wall sadly.

Joe finished taking his notes and looked up at him. "Alright. Some good news and some bad news," he smiled at him softly. Kyle looked back up at him with saddened eyes. "Good news is your relationship," he gestured towards the both of them. "You said it was green. Green is the color you want for something like this," he smiled. "Green symbolizes good things. Peace, some vigor, and a good change. The fact that you were with him and moving shows that he creates a good impact on your life, he keeps you going towards goals and other elements in your life. Now...the break up. It could mean that you need a change in your life."

Kenny's eyes widened and he pulled Kyle closer into him. Joe observed his and laughed softly. "Don't worry, it doesn't specifically mean that you need to break up. It could just mean that you need to move past these feelings that you're experiencing and find yourself in a different position. Alright, the kidnapping. Were you kidnapped when you were raped?"

"Not...technically, no," he said softly. "I went on my own accord."

"Your own?" he repeated. "Kyle, were you aware of what was going to happen to you?" he asked.

"I had a pretty good suspicion," he sighed, he intertwined his and Kenny's hands and squeezed gently. Joe nodded to his own thoughts and jotted down some more notes. "Okay, we're going to leave the dream for just a moment. Now I want you to describe the rape for me," he looked at him seriously. "I know it'll be hard, but I just want to know what led you up into that point and I want your emotions. We'll do a simple walkthrough and you'll just lead me through the situation. Can you do that?" Kyle took a deep breath and nodded.

"I guess I can try."

"Good," he smiled. "Close your eyes. Both of you," he nodded towards Kenny as well. They obliged, shutting their lids and leaning their heads back. "Alright. You've just confronted your rapists, Kyle. What do you see?"

"Kenny."

"In your head?"

"No, he's tied to a chair."

"Why is he tied to a chair?"

"They took him."

"Kenny, what do you see?"

"Ky. He looks terrified."

"Of what?"

"_For_ me," he said softly. "He doesn't really seem to care about much else in the room."

"What does this room look like, Kyle?"

"It's...cold. Cement floor. The walls are wooden and rotting. It smells musky...nasty. It's just so cold."

"Kenny, how are you tied to the chair?"

"My arms are cuffed behind my back...my legs are cuffed to the chair."

"Kyle, you're staring your attacker in the face. What's in his eyes?"

"They're...they're dark. They have lust in them. They know that they're going to win."

"How do they know that?"

"Because they know that they have Kenny," he said softly, nuzzling in deeper into said blonde.

"What do they do to indicate that they're going to take advantage of you?"

"One of them grabs me. The other tells me that I need to do what they say...and then he plays with the button on my jeans."

"Kenny, you're witnessing this. How are you feeling?"

"Sick. Disgusted. Terrified. Anxious. I want out of the goddamn chair!"

"Kyle, you look towards Kenny after you learn of their intentions. What do you do?"

"I just let them continue. I'm not about to fight them back."

"Ken, you're screaming for them to get away. What happened?"

"He came up and took a scarf...tied it around my mouth," he gritted his teeth.

"Kyle, what happened after that?"

"They made me get on my knees...they tied my wrists behind me." Kenny subconsciously tightened his grasp around him.

"Kenny, what happened after that?"

"Um...something personal...," he drawled out.

"What exactly?"

"I don't think...," he started softly. He felt Kyle's hand tighten around his and he sighed. "They made Kyle...uh..."

"Nothing leaves this room," the man reminded him gently.

He sighed in defeat. "He made Ky suck me off," he said quietly.

"How did that make you feel?"

"Disgusted," he muttered.

"With the men who made him do this?"

"With myself." There as a small pause in the room. Kyle worked his arms around him and clasped him tightly.

"Why would you feel like that?"

"Because it was my fault," he sniffed. "Ky should of had to...he didn't...," he felt Kyle trembling and shot his eyes open, looking at his shaking form before realizing the warm trail of tears streaming down his own face. He looked over at Joe with glassy eyes, able to make out his sympathetic glance.

"I think that'll do for now," he stated quietly. "Maybe one day we'll come back to this. But this may have just been a little too soon for you...," he sighed and brought his hand up to massage his forehead. "Boys, I'm sorry to make you revisit it like this. I wasn't aware that this physically involved both of you."

"We probably should have told you," he Kyle replied quietly.

"As of now, we need you two to realize that revisiting is hard, but necessary for the healing process. This was a small step before we hit the heart of the situation, but it was important, nonetheless. We'll try coming back to it eventually, but as of now, I think we'll call it quits, hm?" he looked between the two despondent boys and bit his lips, glancing at the clock. "It's been about forty-five minutes, you just wanna get out of here to calm down?"

"Please?" Kyle whispered.

He nodded and they all three slowly got to their feet. "I truly am sorry, boys. Kyle, keep logging the dreams. We'll really hit em next time, alright?"

"Kay," he nodded. He shook Joe's hand and shot him a half-hearted smiled before silently leading Kenny out the door.

Kenny merely blinked, allowing the redhead to lead him through the office. They stopped by the receptionists desk briefly, Kenny not catching a single word spoken between the two talkers. Finally, they broke outside into the blazing sunlight and the crisp air. They walked hand-in-hand down the sidewalk as they had many times in the past, their nerves dangling on the edge.

"I don't blame you, you know," Kyle finally broke the silence after what seemed like eons of awkward tension.

"I know you don't," he replied softly. "But I do."

"You shouldn't. You didn't know that they were there."

"I should've been able to fight for myself. I should've been able to protect you," he kept his gaze in front of them, desperate to not look into the green iris' currently boring into him.

"You can't always protect me."

"But I want to," he sniffed, tightening his hand's grasp.

"I know you do, but we can't always save people," Kyle shrugged. "Sometimes fate just won't let it happen."

"Fuck fate," he spat. "We're making our own," he looked over at him, meeting a confused gaze from the smaller boy. "Kyle, I don't give a flying fuck what fate says we can or can't do. I'm going to fucking protect you and nothing from this world or any other is going to fucking stop me," his voice cracked slightly.

Kyle stopped them and turned to embrace him, leaning the taller boy's head into his shoulder and lovingly rubbing his back. "Ken, stop."

"Stop what?" he asked, inhaling Kyle's clean scent.

"Stop being like this. I love you and I love how you care so much about me. But you need to realize that _you_ come first. Not me."

"What do you-"

"You've lost weight," he interrupted softly. "You're always exhausted looking. And it's because you won't stop fretting over me. Kenny, you need to take care of you and just be there for me on the side."

"But I -"

"Stop arguing and listen to me," he stated firmly, still holding him against him. "Look, I know that I'm not in the best of health right now, but now you're falling into the same state. I don't want that, alright? All you do anymore is worry about me, and in turn all I do is worry about you. We should be enjoying our time together, not just freaking out because the other seems so lost or whatever."

"I...I..." Kenny searched his brain desperately for a response, unable to quite comprehend what was happening. Had he really fallen like Kyle was saying? He worked his arms up and grasped Kyle back, nuzzling into the crook of his neck and sniffing loudly. Kyle moved them from off the sidewalk and towards the park behind a tree. He knelt them both down together and continued to caress Kenny's back as he let out large sobs into his throat and trembled. "I'm sorry...," he croaked out.

"Don't be," he whispered.

"I just want you to be safe...and I can't fucking save you!" he cried loudly.

Kyle kissed the top of his head and gently stroked his hair. "You already have," he replied. "The mere fact that you're here is all that matters to me. I don't want you to be in front of me to take a bullet, Kenny. I want you behind me to catch me when I take it myself."

"But I don't want you hurt!" he screamed, pulling Kyle closer to him.

"You can't prevent it from happening. I get hurt. You get hurt. Everyone does. We don't like it, but that's just the way it works."

"It shouldn't," he sniffed.

"But it does," he gently kissed the boy's ear. "Look, I'm going to fall sometimes, as are you. We can't prevent it from happening. We don't hold that kind of power. However, when we one of us does fall, we can rest assured that the other will pick us back up and do all they can to prevent us from falling further." Kenny sniffed, looking at the grass behind Kyle with glittering eyes.

"I'm sorry about this," he blushed.

"As many breakdowns as I've had you think I mind you doing this?" Kyle raised his brow, clutching him tighter. "Dude, I think this is long overdue. As much as I've been stressing you out lately? I'm surprised you haven't bashed my head in or something."

Kenny shot back from him and looked at him with shining eyes. "I would **never** do that!"

Kyle shook his head at him amusedly. "Ken, I know that. You would never hurt me," he grabbed his hand and smiled reassuringly. "Trust me, I know." He reached up and brushed some of the blonde's disheveled hair back and sighed. "I don't know how you do it, Dude."

"Do what?"

"Able to hold everything in for so long without exploding."

"I have great endurance," he smirked. Kyle laughed softly.

"Not what I meant, but you are right," he winked.

"Kyle, you held your feelings in for four years...you really think that I have better control?"

Kyle nodded, "I do. That...the time I died...Dude, it wasn't the first time I had done something like that."

Kenny's eyes widened in shock. "What?" he whispered desperately.

"It wasn't my first attempt," he shrugged.

"How...how many..."

"Three other times. Once a year."

"Oh my...oh my God....Dude, how did we not know?!" Kenny screamed.

He shrugged again. "My parents made sure that word didn't get out that their perfect son wasn't quite so perfect. After all, who knows what it would do to the Broflovski reputation should one of us die by suicide," he rolled his eyes.

"What...what did you do?" he asked softly.

"Once by not taking my insulin. Once by overdosing on some meds. Once by drinking myself stupid."

Kenny's mouth remained agape. "What?!" his jaw trembled. "How far did you get?"

"The first time I fell into a ketoacidotic coma. I was out for a few days. Mom told everyone that I was just severely contagious from the flu so no one could visit me. The second time I had to be taken to the hospital to have my stomach pumped and was under observation for awhile. The third time I fell into a hypoglycemic coma from the alcohol and my mom pulled the same flu story out of her ass." He looked at Kenny guiltily. Kenny stared back in shock.

"They didn't do anything to help you?" he whispered in disbelief.

He shook his head, "No. Counselors and suicide hotlines could very well have tarnished the Broflovski name," he looked away at the ground beside them and sighed. "Oh well. It's the past."

"But...but...Kyle...you tried to..."

He held up his hand to stop him. "Exactly. I tried. Look, I know what I did was wrong, but sometimes you feel that way. Things will get better," he smiled at him reassuringly.

"Have you told Stan?"

"What? Of course not," he frowned. "You know Stan, he'd go through a freak out and try to put me on lockdown."

"He's your best friend though," he said slowly.

"And you're my boyfriend," he raised his brow. "Stan doesn't need to know everything. He worries almost as much as you. Problem is that he'd hover over me twenty four seven to make sure I didn't try anything."

"So do I," Kenny replied.

"Yeah, but if he did it sex would be really awkward," he shrugged with a playful smirk. Ken smirked back with a small laugh.

"We could try a threesome if you're up for it."

Kyle shuddered. "No thanks. I don't think that'd be very comfortable."

"Come on though," he winked and pushed him playfully. "Imagine getting slammed by a hood rat _and_ a quarterback. You'd be the luckiest little Jew in town, my dear." Kyle shook his head at him.

"Kenny, you're twisted, Dude."

"Aw, you'd enjoy it," he leaned back and grinned widely.

"And how, though I'm afraid to ask, did you come about that conclusion?"

"Stan has an awesome schlong," he snickered. Kyle blinked at him.

"How the fuck would you know that?"

"Aw, come on, Broflovski," he rolled his eyes in good humor. "We all had gym together and I know that you two have seen each other naked."

"That doesn't mean I was ogling him!"

"Well why not? I was ogling all of you!...'cept Cartman of course. There's one person of very few that I would never ever ever care to see without pants."

"Kenny! You don't openly admit that you're staring at people in the locker room!"

"Why not?" he shrugged innocently. "Stan was looking at you more than once." Kyle's face dropped into a horrified shock.

"What?!" he squeaked again.

"Yeah, we were talking about dicks and yours came up and he had a lot to say," he smirked at the blushing Jew. "As did I." He could have sworn that he saw Kyle's eye twitch.

"Dude, what the hell is wrong with you two?!"

"We were doing what girls do about their boobs," he said simply. "Talking about who has the biggest."

"Dude, that's so wrong," he shook his head slowly.

"Hey, you'd be pleased with the results," he laughed softly. "You have the longest, aren't you proud?"

"Ken, I don't care," he rolled his eyes.

"Guess who has the shortest?"

"I don't care!" he repeated.

"Come onnnnnnn....," he urged him.

"Kenneth!"

"Okay, I'll just tell you," he smiled. "Token."

Kyle blinked. "Okay, for one, I think it's obvious that I don't give a flying fuck and this is a fucking awkward conversation. For another, I was really kind of hoping you'd say Cartman."

Kenny snickered, "nah, he's pretty close though. But come on, the irony! Token has the shortest! I think that's fucking hilarious!"

"Kenny, stereotypes don't suit your character."

"I know, but still! I mean, the Jew beats the black dude! I mean, who the fuck could have ever seen that coming?!"

"Okay, subject change," he demanded. "What were we talking about before you started talking about Cockland?"

Kenny looked up thoughtfully, "um...me and Stanny boy giving you some loving."

"Okay, before that," he rolled his eyes.

"Aw, you don't want Stan to show you what a manly man he is?" Kenny pouted. "I think it'd be fun."

"Kenneth, no threesome," he growled. "Or any number above that."

"You sure? Enough alcohol and we could-"

"Kenneth!"

"Alright, alright, I'll stop," he held up his hands defensively and laughed. "Sorry, Kyle," he leaned over and pecked him on the forehead. He leaned back and looked at his face, seeing that he was forgiven.

Kyle sighed and stood, helping Kenny to his feet as well. "Alright. We might as well hit the store so I can get you back where you were," he poked Kenny's stomach with a small smile.

"Well if you stop being so damn hot I wouldn't lose so many bodily fluids and I'd weigh more," he smirked perversely. Kyle just rolled his eyes, his gaze stopping as his view hit further into the park, his smile dropping slowly.

"Look," he nodded in that direction. Kenny followed his stare and broke into a small smile as they viewed a glowing young woman looking around the wooded area.

He turned back towards the Jew, gesturing towards the girl. "Shall we go introduce ourselves?" he asked.

"I doubt we have a choice," he smiled back. Kenny nodded and they walked over towards her nonchalantly.

"Hey," Kenny greeted her. She looked up and blinked at them.

"You can see me?" she asked in surprise.

"Clear as day," Kyle smiled softly.

"Well, that's a refreshing change," she smiled back, pushing a strand of black choppy hair behind her ear. "It's been quite some time since I've had any kind of conversations with anybody."

"Well, trust me," Kenny smirked, "you'll be having a hell of a conversation with us if you so choose to cooperate."

She raised her brow a bit. "Okay, what are we talking about here?"

"I'm Kenny," he bowed a bit. "This pretty boy here is Kyle," he gestured towards the redhead, who slapped his hand away with a quirked angry brow. The girl chuckled lightly.

"I'm Riley," he smiled widely.

"Like that name," Kyle grinned back.

"Well thank you," she replied. "So...are you two wizards or what?"

Kenny snorted, "I wish. That would make our lives so much easier," he rolled his eyes. "Nah, we're damned for eternity. You're stuck on Earth for some reason and it's our job to make sure that you find your way in the afterlife."

"Ooh, neat," she nodded.

"What are you doing out here?" Kyle asked curiously. She smiled wider and grabbed his arm. "Hey!" he yelled as she yanked him over towards her. She positioned him where she was standing and pointed over his shoulder towards an area of trees.

"See right there?" she asked pointing still. Kenny walked over and stood looking over his shoulder.

"Um, is there a bird?" he raised his brow.

She chuckled. "No, Silly. The whole thing. Look at the sun breaking through the branches," she waved her hand over the area.

"Okay...what about it?" Kenny asked.

"Wow...," Kyle looked in interest.

"Isn't it amazing?" she squealed.

"What the hell am I missing?!" Kenny asked, squinting at the display.

"You're missing a creative eye, that's what," Kyle rolled his eyes.

Riley turned around towards him and laughed, "not an artsy type are you?"

"Nah," he shook his head. "Ky's the ingenious one here," he ruffled his red curls. "Why are you so 'artsy?'"

"I was a photographer," she beamed. "I took a lot of nature pictures and did some work for spreading awareness of social circumstances."

"Sounds fun," Kyle grinned.

"Oh God, I loved it," she said reminiscently. "I wish I got to go out with my camera when I died, ya know? It would have made it a lot easier to cope with losing everything."

"How'd you die?" Kenny asked.

She dropped into a scowl. "I came to South Park for a project I was working on. I had a subject that I was shooting and she wasn't too happy about it. The spoiled little bitch pushed me in front of a train."

"Holy fuck!" Kenny's mouth dropped in shock. Kyle merely winced.

Riley sighed and ran her fingers through her ebon hair. "Well, whatever. I died doing what I liked to do, so it wasn't a completely horrid situation. So...what exactly do I have to do with you guys?" she asked.

"Come home with us and we'll start working on your case," Kyle smiled softly.

"Come home with you? You hitting on me?"

Kenny smirked and kissed Kyle's cheek. "Please. Why would I want to sleep with a dead person when I'm already banging someone pale enough to pass off as one?"

Kyle just blushed as Riley looked at them amusedly. "Well well well. I thought the 'pretty boy' comment was just a rip on you," she gazed at Kyle with interest. "Appears he wasn't joking."

"Would you?" he smirked. "Just look at his cute wittle bwush," he cooed, pinching the boy's cheeks.

"Dude, stop!" he swatted his hands away and pouted. Riley chuckled as Kenny threw an arm over both of their shoulders.

"So are we ready to venture away?" he asked.

"Please. Maybe a walk will clear the stupidity in the air," Kyle muttered. He just laughed and pressed his cheek again. Riley looked at them with a smile still prominent upon her pale face.

Kenny pulled his Jew in closer and couldn't help smiling a bit wider. So things weren't exactly back at square one just yet. Both he and the small boy had secrets they had yet to share with each other, but who knew? Maybe that's what was the glue holding them together. All that really mattered to them was that they were both there, that they were willing to share, whether it be good or bad. Isn't that what got them there in the first place? Secrets too large to share that became a catalyst for their affections towards one another being revealed. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Perhaps that was what they needed; to figure each other out piece by piece, ultimately becoming one puzzle linked together throughout time.

* * *

_A/N: I know. This chapter sucked balls. Dude, I am so depressed right now I don't know what the fuck to do with myself._

_Anyways._

_Kyle got to top (finally!)_

_Ken got his own little breakdown_

_And we got a new ghost coming by._

_This ghost is courtesy of two of my friends in my photo class. They came up with three ghosts for me to use, which I plan to do =)...eventually._

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_(Btw, I got my nachos! Yays! And thanks for 190 reviews. Come on, we can hit that 200!)_


	35. Obsession

_A/N: Hello all once again! Welcome to chapter 35. Riley's story...and maybe something else. I really have no idea. Let us see, shall we?_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

"Okay, Ken. Define syllogism."

"Aristotle's theory of reasoning where two statements are followed by one conclusion."

"Great job," the redhead smiled.

"Ky," Stan started. "You're doing a worksheet. Your debit is merchandise inventory. What's the credit?"

"Income summary, though it can go either way."

"Right," he nodded.

The four boys sat around Kyle and Kenny's coffee table, studying with each other for finals as they had every semester.

"Stan, what's Earthshine?" Cartman asked.

"Uh...light from the Sun that reflected off the Moon and onto the Earth?"

"Yup."

"Cartman, who was the Whig Party against?" Kenny asked.

"I think it was...Jefferson?"

"Nope," Stan smirked. "They were against Jackson. They formed during the Reconstruction because they opposed his ideals on just about everything."

"Goddammit," he groaned, leaning back into the couch. "I'm fucked on this goddamn history test."

"Cartman, you'll do fine," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Why should I learn this crap?" he sighed.

"Because the school's a conspiracy," Kenny echoed him with a smirk.

"True," he nodded. "God, aren't we graduated yet?!"

"Two weeks, Dude," Stan smiled. "Just a few tests and we're out of there."

"How's your speech going, Jew?"

"Heh, pretty shitty so far," he admitted. "I haven't really worked on it much."

"You should probably do that," Ken suggested.

"I know...but I really don't want to," he sighed. "I mean...what am I supposed to say?"

"Didn't Howard give you like, an outline or something?" Stan asked.

"Not really. He told me just speak from the heart. If I did that, I'd probably just flip everyone off and walk off the stage."

"Well, you'd certainly leave a lasting impression," Kenny smirked. They all chuckled in agreement as Stan scanned through some of their books on the table. He came to one and flipped it open, raising his brow.

"What's this?" he asked, holding it up.

Kenny and Kyle looked up and shrugged. "It's the notes we keep for our job," Ken explained. "Those are all the spirits we've helped so far."

"Why does this one have a blank space?" he asked, pointing to the last line.

"That's Riley," Kyle said. "She's taking a nap on the bed," he gestured back towards their room. "We're not done with her yet."

"Oh...okay...," he still looked confused. "What's her deal?"

"We don't know as of yet," Kenny said, underlining some of his notes. "All we know is she was born in '76, died in '94 by a train, and is from Washington."

"And that she's a photographer," Kyle added. "She can't really point out any regrets or anything as of yet. She's thinkin', though."

"Oh...," he repeated. "That's um...cruddy."

Kenny chuckled, "yes, Stan. It's very cruddy."

"So, how'd therapy go for you two on Wednesday?" Cartman asked, leafing through a textbook in boredom.

Ken and Kyle froze slightly. Not exactly a topic they wanted to revisit. "We...we had some problems, but you know, that's to be expected," Kyle shrugged, taking a highlighter to his papers.

"What kind of problems?" Stan asked, placing his notes on the table.

"We...we had to talk about the whole...you know..._thing,_" Kenny explained. "We didn't really get too far before we lost it."

"Ah," he nodded. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Kyle sighed. "Not your fault, Dude."

"I kinda feel like it is," he frowned. "I mean...if I'd been awake..."

"Oh don't you start, too," he lectured, looking at him with annoyance overshadowing his delicate features.

"Start what?" Cartman raised his brow.

"Don't start placing all the blame on you," he continued. "Look, none of us played into the fault, alright? You know who did? Barney and Mitch. Not you. Not Ken. Not me. Not a ghost. Nobody but those horny freaks, okay?"

"I still feel bad..."

"Well don't," he stated firmly, turning back to his notes. "What's done is done. All that's left of that mess is the trial."

"And your severe mental trauma," Cartman added, eyeing the Jew cautiously. Kyle looked up at him unamused.

"I'm fine," he stated simply.

He scoffed, "yeah. Breakdowns and hearing voices totally makes me believe that," he rolled his eyes. Kyle's pen halted in mid-scribble and he raised his eyes to meet those of Cartman's once more.

"Fuck you, Fatass."

"Please, you don't do the fucking, that's Kenny's job," he rolled his eyes superiorly.

"Not always true," Kenny smirked. There was a long silence before Stan finally broke it.

"You actually let him top?! Dude!"

Kyle fell into a deep blush and tried to hide behind his accounting book before Kenny reached over and pulled him into his lap, snuggling into him. 'Yessir. And he was fucking awesome, too. You should let Wends and Red try some toys on you two, because it was fucking amazing," he chuckled.

"Aw, Dude, sick!" Cartman gagged.

"No thanks," Stan said. "I really don't want something going in and out of my ass."

"It feels good though," he whined.

"Ken..." Kyle warned.

"Seems mighty uncomfortable to me," he responded with a shrug.

"It's not!" he protested. "I thought it would be too, and I guess it was at first. Stings like a bitch, too. But it was amazing!"

"Kenny..." Kyle tried again.

"You're just saying that because Kahl's in the room and you don't want to say that you didn't feel anything because his dick's so small," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Hey, he's got at least four inches on you, Fatass."

"Kenneth!"

"And just how would you know that?" Cartman asked.

"Because I do," he stuck his tongue out and pulled Kyle in closer. "No one compares to my Jewboy." Kyle just rolled his eyes and turned back to his notes, still situated on Kenny's lap.

"You know," he started slowly, "I thought we had an agreement on this."

Kenny blinked, "on what?"

Kyle looked at him sternly. "I told you that you didn't need to discuss what goes on beyond closed doors. Kenny, that's our business and ours alone."

"But...but...I like bragging that you're mine," he pouted.

"I don't really think they care," he raised his brow. "Bragging to them is different than bragging to other gay people, Ken."

"But we don't know many other gay people!"

"You know Craig," Cartman snickered. "Why don't you go brag to him?" Kenny glared at him and pulled Kyle in tighter.

"He already knows that Kyle's mine. He's just fucking jealous that I have him and he isn't good enough for him."

"And you are?" Stan raised his brow.

"Of course he is," Kyle answered. "Why the hell would I be with him if he wasn't?"

"Pity," Cartman answered.

"Pity? For what?!"

"For being poor," he shrugged.

Kenny stared at him for a moment, unable to find the angry response that he so desperately wanted. He watched as a textbook went flying towards him and smacked him in the nose.

"OW! Son of a bitch Jew!" he screamed.

Kenny looked up at Kyle, who looked absolutely furious. "I don't pity Kenny," he snarled. "He doesn't need anybody's pity, especially not mine. I'm with him for my own reasons but you're so far off I don't even know where to begin telling you how fucking wrong you are!"

Cartman rubbed his now-bleeding nose and growled. "Oh please, Jewrat. Everyone pities the poor," he rolled his eyes. "I mean, you took him in and now you feed him and everything. What is that besides pity?"

"I care about him, that's what it is, Retard!"

"So you give him absolutely everything?!"

"No I don't!"

"I don't see him with a job!"

"He doesn't need one. I don't really need one either. We have plenty to get us by from my parents paying the rent and his parents sending us some food money."

"You still hold the cards on the financial situation," he raised his brow.

Kyle growled angrily. "Okay, I bring in more money. Big. Fucking. Deal. Kenny takes me to therapy and places and takes care of me when I'm hurt. Why the fuck would he need to juggle every fucking aspect of our lives?!"

"Because he's the man of the relationship!"

"Oh god, not this again," Stan pinched the bridge of his nose. Kyle got up from Kenny's lap and stared down at him furiously.

"Last time I checked, we're both guys, Cartman!"

Cartman stood and looked down towards him, looking just as focused. "But he's not the one who's always the damsel in distress," he poked Kyle's chest harshly.

"I'm not a damsel in distress!"

"Then what are you?" he asked. "You seem to always get yourself into trouble and have to be rescued by your stronger boyfriend," he pointed out. "So what does that make you, Kyle?!"

"Accident-prone," he muttered.

"Ha! You see? Damsel in distress," he smirked. Kyle growled and let his fists shake at his sides. Kenny just stared at the two of them, wondering what he was supposed to say.

"Fuck off, Fatass," Kyle finally responded. "Maybe I do tend to get into some bad situations, and yes, maybe I always in some way need saved. But you know what? At least I have someone who wants to save me! I sure as hell wouldn't run out if you were getting attacked, Fatboy!"

Cartman scowled at him, "So, you'll rescue Fischbach from a pond but wouldn't come if I was?"

"Probably not. Considering the cavity from where your brain is supposed to be would keep you afloat, it probably wouldn't be necessary."

"Kyle...he's helped you...," Stan pointed out. "Multiple times."

Kyle froze slightly as Cartman looked at him expectantly. "Well, Jew? Come on. Insult me some more."

Kyle scoffed and looked towards the coffee table. Kenny followed his gaze and watched as a pile of papers were strewn across the room. "Whoa...," Stan mumbled.

"Fine. You've helped me," Kyle mumbled. "And I guess I appreciate it, though I have to admit I'm waiting for you to tell me that I owe you," he narrowed his eyes at the larger boy.

"Eventually I will," he nodded.

"However," he continued, "Just because I tend to get into trouble is no excuse for you to attack Kenny like that. He's not poor."

"Yeah, I am," Ken sighed, and leaned his head into his palm. "And he's right. It's not fair that you get all the money for us. I should get a job, too...especially since I don't plan on going to college."

Kyle looked back at him sympathetically. "Ken, don't feel like you have to. We're okay."

"No, no we're not," he sighed again and stood up, clasping the boy in his arms and lightly kissing his curls. "I feel pretty bad about it," he said softly.

"Why? I like that you don't have one," Kyle said from his arms.

"How come?" he raised his brow. Kyle looked up at him and smiled sweetly.

"'Cause you're always here when I come home."

Cartman rolled his eyes. "Jesus Christ, what a soap opera. Get a room, you two."

"We have one and we make plenty use of it," Kenny smirked.

"Ew, Dude, I did not need to hear that," a voice came from behind them. Kenny and Kyle turned to see Riley looking at them amusedly.

"Hey, Riley," Kyle smiled.

"Hey," she waved, walking over and plopping down on the couch. She looked between Stan and Cartman and back towards the two boys. "Friends?"

"You could say that," Kenny nodded.

"Tell em I say hi."

"Riley says hi," Kyle relayed towards the other two.

"Um, hello," Stan nodded towards where they were previously staring.

She giggled, "Aw, he's cute," she cooed.

"She thinks you're hot, Stan," Kyle smirked. Stan's face glowed red.

"Uh...th-thanks?"

She laughed harder and looked back towards the immortals. "So, what are you up to?"

"We're studying for finals," Kenny shrugged. "It's a laugh and a half."

"Mm, I bet," she mused, picking up one of their books. Stan and Cartman watched in awe.

"Holy fuck...," Cartman's mouth gaped as the pages flipped in the air.

"Why did you make such a mess?" she motioned towards the papers all over the floor.

"I kinda lost my temper," Kyle shrugged sheepishly.

"So you threw paper everywhere?" she raised her brow.

"Not...technically," Kenny laughed.

"Dude, this is so fucking annoying!" Stan growled, leaning back into the couch with his arms crossed.

"I'm sorry, Stan," Kyle said sympathetically. "Not much we can do about it."

"Betcha Damien could," he sneered.

Kenny sighed. "I'll ask next time he stops by, alright?"

"Ask me what?"

They looked and saw Damien by the door. He looked back with a large grin and walked over towards them. "Hello all. Ken. Kyle. Cartman. Stan. Ghost Lady," he nodded towards them all.

"You can see me too?" she smiled.

"Indeed I can," he grinned back. "Now. Who needs to ask me what?"

"Stan and Cartman won't stop bitching," Kenny snorted.

"We think we should be able to see and hear these ghosts, too," Stan pouted.

He quirked his brow. "Why?"

"Well, we know that they're there, but it's quite annoying not being able to see them," Cartman replied. "I mean, we watched Kahl dragged across the floor by one the other day but had no idea what was really going on."

Damien nodded as he spoke. "Okay, I see your point. Well, I'll speak to my father and see what we can do. We may not be able to allow you this though, I don't know if you just being able to see and hear them automatically grants you the powers or if it's just a little part of it," he shrugged. "If that's the case, I'm sure we can give you that leeway. If it's the full blown abilities, though...well, I don't think we can."

"Well, find out, will ya?" Cartman requested.

"Will do," he nodded.

"Why are you here, Damien?" Kyle asked.

He looked at him with feigned hurt. "You don't want me here? Am I intruding on your little orgy or something?"

"Ew," he crinkled his nose, prompting Damien to chuckle.

"You're such a prude, Broflovski."

"Well, he's a Jew. What more could you expect?" Cartman shrugged.

"Fuck off!"

Kenny shook his head and laughed, looking back at the demon. "So, what's up, Dam?"

"I have that somebody I promised you," he smiled.

"Okay?" Kyle raised his brow. From a red glow behind Damien came a well dressed man with black hair and a gentle gray stare.

"Um...hi?" Stan blinked.

"Hello," he nodded at them with a gentle smile. "Which of you is Kyle?"

Kyle slowly raised his hand. "Um...that'd be me?" Damien nodded towards the man and he walked over towards the stumped redhead.

"Name's Oliver Dodson." he shook his hand with a friendly grin still upon his face.

"Uh, Kyle Broflovski," he nodded and shook back.

"Trust me I know," he winked. "I've learned quite a bit about you these past few weeks."

"Uh...okay?"

Damien laughed and walked over to the two and threw his arm around Kyle's shoulders. "Meet a bona fide lawyer from Hell," he gestured towards Oliver. "He's going to be with you every step of the way during the trial."

"Oh. How um, thoughtful of you," Kyle smiled meekly at him. Damien smirked and squeezed him a bit.

"Look, Dude. I know you're still a bit pissed about this whole thing, but it's for the best and you know it. Ollie here will help you get through it, I promise."

"Why'd you get him a lawyer?" Kenny asked, stepping towards them.

"Correction, I got you both a lawyer," he smiled.

"Ah, Kenny I presume?" he held out his hand to shake, which Kenny returned with a grateful, yet somewhat confused expression.

"Ollie here is one of the best damn lawyers around," Damien smiled. "He worked for my father when someone tried to sue him for 'wrongfully' damning them. We brought him back to life just for this case."

"Why would you want to help us?" Kyle looked at the man.

His gray eyes softened a bit, "I knew someone who went through something fairly similar to what you've gone through. Besides, I don't mind coming back to work, my work is what kept me going," he shrugged. "I loved my job and still do."

"Well...thank you," he smiled. "I don't even know when this thing's going on though..."

"September third," Damien answered. "We've been looking at the details for awhile now."

"Ah," Kenny stated simply. "Well...are you staying with us...or..."

He chuckled, "no Sir. I still have access to my place in Hell and I enjoy my time there. I don't know why so many people are against it," he shrugged.

"Eh, folk tales of horrors and such," Damien waved dismissively. "People are just too easily spooked nowadays."

"Forgive me for being a bit rude," Kyle said suddenly, "but are you licensed to work like this in Colorado?"

Damien smirked and ruffled his curls. "Fear not, oh ye of little faith. Do not forget who I am," he winked. "Paperwork's done. People manipulated. Bacon is fried."

"Bleck," he stuck his tongue out in disgust.

"Silly Jew," he laughed.

"God, not another Cartman," he groaned.

"Yeah, he's already big enough to count for at least three people," Stan commented.

"Ay!" Said boy shouted as Riley broke out into sniggers.

Oliver looked at the two boys, still smiling gently. "We'll start working on this fairly soon, I'm still looking over the details and trying to figure out what we can do to get him put away for good."

"Is there any chance of getting him the death penalty?" Cartman asked.

"Dude, no," Kyle frowned at him.

"I doubt we could. No one was murdered," Oliver shrugged. "I mean, kidnapping, attack, and rape doesn't really equal the most heinous of crimes. At least not to people who haven't experienced it firsthand. Human life is more valuable to people than their virginity."

"Well, they didn't take that," Kenny slid his arm around Kyle's waist. Kyle blushed and sighed in irritation, clasping Ken's arms back.

"Well, then their innocence," he tried again. "Nonetheless, the death penalty is not on our radar."

"I've heard of rapists getting the death penalty. Why is this any different?" Stan asked.

Oliver sighed and massaged his forehead. "As horrible as it is to say, his sexual orientation could play a major role in this. The fact that it was a boy attacked by men when he prefers the company of males could very well effect the outcome. Do not forget where we are. Colorado isn't exactly home of rainbow pride."

Kyle's face drastically fell. "I...I don't want him to be killed...but is it possible that we lose everything all together just because of that?"

"I highly doubt that," he said sternly. "Regardless of what may prevent him from the highest form of punishment, we're still making sure that he gets punished. This is still a horrible crime, no matter how you look at it. As I said, I'm still looking around and studying the case. We'll accomplish a good deal later on if that's alright with you?"

"Yeah, that's fine," Kenny nodded, pulling Kyle in closer. "We kinda don't feel like going into a lot of detail right now anyway."

He nodded, "That's completely understandable."

"Well, now that our happy little introductions are out of the way, I think I'll go talk to my father about Stan and Cartman's little hissy fit," Damien smiled.

"How's he doin'?" Kenny asked.

"He's well. Damn paperwork's finally settled down a bit, so he's kicking back a little."

"Not very godlike of him," Kyle raised his brow.

He snickered, "oh, you'd be surprised. They're both lazy as hell. Well, Oliver, are we ready?"

"Of course," he nodded. He turned back to the boys and offered a final smile. "Don't worry, I'll be back fairly soon and we'll start working on this. We'll get him, I promise," he winked.

"Thank you," Kyle smiled gratefully. He patted the Jew's shoulder in comfort as he and Damien began to fade away.

"Have fun with your case," the boy nodded at Riley. "Catch ya all around," he waved as they disappeared.

"Damn, that would be so damn convenient for school," Cartman shook his head in disbelief.

"Oh Jesus, you can last two more weeks," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he waved dismissively.

Kyle sighed and gathered the papers from the ground. "September third," he said softly. He stood back up and looked at Kenny sadly. "I don't know if I can handle this."

"Ky, you can handle anything that comes your way and you know it," he reassured him. "This'll be tough, but we're in it together," he squeezed him into his larger frame and kissed his head. "I promise," he finished.

Kyle looked up at him and smiled, "Yeah, I know. Still. This whole situation sucks ass," he mumbled.

"Can't disagree with that," he nodded. "But just imagine if we win," he shook him softly. "We'll get to watch him dragged away to never see the light of day again."

"Yeah...I should probably be more excited about that," he frowned.

"Not with your personality," Stan stated. "You tend to forgive a little too easily. Hence the reason you still hang around Cartman," he nodded towards the chestnut-haired boy. Cartman just smirked in agreement. "Look, Kyle, you need to remember something: this guy is fucking insane, alright?"

"Seems pretty smart to me," Cartman said. "He knew exactly what strings to pull when we got here and he had the Jew. He knew just how to piss Kenny off when we were confronting him at the house. We can be pretty sure that a plea of insanity won't pull off in any court."

Kenny nodded, "Right. First time with Barney was just a test run for him. He obviously had some idea of how to hurt him," he looked at Kyle sadly.

"Raping doesn't exactly take a lot of brains," Stan rolled his eyes. "Just takes a horny jackass."

"But actually catching the person takes some degree of intelligence," Kenny argued. "If he was insane, he wouldn't have thought of finding our address in your phone to track Kyle down. And he knew that the police were there and he was able to take them down. I hate the guy with all that I can hate, but he was one step ahead every time until Damien showed up," he pulled the redhead in closer and rested his head atop his.

Stan sighed. "Okay, okay. Fine. He's not really insane." He looked back directly at Kyle with troubled eyes. "Kyle, my point is that despite the fact that you really don't relish in the idea of him being punished, what he did to you is unforgivable, Dude."

"I wouldn't say unforgivable, Stan," Kyle looked up at him sadly. "I mean...yeah, it was...upsetting..."

Cartman scoffed, "As if that isn't an understatement," he scoffed.

"But," he continued, "my life isn't in shambles. Things aren't perfect, but things never were. They haven't been for years. I've always been fucked up in the head...these things just added onto it and ultimately brought me to where I am."

"You haven't always been fucked up in the head," he argued.

He looked at him blankly. "Stan, you were here when I said I've been suicidal for four years."

"Well, we've all been suicidal at one time or another," he rolled his eyes. "It's just that you didn't actually try until recently!"

Kenny's grip tightened around Kyle and he let out a wavering breath. Kyle turned his head and let Kenny snuggle into his shoulder. He kissed his cheek reassuringly before turning back to Stan. "Look," he said firmly, "I just can't find solace in revenge for myself of any sort. The only reason I'm even agreeing to do this is because of one: he may go after other people, and two: he hurt Kenny. If it wasn't for Ken being involved, I probably wouldn't have even told you about it."

Stan and the other two boys froze. "Kyle...he...he fucking...Kyle he raped you!" Stan cried out.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Yes, I am well aware of that, Stan. You all remind me often enough."

"Well, it's kind of an important thing, Jew," Cartman raised his brow.

"Important to me," he placed his hands on his chest and looked around at them. "Let's just pretend for a moment that Ken wasn't involved, alright? Who would this entire situation have affected? Me and me alone."

"If Kenny wasn't there, you would have fought back," Stan said slowly.

"Okay?"

"They probably would have killed you, Kahl," Cartman furrowed his brow. "If people fight back they use more force. Since you went without a fight, they didn't have to. You willingly let them subdue you. If you hadn't, they would have beaten you down until they were able to get you under their control."

"So it would have affected all of us," Stan stated firmly. "You could have been dead."

"I've already been dead," he rolled his eyes.

"And it fucking drove us apart!" he cried back. "You were only gone a few hours and everything just fell to pieces! I went emo and tried to drink myself to death, Cartman became obsessed with trying to find a way to get you back, and Kenny tried to sacrifice himself to bring you back to us! Kyle, we keep reminding you for a reason, Dude. Because you need to remember. You need to remember every horrible detail that no one else knows about. You need to stand in court and tell all those people exactly what he did to you so that we can get him away from society and most importantly away from you...Kyle...imagine what'll happen if we don't get him off the streets, Dude."

"Another maniac running free, big shocker," he rolled his eyes.

"No, a maniac with an eye for you," he said with a softer tone. "He'll come back, Kyle. He'll keep coming back just for you. Don't you get it? He's fucking obsessed with you."

"No, he's comfortable with attacking me because he knows how to win."

Kenny sighed and pulled the Jew closer and kissed his cheek gently. "No, he's obsessed. He wasn't just calling you pretty to piss me off. He really thinks that. He's addicted to the idea of you being under his control."

"But I'm not," he said steadily.

"But he wants you to be," Cartman continued. "I'm betting that he sits in a jail cell jerking off at the thought of you being under him at his mercy." Kenny glared evilly at the larger boy.

"Then why would he threaten to throw me off a balcony?!" Kyle argued. "He can't control me if he thinks he's gonna kill me!"

"He gave _Kenny_ that choice," Stan said.

"He knew that I would never choose to let him hurt you," Kenny continued, swaying him back and forth softly. "He thought that I would choose the one where he got off free. Then he'd just come back when my back was turned and grab you again. Except I wouldn't be able to save you because he could take you somewhere where I wouldn't know where you were. You said it yourself, he had lust in his eyes. Lust is usually a one time deal unless the person you're with means something of some sort to you. What did he look like when he came back for you?"

Kyle was quiet for a moment. "The...the same I guess," he shrugged.

"Exactly," Kenny nodded. "Kyle, he loved that feeling. He thought you were beautiful and that he knew exactly how to make you his. If he really just wanted to go around raping people, he would have done that. Criminals don't usually go back for the same exact crime because it increases their chances of getting caught. He really thought that locking me in a basement meant that he completely had you for himself." He felt Kyle shudder and grasped him tighter again.

"I'm not a fucking prize," he sniffed.

"Not in that sense, you're not," Kenny replied. "You are in the sense that you're the best damn boyfriend anyone could ask for. But no, you're not a hunting prize." Kyle sighed and leaned back into him, cuddling into his chest and looking at the floor in thought.

"Ky? You okay?" Stan asked.

Kyle looked up at him with a saddened expression. "I don't really know," he shrugged. "I mean...I'm not any different than I was a few minutes ago. But this is just...I don't know, the concept is fucking creepy."

"Not entirely," Kenny said. "I mean...I'm obsessive about you and I strive to make you mine. Is that creepy?"

"You're my boyfriend, Kenny. And I'm already yours, you dumbass," he added with a smirk before dropping back into his serious tone. "But...he's like...older than us."

"He didn't look that much older," Cartman commented. "Maybe in his mid-twenties or something," he shrugged.

Kyle sighed, "that's not the point. I mean, he's like a pedo or something."

"Well...yeah," Stan shrugged obviously. "Kyle, we told you, he's obsessed with you. His judgement wasn't very clear."

"I think it was," Kenny growled. "His judgement told him that Kyle was pretty. That he was smaller and kinder and more submissive if something was on the line. We've discussed this, he wasn't insane. he wasn't just lacking judgement. He wanted Kyle. End of story."

Kyle sighed once more and broke away from Kenny's grasp, placing his fingertips on his temples. "I...I can't do this right now," he said softly. "I need to get the fuck out of here for awhile."

Their faces dropped. "Ky, we didn't mean to make you upset," Stan said.

He looked at him and smiled softly. "Dude, I'm not upset. You're stating, what I guess now that I think about it, facts. I just need some time to think, alright?"

"You're sure you're not mad?" Kenny asked.

Kyle chuckled and cupped his face, planting a firm kiss on his lips. "I promise I'm not," he smiled when he pulled away. "I just need some time, okay?" He straightened back up and looked over at Riley, who was still stuck with an expression mixed with shock and confusion. "Riley," he nodded at her. "Come on," he motioned towards the door.

"Where...where are we going?" she asked in a daze, getting to her feet.

"We're gonna talk," he shrugged.

"Kyle...I don't know if you should..." Stan bit his lip.

Kyle rolled his eyes and slapped his shoulder playfully. "I'm bringing her to talk and so you three don't piss yourselves with worry. If something happens she can come back and tell Kenny, alright? I promise, I'm not mad, I'm not upset, I'm not going to punch a building. I just need to get out for awhile, okay? I'll be back at some point in time."

"Do you have your -" Cartman started.

Kyle interrupted by reaching into his pocket and taking out his phone. "I have my phone. You three are freaking over nothing. This note thing that I know you're all concerned about hasn't been brought up in a long time. I think it was a one-time threat. Someone just talking to scare me. Probably some pussy freshmen or something without the balls to deal with me directly," he grinned. "Now, we're going. Phone's on. She's here," he motioned to Riley, "I still know how to run. I'll see you later," he waved as he opened the door for the spirit and followed her out, shutting the door firmly behind him.

They all stared after him for a minute before Stan sighed. "I think he really is upset about something."

"Nah, Ky tells me if he's upset. I can tell he's not really," Kenny started. "I mean, I think he kinda knew what we told him and that we just reenforced the idea."

"Well...what do we do now?" Cartman asked.

"We study some more," Stan shrugged. "Kyle doesn't need to. Damn kid's already aced everything we've thrown at him. Might as well just keep going."

Kenny and Cartman nodded as they plopped down and flipped through each other's notes. "Okay Stan," Kenny started. "what's a circumpolar constellation?"

"A constellation that like, stays visible in the Northern hemisphere for the whole year."

"Right."

"Cartman, what did the case of Munn v Illinois do?" Stan asked.

"Upheld the Granger laws for the railroad tracks," he shrugged.

"Yup. Damn, this is getting easier," he smiled.

"I know," Kenny nodded in agreement. "I've never been able to study so easily. Finals are gonna be a snap this year."

"Let's hope so," Cartman mused, leaning back into the chair and looking over some more notes. "Okay...Kenny. What kind of person demonstrates the behavioral principle of altruism?"

Kenny bit his lip in thought, looking at the ceiling as though it held some divine answer. He looked back towards Cartman and smiled as he thought of his response: "Kyle."

* * *

Too many books. Too many goddamn books to serve him any purpose.

Kenny groaned as he gathered all of his and Kyle's textbooks and carried them into their room. He glanced at the clock, seeing only about an hour or so had passed since Kyle's departure. As much as he wanted to worry, he knew that he really shouldn't. Kyle wasn't a child, he could handle himself. Besides, Riley was there keeping an eye on him, too. Not a big deal...or so he tried to tell himself.

He flopped face down onto the middle of the bed and took a deep breath. He caught the familiar sweet scent of Kyle and smiled, bringing his arms upwards to grasp the redhead's pillow and snuggle into it. He creaked open his eyes and stared at the door to the balcony, observing the light beaming through. He watched the beams dancing onto the floor, still cuddling into the pillow, feeling the warmth emanating from both sources. His gaze fell to Kyle's nightstand and he sat up, his curiosity overtaking him. He slid open the draw and pulled out Kyle's red notebook.

He bit his lip as he gazed at the cover. Kyle said he didn't really want him to know the dreams unless they were with Joe...but what would learning earlier do? He just wanted to know what was going on in his pretty little head. Was that so wrong of his boyfriend to wonder?

Nah. It was just concern. Right? Right.

He flipped it open and couldn't help chuckling as he saw the organized structure of the notebook. Almost like a diary. Only Kyle could take horrid nightmares that reduce him to tears and make it so neat and tidy.

He leaned back on the headboard and read the opening entry:

_Week One; Wednesday_

_Everything's really clean and clear, though green so it's kinda weird. Ken's with me and we're just holding hands and walking. We fight and he's gone all of a sudden and everything goes gray. Something grabs me and holds me on the ground. Then there are these sharp pains everywhere on my body. It's like they're stabbing me or something._

Kenny bit his lip, reading the short but all too revealing entry. The doc told them about everything up until when he got kidnapped in his dream. He looked at it for a few moments before reaching over the edge of the bed and hoisting up his psychology notes. He flipped through his binder until he came to a special section he had written up himself towards the beginning of the first semester. He flipped through the pages until he found what he needed. He ripped another page out of Kyle's notebook and took the pencil from the spiral binding and jotted down his notes.

_Kidnapped - Feels trapped and restricted. Something taking attention away from daily routine_

He flipped through more and jotted down other tidbits as well:

_Stabbed - feeling weak and defenseless. A struggle with power over life._

He looked at the two notes and bit the top of the pencil. Why would Kyle feel restricted? Maybe his thoughts were keeping him from being himself for fear of being taken again. Maybe he felt sexually restricted because of what they had done to him. Maybe he just didn't think he could leave the house much anymore because someone could very well hurt him again. He sighed and wrote all three down as options, knowing that each guess was as good as the last. Alright. Next day.

_Week one; Thursday_

_Nothing really happened. The entire time was just me looking in a cracked mirror. My right arm was busted up, as were my eyes and legs. I could see Ken in the reflection behind me and he was bleeding, too, though not as much. Other than that, it was relatively calm aside from this asp that kept slithering around me._

Okay. Not a lot here to work with. He sighed again and flipped through his notes, pretty confident that whatever he found wouldn't make him feel any better. He found a few and jotted them down on his paper:

_MIrror - the crack shows a distorted image of oneself and the actual looking into it shows a wondering of one's self, trying to figure out who one is. What they see is how they feel about themselves._

_Arm - The right arm is supposed to symbolize masculine energy and an outgoing nature. Damage to this arm can mean the loss of both in the real world._

_Eyes - Could be trying to avoid the truth. Could be meant to show sadness, sympathy, or pain._

_Legs - Injured legs could mean a loss of independence or a lack of courage in a situation._

_Bleeding - If you are bleeding, it means you're exhausted or emotionally drained. To see someone else bleeding means that you're making an emotional cry for help._

_Asp - A loss of honor and respect for oneself and misfortune in life._

Kenny looked at his notes in disbelief. He never thought that dreams could be so close to the truth for Kyle's life. Down to the last detail, everything seemed to fit into what the boy was going through.

So Kyle was exhausted, that much was obvious in the real world. He wanted the help to get better, too. He had lost his respect for himself when he was raped, and it took a toll on his masculinity by being reduced to such a state. He didn't want to truly come out and admit what had happened, he was desperately trying to avoid having to take the stand in court and tell the truth about it.

Everything fit. Kenny quickly jotted down his summary with a nervous knot beginning in his gut. So did Kyle always feel like this? He had had one day where he said he didn't have any bad dreams at all. Then he had the dream Wednesday morning that woke him up and drove him to cry for a full hour. Kenny flipped to where that morning should have been recorded and found the spot blank.

"Shit," he hissed. His ears perked as he heard a door opening.

"Ken?" that familiar voice called out.

"Shit!" he repeated. He took the notebook and threw it back in Kyle's drawer, tossing his notes into his own and hurriedly trying to lean back casually. Kyle came walking into the room with a raised brow.

"Dude, are you okay?"

"Hm? Oh yea," he nodded. "Just...lazy," he shrugged. He sat up and watched as Kyle came to sit down at the foot of the bed. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, Dude, I'm fine," he nodded. "Told you I just needed some time."

"Ah. Where's Riley."

"Over at Starks. She really liked the scenery and was trying to imagine some pics. I gave her my phone to take some," he grinned sheepishly.

"What if someone sees a floating phone?"

He chuckled, "She's smarter than that. She's holding it so it blends in with the woods and stuff...," his small grin faded as he stared at the blonde. "Ken?"

"Hm?"

"You sure you're okay? You seem distracted."

"Yeah...I'm just...I guess I'm just thinkin' about you," he smiled.

"What about me?"

He sighed and leaned back. "Do you want the honest answer or the one that leads to sex?"

"Honest, please."

"Well damn. There goes my plan," he smirked before it faded. "Thinkin' about you and just this whole fucking mess, I guess," he shrugged.

Kyle sighed and massaged his forehead. "Ken, I told you to stop worrying."

"I can't help it!" he pleaded. "I mean, if I didn't care, what the fuck kind of boyfriend would that make me?! I know that you don't want me to freak out but I just can't help it. You're hurt and I wanna help you get better," he sniffed.

Kyle crawled to the head of the bed and leaned the blonde into his small chest. "Dude, you are helping me get better, okay? It's just gonna take some time."

"It's taking too much time!" he protested.

"You keep telling me that this isn't going to be easy, that this is going to take some time, and you're right. You can't completely rebuild the mind in a few weeks, Ken."

He sighed, "I know. But I wish that we could."

Kyle smiled gently and kissed his hair, "I'll get better. I promise."

"You love to make me promises, don't you?" he looked up and smirked.

Kyle smirked right back, "it's only because I love watching your eyes light up when I do," he winked. Kenny sighed contentedly and nuzzled into his Jew.

"So...you and ghost girl have a good talk?"

"I think I figured out why she's stuck," he said, playing with Kenny's hair.

"Really?"

"We were talking about mine and yours relationship, and she seemed rather bitter when I tried to bring up any that she may have had. She said she had a boyfriend, but she was a bit...angsty about it. So I'm betting he has something to do with her being as she is."

"Sweet. We shall interrogate her later," he looked up at him and smiled, noticing his thoughtful gaze towards the sheets. "Dude, what's up?"

"Thinkin'," he blinked. Kenny snorted and reached up to turn his face to redirect his gaze back unto him.

"We think too much," he smirked. "Is something up?"

He sighed. "Yeah. Can I ask you a hypothetical question?"

"Well you can ask anything you want."

"Will you answer honestly?"

"Of course...what's on your mind?"

He sighed again. "Okay. Let's say that...I never died, okay? Therefore, we never got together."

"Okay..."

"But let's say that I still ran into Barney and Mitch that night and all this insane shit still happened to me."

"Alright..."

He looked back down at him sadly, "would you still be my friend?"

Kenny dropped into a deep frown. "Of course I would. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I...I guess I'm just trying to think of this from a different perspective, you know? I mean, if it were someone else, would I be able to handle seeing them have breakdowns whenever I got near them?" he shrugged.

"Stan and Cartman are still beside you," he said slowly. "And so am I. Kyle, we're still buds. Just because we're dating doesn't mean that we completely obliterated the friendship stance we had before."

"I know, but I feel like I'm obligating you or something."

"Uh, no," he frowned still. "Ky, where is all of this coming from?"

"I...I don't really know," he said slowly. "Riley and me were talking about the whole situation because she was confused as hell. She asked if I was still suicidal...and I guess in a way I am."

Kenny sat up and stared at him. "How...how much?"

"I dunno. I don't really have that much of a reason to be upset like that anymore."

"Um...as much as I hate to say this...I kinda think you do, Ky."

Kyle looked at him and smiled softly. "But...I have you now. Before when I went through all that crap, I really didn't have much to be happy about and fall back on. But now that I have you, I don't run to an easy solution like I used to," he shrugged. "But I still just can't help thinking like that sometimes."

Kenny sighed sadly, "I really wish that you could. But why do you think that I wouldn't be your friend?"

"I guess I just keep thinking about Wednesday. I'm obviously stressing the living hell out of you and I'm probably doing the same for at least Stan, too."

"You're not stressing the living hell out of me," he rolled his eyes. "If it was so stressful, I wouldn't want to put up with it."

"I wouldn't want to," he blinked. He sighed at Kenny's unamused expression and turned to look towards the foot of their bed. He curled his knees into his chest and wrapped his arms around his legs. "I...I keep thinking about what Stan said...about what happened when I died."

"Ky, you mean the world to us. Well, at least to me and Stan," he shrugged. "Cartman just needs someone to make him feel bigger."

"Well if he'd look in the mirror, he'd see that he can't get much bigger."

Kenny let out a laugh before pulling Kyle into his side. "Dude, I always considered you my best friend, even though Stan was always yours."

"No, Stan is my Super best friend," he grinned at him. "You're my best friend. Stan and me have a friendship that's stronger than just usual pals, but less than what you and I have, ya know? I always thought of you as my best friend because you were the one I always went to if I needed something. I talked to you about stuff a lot more than I talked to Stan."

"Really?" he blinked.

"Yeah," he shrugged. "Even before I started crushing on you. Stan knew about my outside life, you tended to know more about what happened inside my house."

"Well, I could kinda relate to neglectful parents," he shrugged. Kyle cuddled in closer to him and grabbed his hand.

"I know. I could always relate to you better."

"But you hung out with him a lot more."

"Ken...you were always dead. I couldn't really hang with you then," he smirked. "Stan and me are so different, it's almost scary."

"I don't think you're that different," he shrugged.

"Dude, we're completely opposite! He's popular, I'm not. He's athletic, I'm not. I'm a 4.0 student, he's low 3's. He's Catholic, I'm Jewish. There's just...so much about us that contradicts each other."

"Well, that kinda applies to us, too. You told me in the beginning that maybe you liked me because I'm so different from you. You know that they say opposites attract," he shrugged.

"You and I relate to a good deal of stuff...just not on the surface."

Kenny nodded, "Yeah, I suppose I can see that." he sighed and looked towards the door. "Ky?"

"Hm?"

"Have you...have you tried to hurt yourself since we've been together?"

There was a moment of silence. "No," he said softly. "I've been severely tempted though...it just seems so...enthralling to think about."

Kenny looked at him again and raised his brow. "Enthralling? How?"

He stared up at the ceiling, "Think about it. We can't die. I...I wanna know just how far my body can go. What's the limitation on a human's life? Where does it finally stop? I haven't tried anything...but just the idea of seeing how far I could take it...it just makes it all the more captivating." Ken stared at him in slight horror, his mouth gaping. Kyle looked back towards him and sighed. "I'm not going to try anything, Ken, I promise."

"Captivating?" he repeated in a squeak. "You think that hurting yourself like that is captivating?!"

"No, Kenny, the idea of...you know what, never mind," he looked away. "I'm not going to try anything."

"How do I know that?"

He turned back and narrowed his eyes slightly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean how do I know that you aren't going to hurt yourself?"

"Because I'm telling you. Don't you trust me? I'm here and I want to stay here, Ken. I'm not going to ruin this by testing myself like that."

"I don't know what to think anymore, Kyle. You say that you're suicidal and that you want to see just how far you can go...and you tell me that you don't want to at the same time. Ky, I don't know what the fuck I'm supposed to believe. How do I know that I won't get a call from the hospital saying that you jumped off of a building?!"

Kyle groaned and turned, straddling Kenny's hips and pushing him back into the headboard. "You know because I'm telling you straight up. Kenny, I'm not going to hurt myself like that again. If I wanted to, I would have taken those steps already. I wouldn't have let you bring me back. I'm here because goddammit I want to be with you, alright? Now you're just gonna have to trust me because there's no other way that I can prove this to you."

Kenny blinked at him for a moment before sighing. "I'm sorry. I do trust you. I'm just a bit...scared, Dude."

Kyle leaned forward and pecked his lips. "Don't be," he whispered, leaning their foreheads together.

"Having a moment? I can come back when you two are done." They looked over and saw Riley standing in the doorway with a smirk upon her face.

"We're done now," Kyle smiled back, leaning back atop Kenny's hips. "Get your pics?"

She nodded and tossed him his phone. "Thanks. God, it's been forever since I've gotten to do something like that," she grinned widely. He flipped it open and looked through the images.

"Wow, you've got a hell of an eye," he commented.

"Well, it was my job," she shrugged.

"Come sit, Dear," Kenny curled his finger at her. Kyle moved to get off of him and Kenny grabbed him back, turning him and sitting him atop his lap.

"Afraid for me to move?" he quirked his brow.

"You're warm," he smiled, hugging his waist as Riley sat at the foot of the bed facing them.

"What's up?"

"Well, myself and Kyle here were talking and he says that you were rather sore about a certain topic. Ring any bells?"

Her face contorted into confusion. "Um...not...not really."

"Your boyfriend," Kyle said softly. Her expression dropped into a scowl.

"I'd rather not discuss him."

"Why? He could be the reason that you're stuck," Ken stated.

"I'm betting that he is," she nodded. "I had only one thing I wanted done in my life and I didn't get the chance before I died."

"What's that?" Kyle asked.

She looked at him, her soft green eyes hardened. "I wanted him dead," she said spitefully.

They blinked at her. "D-dead?" Kenny stammered. "Why?!"

"That fucking bastard killed me inside!" she spat. "He was so fucking terrible to me!"

"What'd he do?" Kyle asked.

"Beat me...insulted me...completely discouraged me and my work...he was horrible."

"Why'd you stay with him?" Kenny questioned.

Her eyes became saddened, "he...he threatened me. I would take a bunch of trips for my work just so I wouldn't have to deal with him...but he threatened to kill me...I guess he did in a way," she shrugged.

"God...," Kyle shook his head. "I'm so sorry."

She smiled at him softly, "wasn't your fault."

"Okay...our visions did kinda coincide with that idea," Kyle said softly. "I mean, I got beat around and Ken, you just had a lot of hate. I'm thinkin' that this is really why she's stuck."

"We...we can't kill someone for this, though...," Kenny shook his head towards him.

He nodded, "right. We need to find some other way to deal with this. I say we just track him down and go from there. That okay with you?" he asked the girl.

"Well...yeah, I guess so," she shrugged.

"Alright. We'll look it up," Kyle smiled gently at her and got off of Kenny's lap, heading into the main room to find his computer.

Kenny and Riley stared at each other for a moment before she finally broke the silence. "I envy you," she said softly.

"Why?"

"You have someone like him. Don't take it for granted," she finished, hopping off the bed and following the Jew.

Kenny sat up and swung his legs over the bed, staring after them. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. She didn't need to tell him not to take the boy for granted, he never did. He loved every minute he spent with his little redhead. He glanced back towards Kyle's nightstand drawer and frowned. He wanted to see more of these dreams of Kyle's. He wanted to know every little thought that passed through his head. he wanted to help him get better. It didn't matter what Kyle said, his mere presence wouldn't save the kid from himself. He was still torn apart on the inside through fear and shame. What would become of the prodigy should their current efforts fail? He sniffed and tried to block out all possibilities that crossed through his mind as he stood from the bed. As he walked out towards the two others, all he could do was be thankful for the distraction that Riley provided them both with. God knows they needed it.

* * *

_A/N: Eh. Not a special chapter. Honestly, I'm just trying to work through some basic plotlines so I can get to the stuff I have planned for later on in the story. Riley should be finished up by next chap. Maybe another ghost introduced? Never know._

_All this did was give us some more drama and insight into the rockiness of their feelings. As I said, not that special. No smex or nothin. Pity._

_We didn't hit 200 reviews last chap, but I bet we can this time. If I stopped updating so much maybe I could get some more. Maybe start just posting one chapter a month?_

_(I'm kidding, don't yell!)_

_Thanks for the usual!_


	36. Blessing

_A/N: It's three in the morning...I have to get up in six hours to go work for eight hours...so let's write a fanfic!_

_Goddamn I'm stupid as hell. Oh well. Enjoy!_

* * *

Travis Kendall was his name. And apparently domestic abuse tended to be his game. Kyle, Kenny, and Riley sat around Kyle's laptop, scrolling through the articles online revolving around Riley's old lover, several clippings revealing his all-too-violent lifestyle.

"Jesus Christ..." Kenny murmured.

"That's at least the seventh article we've seen," Kyle said softly. "Riley, this guy was fucking insane!"

She nodded. "Yeah, I know. I couldn't find a way to get away from him though..."

"That tends to happen in relationships like that," Kyle replied. "I mean, I'm not an expert on the subject or anything, but that's what we learn about from others."

"Those 'others' probably have no real conception of what goes on," she mumbled sadly.

"Abuse isn't fun," Ken stated quietly. Kyle turned and looked at him sympathetically.

"Yeah, no kidding," she scoffed. "Just be glad you two haven't lived like that," she leaned back and crossed her arms.

"Riley, don't talk before you know the facts," Kyle advised, still scrolling through the webpages.

"I was abused by my parents all the time," Kenny shrugged. "Dad was always drunk and Ma just kinda ignored me if he was in a mood. Things are better, but still, I've lived through that shit."

"Oh...," she responded. "I'm...I'm sorry."

"Hey, I'm not the only one. Ky was abused, too."

"Not like you two," the Jew replied.

"Mentally you were."

"My parents hit me every now and then, too," he shrugged. "But it wasn't constant. And they just pushed me to be better, that's all."

"See? Mental abuse. And with all the shit they've put you through lately?"

He sighed and looked at him sadly. "Dude, stop it. Stop trying to make it look like I'm worse off. I'm not the one who'd come to school with bruises." Kenny looked down at his feet in shame, biting his lip. Kyle leaned over and kissed his cheek gently and the blonde looked up with a half-grin.

"So what exactly are we doing?" Riley asked.

"We're looking for him," Kyle shrugged, looking back at her. "We can't do much else until."

She sighed and leaned back into the cushion. "God, how'd he get away with all this shit?"

"He didn't," Kyle froze slightly.

"What do you mean?" Ken quirked his brow.

"As of 2003, he was placed on death row for the first degree murder of Ashley Harp through aggravated sexual assault. He was given a lethal injection on February 6th of 2006."

They all blinked at the screen for a moment before Riley stood and screamed, pulling at her hair. "NO! I...I wanted to be the one to...God-fucking-dammit!"

Ken shot up and grasped her shoulders. "Riley, it's okay! You got your revenge, didn't you? He's dead!"

"But I wanted to be the one to destroy him," she spat. "I wanted to watch him suffer by _my_ hand for once!"

"Riley...he hurt you but it shouldn't mean that you should want to torture him to death," Kyle blinked at her.

"Oh what do you know?!" she yanked herself out of Kenny's grasp and crossed her arms. Kyle fell into a deep frown.

"I know a lot about that kind of thought train. Would it truly make you a better person if you had killed him?"

"I could have saved that girl's life," she said sadly. "She didn't deserve to die, only he did!"

"Riley, there are people like that out there," Kenny started softly. "We all want them gone, but to take matters into our own hands just worsens the situation ten-fold. Look, just look at it from the perspective that at least he's guaranteed to not hurt anyone ever again. I mean, you could totally take that as a win."

"Kenny, you don't understand!" she cried out. "He...he humiliated me! He completely destroyed me! Were it not for my work, I would have...I would have died by his hand," she said with tears streaming down her face. "Taking him out first...it would have solved so many problems...I regret that I never got around to doing that," she sniffed.

"Killing isn't fun, Riley," he said gently. "You would have been worse off if you had done that."

"Oh because you're some kind of expert on the subject, right?"

Kenny dug his hands into his pockets and scowled at her. "I'm not an expert, but I've experienced it firsthand. Dude, don't base your entire existence off of getting revenge. It's honestly just not worth it."

She rolled her eyes, "you just don't understand. It fucking hurt...it hurt so much. I felt everything about me just...draining away when I was with him. I didn't feel strong...or independent anymore. Everything just fell away from me from him. You just don't get it!"

Kyle shut his laptop and got to his feet, staring at her with an emotionless expression. "Apparently you weren't listening when we were talking today," he said in a monotone way. "You need to figure out that you're not the only person on Earth who's lived through this. But we don't take revenge like that, Riley. We just keep going. Dead or not, we have to keep fucking going. I think you need to figure that out before we get to a point where we can't save you anymore."

She just stared back at him. "Kyle...it's different," she said softly.

"How? How is humiliation and complete degradation of yourself different?"

"I thought I could trust him," she whispered.

"I thought I could trust who attacked me as well, Riley," he drawled out with his hands on his hips. "I used to hold a very high trust in people. Whether or not they were strangers never mattered to me, I never felt afraid to walk the streets at night. You lost your trust in one man, Riley. I lost mine for an entire species. Don't you tell me that we're different, because like it or not, we're not. We're both fucked in the head, trying to figure out just what will make us whole again."

"Well what, pray tell oh mighty knowledgeable one, do you think will make you whole again?" she demanded.

He blinked at the girl for a moment. "People. I'm learning to deal with it by being with people. I haven't driven myself into the realm of complete distrust, despite the fact that I've been hurt. There are still good things about all people that I can find solace in. I'm willing to bet that Travis had some attribute that kept you with him. I bet it wasn't just the threat. If he granted you the freedom to travel around and do your photography work, I'm willing to bet that you could have very easily have just walked out of there and never looked back."

"He....he only gave me the 'freedom' so he could fuck other chicks."

"And did you ever sleep with other people? Tell me, was this a true relationship or were you merely on 'fuckbuddy' terms?"

"I said he was my boyfriend," she said softly.

"Yes, you did. But something about your tone of voice tells me that you don't mean it in the sense like Ken and I are boyfriends," he raised his brow.

She scowled at him. "No. We weren't like that. His idea of a 'romantic evening' was a few beers, a quick fuck, and a beating to make sure that I was aware of which of us was dominant."

"But he let you run around," Kenny raised his brow and came to stand beside Kyle. "If he was truly assertive of his dominance, he would have kept you under lock and chain."

"I told you! He just did that so he could fuck other girls!"

"He could have forced you to watch or something," he replied. "Riley, I think that you were afraid to leave him for good, that's why you kept going back to him."

"I wasn't afraid to leave him, I was afraid of him," she said firmly.

Kyle sighed and massaged his temples. "You're in so much denial right now it's not even funny."

"I'm not in denial!" she growled, pushing him back a bit.

"Alright, then let me ask you this," he responded angrily. "It's been fifteen years since you died, why are you still in South Park?

She paused and blinked at him. "I'm stuck here because I'm dead."

"No you're not," Kenny rolled his eyes. "Plenty of our people had been moving around. One of our cases came all the way from Korea!"

"Alright, alright, fine! So I just stuck around here, so what?"

"I think that you were afraid of the reality of your relationship with Travis," Kyle stated. "You were terrified of going back to him as a ghost and seeing that he moved on from you without a moment's doubt, weren't you?"

"Good! If he moved on from me that means that he couldn't hurt me anymore! I would have been free!"

"You already were!" he argued. "This was a guy obviously just in the relationship for the mere fact that you were submissive to him! You let him win and he just wanted some easy scoring! Riley, you were fucking free the whole fucking time, but you kept crawling back to him because you didn't know how else you could live your life unless it was under his shadow! But you convinced yourself that he was forcing you to, that your life was on the line should you not come back to justify staying in such a destructive state for so long."

"And you built yourself around this idea for so long and so stubbornly that you actually began to believe that you were truly doomed to stay with him," Kenny continued. "So you slowly began to believe that the only way out of the relationship was to kill him."

"But you could never bring yourself to do it," Kyle said. "You were desperate for his companionship despite how much it hurt you. Somewhere in the back of your mind, you could also see that you had completely made this story up for yourself, so your conscious stopped you from actually going through with something so stupid and selfish."

The boys watched as she stared at them openly, slowly letting her eyes drift between the two of them. "I...I....you just don't understand," she whispered.

"We do," Kenny sighed. "You got hurt. You built everything you had around gaining revenge, even though in your world, it didn't really even have any justification."

"Ours did," Kyle continued gently. "But when we did take revenge, everything only seemed to get worse. Riley, you lived your life around false ideals and a hateful nature...don't let your entire afterlife end up like that as well."

She sniffled softly, looking at the ground. "I was hurt..."

Kenny laid a hand upon her shoulder and she met his gaze as he offered her a comforting grin. "We know. But you're free of him now. And it's not too bad without him, is it? You've continued your art...despite the fact that you're dead, you've continued to live in some way without him beside you. You just never really accepted the truth for yourself, did you?"

Slowly, that ever-so-comforting rosy hue began to emanate from her, overpowering the ghastly green. "It wasn't fair...," she said sadly.

"No. No it wasn't," Kyle agreed. "Life isn't fair sometimes. But you're free, consider it a win, Riley."

She nodded and wiped her eye as she began to fade away. "Do you think I'll see him in Hell?" she whispered upsettingly.

"I doubt it, it's a pretty big place," Ken said softly. "And if you do, call for Damien if things get out of hand. He'll know you and help you out if you need it."

"I'm sorry," she sniffed and gathered them both in a hug. They grasped her back gently as she faded off completely. They dropped their arms and sighed. Kenny walked over towards his notebook and flipped it open.

_Riley Robbins...Born: June 20th, 1976....Died: November 11, 1994....Stuck in a false reality_

They both watched as it glowed and faded and sighed again. "Ya know," Kyle said looking up at him with a smirk. "We figured that out pretty easily."

"We make an awesome team," Kenny smiled, leaning down and kissing his forehead.

"That we do. We fit well," he leaned into him lovingly and they aimlessly walked around the room for a bit.

"I can think of a few parts of us that fit well together," Ken smiled maliciously. He pressed Kyle into the wall and planted a firm kiss on his lips. "Wanna take those parts for a test run?"

"What is there to test?" he cocked his brow in amusement.

"How about where they go?" he grinned goofily.

"Huh?"

"Well...," he pressed his hips against the boy's. "They work in the bedroom, in the kitchen, in the shower, on the couch...let's see just how much we can do here," he winked.

"Where's here?" he asked.

"Right here," he growled, locking lips with him again. "We're marking the wall," he laughed lowly into his mouth.

"The wall?" he blinked, still secured against the blonde's massaging mouth.

"Mhmm," he rumbled deeply. "Got an issue? We can go to the room if you want," he thrust his groin against his again, eliciting a gasp to escape his lips.

"Here's fine," he squeaked. Kenny laughed softly and dove his tongue into the Jew's mouth. Kyle worked his arms up and grasped Kenny's broad shoulders, squeezing with his delicate fingers every-so-often. He broke away from Kenny's mouth and tried to regain his breath, taking a few chuckles. "Why is it solving these cases seem to always lead to sex?"

"Because," Ken kissed his ear. "it's hard work. We need a stress reliever...," he nipped his way down around his throat. "And besides, we need to further the idea that we're the perfect team."

"I don't think we can," he said, giggling lightly as Kenny licked him lovingly. "I think we've already proved it."

"Well let's keep it proven," he growled seductively. He took his arms away from trapping in Kyle's frame and worked them down towards his jeans. He ripped them and his underwear away swiftly, looking down as he chewed on the boy's skin. "Are you aware," he began, "that you are the hottest fucking Jew around?"

"And just how many Jews have you been looking at?"

Kenny pulled back and smirked at him, "wouldn't you like to know?" he leaned forward and pecked him in-between the eyes. He pulled away again and placed his fingertip on the redhead's nose. "You're the only one that'll ever matter," he winked.

"I know I was supposed to take that as something sweet, but I don't think I can," he raised his brow.

"Try for me?" he stuck his bottom lip out pathetically.

"Fine. I'll let that one slide," he rolled his eyes in good humor.

"Excellent," he grinned, running his hand up though the mess of curls and yanking his head back a bit. He dove down and fully attacked in-between his neck and shoulder, suckling roughly as he took his other hand and played with the boy's cock, running his fingers and palm over the burning flesh. Kyle gasped and moaned, holding onto Kenny as his legs shook. Kenny pulled back and licked his lips, observing the bright red and rather large splotch against Kyle's pale skin. "Beautiful," he murmured. He released Kyle's member, still pulling his head back as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a tube of lube.

"You have got to be kidding," Kyle said with a small chuckle, looking down all he could with his hair still restrained.

"Nope," he grinned. "I'm sorry, but I have some control issues and I need to be sure that I'm readily prepared," he winked. He grasped the tube in his teeth as he unzipped the fly of his jeans and let his cock fly out into the open air.

"Are we deliberately holding my head back for a reason?" Kyle asked.

"Yes. Yes we are," he smirked.

"And that reasoning is...?"

"You'll see," he said, biting down on the tube and gathering some lubricant in his hand before pressing it onto his cock. He spit the tube down on the ground and looked at Kyle predatorily. He grabbed Kyle's left thigh and raised it to wrap around his waist as he pressed him back into the wall. He grabbed Kyle's wrist and pressed it against the wall.

"Dude, this is uncomfortable as hell," Kyle winced.

"Give me your other arm," he stated. Kyle looked at him confusedly before doing as asked. Kenny grabbed both of his wrists together, pressing them above his head.

"Feeling like being different I see," he raised his brow.

"Heh, yeah," he smiled sheepishly. "You okay with that?"

He nodded. "Works for me."

"Awesome. Bring your other leg up," he commanded.

"How? I'm a bit stuck here."

"Hop a bit and just wrap your leg around me."

"I'll fall!"

"No you won't. Just hop," he restated.

Kyle blinked at him before sighing in defeat. He took his right leg and test jumped a few times before going at it for real. As soon as his leg was somewhat around Kenny, the blonde pushed forward and impaled himself on him.

"AH!" he cried out as he went back into the wall. His legs tightened around Kenny as he took a few shuddery breaths.

"Told ya you wouldn't fall," Kenny grinned.

"Fuck you," he looked at him as best he could.

"Kay," he shrugged, starting to move in and out of him. Kyle whimpered heavily a few times.

"God, it feels like...oh god...," he panted.

"You okay?" he asked, slowing down a bit.

"I'm fine, keep going!"

Ken let out a laugh before driving into him forcefully time and again. "Hold on tight," he advised, pressing more firmly on the boy's delicate wrists.

"Ahh...oh Jesus Christ...," he breathed, wincing heavily.

"Feel good?"

He swallowed some air and nodded as much as Kenny allowed him. "Uh huh."

"Good," he smiled. He lunged forward and bit at Kyle's throat hungrily. He listened to the boy hiss and increased his pace, yearning to hear more of it.

"Kenny...Ken...oh god...," he sniffed as the larger boy continued to suck at his tender skin with vigor. "Are you a fucking vampire or what?" he asked brokenly.

Kenny finished biting him and pulled back to look at his turned head. "Yes. I'm marking my Jew for myself."

"Wha-what?" he whimpered.

He looked at the two fresh marks and rammed into him faster, listening to his pleasure-induced moans contentedly and making a few of his own. "No one else is taking you from me again," he murmured as he cuddled his face into Kyle's chest, still pounding harshly into his entrance. He felt Kyle try to tug his hair out of his tight grasp and he loosened his grip to let him move his head. He looked up from his chest to find a pair of green eyes staring at him widely and an absolutely speechless expression from their owner.

A few moments of silence passed between them, the only sound being Kenny's balls slapping against Kyle's skin repeatedly. Kyle suddenly lunged forward and locked mouths with him again furiously, as if trying to claim the blonde as well. Kenny moved his now free hand to under Kyle's thigh, aiding him in keeping upright as he continued to move. Kyle jerked his hips against Kenny's all he could in his suspended state, letting his cock bound against Kenny's abs roughly. Kenny moaned at the delicious friction of their colliding skin and jammed his tongue into Kyle's mouth once again.

They desperately kissed with immense passion, as if savoring a last moment together, frozen in time. Kyle let out a high pitched whine, signaling to Kenny that he was nearing his edge. He thrust harder, deliberately hitting the boy's prostate with a rough touch, sending delicious courses of electricity to travel throughout both of their bodies. The blonde broke their kiss for a bit and they stared into each other's eyes before he slammed his shut as he released into Kyle, feeling his load rebounding inside of the Jew and pouring back out down his aching cock. Kyle let go soon after, his release coating Kenny's clothes in the sticky mess.

They stayed tangled together like that for a good deal of time, both very shakily trying to regain their breath. Kyle finally unwound his legs, trying to gain ground as his feet touched the floor. Kenny still held his wrists, holding him up as the boy's legs gave way under him. He helped him slide slowly to the floor, still panting, and sat in-between the boy's legs.

A few moments of only their erratic breathing filled the air before they looked at each other. "Ken...," the redhead started, "is there something you're not telling me?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"You've never given me hickeys like this before...are you alright?"

Kenny sighed and gathered the half-naked form in his arms, kissing him lightly. "I don't know. I guess I was thinking about Craig attacking you earlier, ya know?...him and Mitch...I feel like everyone's trying to take you away from me," he frowned.

Kyle broke away a bit and looked up at him. "No one is going to take me from you."

"How can you guarantee that?" he asked. "What if some totally hot guy with an amazing cock and brains and muscles to spare comes waltzing up to the door and offers to take you away?"

Kyle frowned deeply, "Ken...why are you so insecure about us? Do...do you really have that low of a self esteem?"

"I just feel like I'm...I'm..."

"You're what?"

He blinked at him before looking at the floor shamefully, "that I'm not good enough for you," he finished.

"Ken, I said earlier, even told Stan and Cartman that I wouldn't be here if you weren't. I'm trying to figure out what these standards are you're setting for my 'type'."

"Smart...hot...able to protect you...not a fucking pussy..."

"Okay, so we're four for four here," he raised his brow. "You seem to be doing pretty well."

"I'm not any of that crap," he sighed.

"That's bullshit," he rolled his eyes. "I don't know why you keep saying that you're not good enough for me. I mean, I'm sitting on our living room floor half-naked with cum dripping out of my ass and two hickeys on me. I honestly couldn't be much happier."

"Why? There are so many better people for you," he sniffed.

"Okay, okay, hold up. You go from saying that you're marking me so no one takes me from you...to saying that you think someone else should have me? Ken, what is it that you want?"

"For you to be happy," his voice cracked.

"No one makes me happier than you, Dude," he said softly. "I don't want some...perfect god for a boyfriend. I like you because you're full of flaws just like me. You're sometimes rude, perverted, completely inappropriate, obnoxious, and a few other choice adjectives," he paused and looked at him with softer eyes. "But I don't want it any other way. Flaws are what tie people together. If we were all perfect...then what would anything in our lives be based off of? I like you for you and nothing more," he smiled gently. "Please stop downing yourself like that...it really hurts that you're so against yourself."

"See how you make me feel?"

They froze and stared at each other for a moment before Kyle broke off his gaze and looked away guiltily. "I...I'm sorry, Ken. Look, you know that I'm trying to remedy the situation on myself...so can you make me a promise?"

"Sure," he looked at him confusedly. "What is it?"

Kyle grasped his hand and stroked his fingers. "Let's...let's try to be better about ourselves together. Will you please stop thinking like this? You are good enough for me...in fact, you're too good for me. But I've been blessed with the chance to be with you, so I'm going to live it up all that I can," he smiled.

Kenny melded their fingers together and stared at them with a sigh. "Okay," he agreed softly.

Kyle inclined and kissed his forehead tenderly. "So," he said as a few quiet moments passed, "why were we playing aggressive sex?"

"Um...I'm not sure?"

"Oh come on," he rolled his eyes. "There was obviously something going on in that head of yours."

"Did I hurt you?" he asked sheepishly.

"Did I complain?"

"No."

"Well there you go," he smiled. "Being audacious one of your kinks or something?"

He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his head, "uh...sort of."

"Ah, thought so."

Kenny quirked his brow, "you seem rather accepting of this."

He shrugged, "why wouldn't I be?"

"Well...considering what happened..."

"Ken, this situation is a little bit different, don't you think? I don't mind if you wanna make things a bit more exciting for you."

"But are you okay with me being like that? I don't wanna hurt you."

He smirked, "did I not already ask if you heard any complaints?"

Kenny smirked right back, "so, my lovely little Jew likes things rougher, hm?"

"I told you that I like it when you're in control of what I'm feeling," he shrugged. "Why didn't you tell me that you had a dominant fetish?"

"I would have...but after...you know...I thought you'd be scared of me."

Kyle chuckled lightly, "maybe if you told me that like, the night or so after, I would have had some issues. But honestly, it doesn't freak me out or anything," he shrugged again.

"You sure?"

"Of course I am. Maybe I have a submissive fetish," he winked playfully.

"Oh really?"

"Perhaps...," he drawled out, looking away from him and around the room slyly. Kenny grinned widely and pressed him back into the wall again.

"You like it when I'm controlling, hm?"

"In this scenario, yes," he smiled.

"Excellent," he growled, leaning towards him and touching noses. "Why don't I show you just how controlling I can be?"

"Please, demonstrate," he cocked his brow in amusement.

He chuckled lowly and placed his lips just by his. "Gladly."

* * *

* * *

He stared at the water intently, not blinking. Six minutes and counting. Absolutely nothing. Kenny sighed and leaned his head on the counter above the stove, banging his head against it gently. God this was taking forever!

He heard an incessant knocking at the front door and sighed heavily, taking his concentration away from the pot and walking over towards the source of the noise. As he opened the door, Stan and Cartman burst through, looking around wildly.

"Dude, where's that Riley chick?!" Stan asked.

"Why?" Kenny blinked as he shut the door.

"Damien stopped by to see us," Cartman explained. "He told us that the power to actually see and hear them isn't what drains away at a mortal's life source, it's your other powers, so he gave us that ability."

"Oh, cool," he smiled softly. "But me and Ky got her sent to Hell about four hours ago, Dudes."

Their faces dropped. "Aw, damn," Stan pouted.

He chuckled, "don't worry, we'll find another one soon enough. Is that the only reason you're here?" he asked as he led them back into the kitchen.

"Heh, yeah," Stan shrugged sheepishly. "Whatcha making?"

"Spaghetti," he smiled.

"Where's the Jew?" Cartman asked as Kenny handed them each a can of soda.

"In bed," he replied, looking back at his pot of water, watching the bubbles rising rapidly.

Damn it, it was true.

"Why is he in bed?" Stan asked with concern lining his voice.

Kenny smirked at him, "don't sound so worried for him, Stan."

"Well what's wrong with him? Ky doesn't usually take naps."

"You really wanna know?"

"Well, duh, Dumbass," he rolled his eyes. "Otherwise I wouldn't have asked you!"

He let a moment of silence pass before casually shrugging, "I've been banging him for the last few hours and he's a little worn out."

The larger boy's faces dropped into disgusted expressions. "Dude...," Stan started. "Why couldn't you have lied or something?"

"Because the looks on your faces was just too damn priceless to miss," he grinned widely. They all paused as they heard a soft ringing. Stan grabbed his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open.

"Hey, Wendy," he said as he took a sip of his drink. Cartman hopped up to sit on the countertop as Kenny started getting a colander down for his pasta. "I'm at Ky's and Ken's," he continued as he leaned back against the fridge. "No, he's in bed...I'm not gonna wake him up, Wendy. I...he's sick. He's not feeling well so he's lying down," he glared at Kenny who just smirked at him and continued to gather his materials. "Why do you need to talk to him?...Uh huh...okay...alright, hold on." He sighed and lowered the phone from his ear, looking at Kenny. "She says she really needs him right now," he said softly.

"Is it urgent?"

He shrugged, "she says so."

He sighed and handed Stan the box of pasta. "Alright, I'll go get him," he said. "Break the noodles in half and throw 'em in," he directed as he walked out of the room. He entered the bedroom slowly, observing the lump under the covers with a soft smile. He sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Kyle's angelic face with the small smile set on his tender lips. Kenny leaned down and kissed his cheek. "Ky? Ky, dude, can you get up for a minute?"

Kyle's eyes fluttered into view and he looked up at Kenny with that smile still shining. "Hey," he said softly. "Something up?"

"Wendy needs to talk to you."

Kyle's eyes narrowed into concerned slits as he sat up, the blanket sliding down and revealing his naked torso. "Wendy?" he repeated. "Is she all right?"

He shrugged, "I dunno, Stan has her on the phone," he motioned his head towards the door. Kyle nodded and swung his legs out of bed, looking around.

"Dude, where the hell are my pants?" he asked.

Kenny chuckled, "somewhere in the living room I believe." The boy blushed and grabbed another pair from his drawer, yanking them on before he went stumbling out into the other room.

"Dude, you could have put a shirt on," Cartman stuck his tongue out in disgust.

"Fuck off, Dude," he muttered, taking the phone from Stan's hand. "Wendy? Hey. Yeah...yeah, I'm fine. Why'd he tell you that?" he raised his brow at Stan who gave him a warning look. "Why was I in bed? Uh...I was tired?..." they all watched as his face began to glow red and they heard shrieking from the other end of the phone. He pinched his nose in the likeness of Stan and shook his head. "Yes. Now please stop squealing about it. It's not like we're new news or something....Wendy, I'm not telling you that! Now why do you need to talk to me?" He tapped his fingers against the countertop as she spoke. "Dude...Wendy...Wendy...WENDY!" he shouted. "It's fine, just come over, alright? We'll talk about it face to face if you can't explain it like this. Okay, we'll see you soon. Uh huh. Shut up," he glared at the phone. "Bye," he hung up and sighed irritably before looking at Stan. "Dude, how the fuck do you tolerate talking to her so much?"

He shrugged, "the same way you deal with Kenny openly admitting that you were fucking for hours today."

Kyle's glare switched from him to his boyfriend, who was making a big deal out of stirring the pasta. "Kenneth..."

Uh oh.

He sheepishly looked at him with an innocent grin upon his face. "Yes, Dear?"

He stared at him with his arms crossed. "I don't like that I have to treat you like a child," he growled.

"You weren't earlier. If you did that kind of stuff to a child, you'd be arrested for the seduction of a minor!"

Stan and Cartman sniggered lightly as Kyle's face began to glow vibrantly again. "KENNETH!"

Oops.

"Dude, I'm sorry!" he said, waving his hands in front of him defensively. "Knee-jerk reaction I swear!"

"Well learn to control them!"

"I'm sorry!" he pleaded.

"Ugh," he sighed, massaging his forehead. "What am I going to do with you?"

"Um...love me because of my lack of inhibitions?" he batted his eyelids.

He looked up at him unamused, "not in the presence of others, I won't."

"Sorry, I really am," he said softly, grabbing his hand and kissing it. "Forgive me?"

Kyle shook his head at him, "I guess I'm gonna have to, aren't I?"

"Well, otherwise you'll have to listen to me begging for a few hours."

"I could deal with that," he smirked.

Kenny shrugged and dropped to his knees with Kyle's hand still clutched to him. "Please, oh loveliest of the Jews, find it in your ever-so-generous heart to forgive this wretch?"

Kyle laughed softly and shook his head as Stan and Cartman watched with raised brows. "Well I guess when you put it like that I really don't have a choice," he smiled gently at him.

"Damn straight you don't," he winked, planting another kiss on his hand. "What can I do to make it up to you?" he asked.

"Ha ha," he chuckled. "Surprise me."

"Kay, one surprise per kiss," he smiled.

Kyle blinked at him. "What?"

He smirked and kissed the back of his hand again. "One," he counted. He moved up a bit and kissed again, "two...," he continued all the way up the boy's arm, watching him and letting his glance fall towards the two onlookers occasionally. Cartman looked outrageously disgusted while Stan looked strangely intrigued. He worked his way up Kyle's appendage until he hit the base of his neck and throughly licked up his jugular. "Twenty-one," he finished, nuzzling into the redhead's face.

Kyle let out a little giggle and pecked his cheek softly. "You're forgiven," he smiled. They looked over at the other two, catching Stan very openly staring.

He seemed to catch himself as well as he jolted a bit and cleared his throat, "sorry," he shrugged. "That was just...very different than what I'd expect from you two."

"Oh? And just what would you expect, Stan?" Kyle raised his brow.

"Well...with Ken's personality and all...," he trailed off, trying to find the best way to phrase his thoughts.

"You thought I'd just bend him over the counter and fuck him until he forgot all about the argument, right?" Kenny said.

"Uh...that certainly sounds more like you," he nodded.

"Dude, I don't do that to get out of trouble," he replied indignantly. "I do that whenever we're in the mood," he grinned deviously and pulled Kyle into him tightly. "And that just happens to be very often."

Stan chuckled a bit, "yes, trust me, I can tell. You can't seem to keep your hands off each other."

"Well excuse us for being close," Kyle rolled his eyes jokingly.

"Ya know, usually couples get scolded for being so physical so soon," Cartman raised his brow.

Kyle scoffed a bit, "dude, this is a relationship with Kenny of all people," he poked the blonde's shoulder pointedly. "The 'hands-to-yourself' rule was never going to apply here."

"Oh dude! That reminds me!" Stan exclaimed, prompting raised eyebrows from the other three.

"Uh...what reminded you of what?" Kenny asked.

"The hands thing, kinda related but not really," he shrugged. "Anyways, graduation party," he beamed. "You guys interested in going?"

"Who's holding it?" Kyle asked.

"Clyde," he smiled. "But Token's helping fund it. It's gonna be huge, Dude!"

"You going?" Kenny asked the larger boy atop the counter.

"Yup," he nodded. "Free alcohol is a definite yes in my book."

"Sounds tight," he nodded back as he turned to turn off the water for the food and poured the pasta into the colander.

"You wanna go, Kyle?" Stan asked.

"Um...I uh...I don't think that's a good idea." he shook his head slowly.

"Come on, you pussy," Cartman rolled his eyes. "You don't have to drink and poison your little sober mind."

Kyle narrowed his eyes at him, "for one thing, Cartman, don't fucking talk like you know everything. For another, I didn't mean the stupid drinking. I meant the part about me being with a bunch of people who hate my guts. I just don't think it's too smart of me."

"Well, I'll stay home with you then," Ken shrugged.

"No, Dude," he waved dismissively. "I think you should go, leave a lasting impression on those assholes," he suggested. "Have some fun for once."

"But...you..."

"Would not mind a quiet evening to myself," he smiled gently. "I love being with you, but we should have some hours where we're not right by each other. I know you like to cut loose every now and then and that's just fine. I'm not going to keep you locked in the apartment, alright?"

He bit his lip as he poured the sauce over the meal. "You're absolutely sure you don't mind me going out where there's going to be drinking?"

"Ken, just stay out of the police's way. Don't tell any secrets, and don't come home in a drunken rage and we'll be just fine, alright?"

Kenny smiled and kissed his forehead sweetly before looking at Cartman. "See?" he stuck his tongue out. "Topping doesn't equal control."

Cartman rolled his eyes and muttered a "whatever". Kyle smirked and stretched upwards and popped his back.

"I better go finish getting dressed before Miss Happy gets here," he looked at Stan with a bored expression.

"Was she mad or something?" he blinked.

"I'm not sure," he shrugged. "She was rambling. We'll just have to see."

He sighed and leaned against the counter. "Why wouldn't she tell me?" he asked softly.

"Just because you two are dating doesn't mean that all of her problems can be solved through you," he raised his brow. "Maybe she can't figure out what to get you for your birthday or something."

"I hope so." he nodded as Kyle walked out of the room to go grab a shirt. Kenny pulled four bowls from the cabinet and filled them with mounds of his spaghetti, handing them off to the boys and receiving their less-than-enthusiastic thanks.

"Stan, I have to know this now because it's a prospect that's scaring the living hell out of me," Kyle said as he walked back in, tugging his shirt down and shaking his head lightly to keep his hair away. He looked into Stan's gaze seriously, "is there any chance that she's pregnant?"

Stan's fork dropped to the floor. "We always use protection!" he breathed heavily. "Oh my God...what if...what if it was broke? Oh God, I can't be a father!"

Kyle walked over and placed his hands on Stan's large shoulders. "Dude, I was just asking for a possibility. If you've used a condom then I think we're okay."

"But what if you're right?!" he asked, still panicking. "She definitely wouldn't tell me first! She'd go to someone sensible like you!" he slammed his bowl on the counter and began pacing the floor. "Oh God, what if she is?! Kyle, I can't be a dad!"

"Stan, it was just a question, calm down!" he tried.

"But if you're right...everything's done!" he cried out. "No football for me, no studying as a dental hygienist for her...everything will be cheerios and diapers full of shit!" Kyle grabbed him and pushed him against the counter.

"Stan, listen to me," he commanded. "It was a hypothetical scenario, alright? You would have known if the condom was broken. You're not going to be a dad, you'll get into the NFL and Wendy will be a great dentist one day and you'll have kids when you're damn well ready. Just take a deep breath, alright?" Stan nodded and swallowed some air before shakily taking some breaths.

"God...the idea...Kyle, what if she is?" he asked with his azure eyes shining.

Kyle looked back sympathetically. "Dude, I told you, she's probably not."

"But what if?" he insisted.

"Then you'll be a dad," he shrugged. "You two would make awesome parents, alright? And I guarantee that should that happen, yours and her parents would be willing to help foot the billing for raising it, okay? Stop worrying about it."

"You...you think I'd be a good dad?" he sniffed.

"I think you'd be an amazing dad, Dude, but I don't think that's going to be the case. Now stop sniveling and eat your pasta. Athletes need the carbs," he handed his bowl back to him with a smile. He half-smiled back as Kenny handed him a new fork and he slowly took some nibbles. Kyle sighed and walked to lean onto Kenny and eat his own food.

Cartman let out a little shudder and they all looked at him confusedly. "Sorry," he shrugged. "I was trying to think of the spawn of you two hippies," he looked at Stan. "Frankly, the idea terrifies me."

"Why?" Ken asked as he chewed.

"Come on! The kid would be overly concerned about the environment and the plight of mankind all the while smashing people's faces into the ground in sports. Doesn't that little contradiction scare anyone else?"

"Personality traits aren't hereditary, Cartman," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Sure they are, you're an annoying little Jewrat always protesting the mainstream and starting your own causes that are absolutely ridiculous like your mother," he raised his brow. "And just like her, you're a total little bitch. And from your charming father, you have the sex-thought capacity of a raisin."

Kyle swallowed his food and looked at him in a stately manner. "You're absolutely right, Cartman."

They all looked at each other in confusion. "I...I am?" he squeaked.

"Yes. Yes, you're right," he nodded in thought. "After all, you're a whore like your mother the way that you flaunt yourself and your ego to the masses. Their attention is your payment and your pleasure, is it not?"

Cartman blinked for a moment before his eyes narrowed. "Watch it, Kahl. I'll fucking find a way to kill you."

"Try me, Fatboy," he challenged.

Cartman placed his food on the counter and hopped off, "you wanna go, Jew?"

Kyle placed his bowl down as well and smirked at him, "Yeah. I wanna go straight out the door in fear after what you just did."

"What?" he asked.

"You actually stepped away from food! What is that, like, the third time in all 17 years of your life that you've done that?"

"Oh god...," Stan shook his head. He and Kenny backed away from the bantering duo slowly.

"Fuck you, Jew!"

He waved dismissively. "No thanks, I'd rather you didn't."

"I wouldn't touch you like that if you paid me! And besides, Kenneh fucks you enough for seven freaking people."

"Kyle raised his brow, "Was that supposed to be an insult?"

"Yes!"

"How?!"

"You're a dirty little Jew-slut!"

"How does sleeping with my boyfriend make me a slut?"

"It's not normal for people to always be screwing!"

"I personally think you're just jealous," he smirked.

"Of you getting your ass pounded in? I don't think so, Kahl."

"God you're fucking retarded," he shook his head.

Cartman grabbed his arms and yanked him roughly towards himself. "Care to try that again?"

Kyle merely blinked at him, his expression steady, "You. Are. Retarded." he repeated smoothly.

Cartman's eyes narrowed and he tightened his grip on the boy's arms, "Watch what you say, Jew. I have no issues with bashing your face in."

"You think I'm afraid of you?" he scoffed.

"You should be!"

"And yet I'm not."

"Okay, that's enough," Stan intervened. "Cartman, let go of him."

"I"m perfectly capable of defending myself, Stan," Kyle said dryly.

"Yes, let's let the Jewrat proved himself and fight back," Cartman smirked. "Come on, Kahl, show me how much damage a 30 pound ass like yours can actually do," he taunted.

Kyle scowled and tried to pull himself free of the larger male. He groaned in frustration, still tugging. He tried to kick out at him, but Cartman moved his leg back, smiling triumphantly.

"Come on, Skank. Cantcha do it?" he teased.

Kyle growled and his eyes flashed red, sending Cartman flying back and sliding on the hardwood floor.

"Goddammit, you cheating Jew!" he yelled, sitting up and rubbing his head.

Kyle crossed his arms and glared at him. "We didn't establish rules," he hissed.

"You seem to be getting the hang of that," Kenny commented, walking up beside the redhead and wrapping an arm around his small waist.

"To be honest, I don't even realize that I'm doing it until it happens," he looked up at him. "I just get frustrated and boom, someone goes flying across the room."

"Usually Cartman," Stan snickered.

"Shut up, Jock boy," he spat, standing and still massaging his scalp. "Stupid ass Jew...," he muttered.

Kyle merely rolled his eyes and they heard someone rapping on the front door.

"Must be Mrs. Marsh," he smirked, walking past Stan's flustered form and opening the door.

"Hey, Wendy," he smiled as the purple-clad girl made her way inside.

"Hi, Kyle," she smiled softly. The other boys came out as well to greet her.

"Hey, Babe," Stan said, walking up to her and kissing her lightly on the cheek.

"Hi, Stan. Ken, Eric," she smiled at them. Cartman nodded curtly and Kenny gave her a wave. She sighed and looked at the redhead. "Kyle, can I please talk to you in your room or something? It'll just take a minute, I promise."

"Hey, we've got plenty of time," he smiled gently. "Come on, we'll talk," he gestured towards the bedroom door and she followed his direction. He looked back at Stan's disheartened expression and shrugged before they were in the room and he shut the door quietly behind them.

"If Kyle comes out with hickeys that I didn't give him, I'm killing you, Stan," Kenny smirked.

Stan raised his brow amusedly. "I'd like to see you try, Shrimpy."

"I'm taller than you!"

"But a lot less muscular," he poked him pointedly.

Kenny rubbed the impact point and frowned. "I have muscle! It's just hidden under my other good looks," he smirked.

The ebon-haired boy laughed softly. "Sure it is." They all walked over and plopped down on the furniture. Stan absentmindedly picked up their notebook and flipped it open. "A false reality?" he blinked, giving Kenny a raised brow.

He nodded. "She thought that her boyfriend was trapping her when really he wasn't to put it simply."

"Ah," he nodded, looking back down at the page. "God...how do you handle all of this?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"Well...I mean, you're leading these people to Hell...I don't think I'd be able to," he elaborated.

Kenny shrugged, "I didn't think that I'd be able too, either. But me and Kyle look at it as a matter of rather or not we would rather be stuck in Hell or on Earth. I mean, if you're stuck on Earth, yeah, you can see your family or whatever, but you keep getting reminded of all the bad things that happened to you during your life. And you can't talk to anyone or do anything really, so why would you want to live...well, be dead like that?"

Both Stan and Cartman nodded slowly in agreement. "That does make sense," Cartman mused.

"Still, it'd just be hard to do if I were in your situation I would think."

"Well, I kinda don't have a choice in the matter, Dude," he shrugged.

"Oh, that 'condition' Damien mentioned?" he asked. He nodded back. "So, what exactly is that condition?"

Kenny froze slightly and shifted uncomfortably. "Well...I'm not sure if should tell you..."

"Why not?" Cartman raised his brow.

He sighed. "Well, I could tell Stan and he'd understand, but if I told you, you'd use it for yourself."

A moment of silence passed before Stan spoke softly, "Is it Kyle?"

"What?" Kenny blinked.

"The condition. Is it Kyle?"

Kenny bit his lip, glancing at Cartman before nodding softly. "Yes. We...none of us can ever tell anyone, alright?"

"Why? What would happen to him?" Cartman asked.

Kenny glared at him, "Satan would take him away. We'd never see him again. And by association, I would fucking murder you because I know it'd be you who spilled!" He sighed and looked back towards Stan. "We cannot tell Ky either, alright?"

"Shouldn't he be allowed to know that he's on the line?" he questioned.

Kenny shook his head. "No. I don't want him to think like that. I don't want him to know that he's just a few words away from being taken." Stan nodded slowly in agreement.

"You're right," he concurred. "That wouldn't go over too well." He looked up at the brown-haired boy determinedly. "Cartman, keep your mouth shut, do you understand?"

Cartman looked at him harshly. "Stan, even I have my limitations. If Kahl dies, it won't be from my phrasing, it'll be from my hands choking his goddamn Jewneck. Don't ever question that," he crossed his arms and leaned into the couch.

Kenny sighed and ran his fingers through his blonde locks. "I don't appreciate that thought process, but if it keeps you quiet then I'll let it slide." They all turned their heads as they heard the door opening. They watched as Kyle came out with Wendy securely in his arms as she cried.

"Wends?!" Stan panicked, leaping off the couch and dashing towards her. "Babe, are you okay?" he asked. Kenny rolled his eyes. It was rather obvious that she wasn't.

"I...I just..." she panted before sobbing a bit more. She turned and buried her face into Kyle's chest and he looked down at her sadly.

"It's okay, Wendy," he comforted her softly and wrapped his arms around her, gently swaying her back and forth. "It's okay...," he looked up at Stan, who was staring back with shining eyes.

"Is she...," he mouthed while pointing to his stomach.

Kyle shook his head with a smile. "Told you," he mouthed before looking back down at Wendy. "Wendy, maybe you should go home and lie down for awhile."

"But...she just...why won't she...God, Kyle I'm so sorry...."

"Don't be sorry, everything's okay, I promise," he patted her back gently.

"But I feel so bad now!" she screamed, fisting his shirt tightly.

"Don't, it's not worth it. Everything will work out, okay?"

"But...but...," she stammered.

"No more buts," he stated firmly. "Now I think that you should let Stan take you home so you can lie down, alright? I'll do all I can to help salvage the situation, but I really do think you're fretting over nothing."

"But it hurts...," she cried. Stan's eyes widened.

"What's hurt?! Why do you hurt?! Who am I killing?!" he growled protectively.

Kyle looked up at him and shook his head. "Stan, down," he ordered. "Look, Wendy. Coming from someone with experience in this, I can tell you that it'll get better, alright? You just have to be somewhat persistent."

"I've tried! It's not working!"

"It takes time," he reassured her, stroking her head maternally. "I know you and you want what's best for them, right?"

She sniffed and nodded against his shirt.

"Then you need to let them go at it on their own for a while, alright? After the initial excitement dies down, you'll get her back, I promise. Just be insistent with her. Don't let her push you aside or else it hurts a lot more, okay?"

"How do I be insistent?" she asked, looking up at him helplessly.

"Tell her that it's how you want it done and you'll be damned if you're doing it another way," he grinned. "If she is who you think she is, then she'll come around and you two will be back on normal terms in a matter of time."

She looked at his torso thoughtfully for a moment before one last sniffle. She looked up and him and smiled before leaning up and kissing his cheek. "Thank you," she whispered, clasping him tightly around the waist.

"Not at all," he smiled gently. "Now, let Stan take you home, alright? I'll call him tomorrow and see what's going on on that end."

She nodded, "Thanks again." she released him and turned towards Stan. "Take me home?" she asked.

He smiled in relief. "Of course." she smiled back and grasped his hand. "Guess I'm off," he waved to the others. "Cartman, you coming?"

"Yeah, might as well. Tired of the gay around here," he muttered.

"You were the one offering to fuck me just a while ago," Kyle smirked.

He whipped around and faced him squarely. "Not what I meant, Jewrat!"

"Sure it wasn't."

He growled in frustration and turned on his heel, storming out the door. Stan and Wendy followed closely behind and waved to them. "See ya, Dudes!" Stan called out.

"Bye, boys," Wendy smiled. "And thanks again Kyle. You have no idea what this means to me."

"Anytime, Wendy," he nodded. They watched as the door closed, standing in the middle of the living room before walking back into the kitchen to clean up their food mess.

"So, why was Miss Testaburger so upset?" Kenny asked as he handed dishes off to Kyle to wash up.

He chuckled. "Tell me something, Kenny: think about the kids at school. Who's the least likely couple to get together?"

"Me and you?"

"Aside from us. Choose a heterosexual couple."

"Um...Wendy and Cartman?"

"Nope. Who's the least likely to be with Bebe in particular?"

"Token?"

"They dated last fall."

"Clyde?"

"Third grade."

"That emo kid?"

"Who? Stan?"

Kenny burst out laughing. "Ha, no, but that wouldn't work well either," he snickered. "Okay, I give, who?"

Kyle looked at him as he scrubbed a bowl and smirked. "Starts with a B..."

"Brandon?"

"No, Dear."

"Oh! Bradley!"

"Close..."

"B...B...Butters?"

"Ding ding ding," he grinned. Kenny's face dropped into shock.

"No. Fucking. Way." he breathed. "Holy fucking God that's fucking...Jesus fucking Christ!"

"Kenny, were all the fuckings necessary?" Kenny broke into a smirk before Kyle stopped him, "Don't go there, Dude," he warned, smacking a bowl into his chest.

He chuckled as he dried off the bowl. "God...Butters and Bebe...Dude that's just weird as hell."

"Ain't it? I almost fell over when Wendy told me that."

"So what do those two have to do with Wendy freaking out?" he asked.

He looked at her with a somewhat sad smile. "She thought that she was losing her best friend to their significant other. She figured who better to talk to about that situation than me?"

"But she was the reason..."

"Yes, she knows," he laughed softly. "She kept apologizing, saying she didn't know how horrible it felt to feel like you were so much less important in your best friend's life." He paused for a moment and then sighed. "It's not like I blamed her, really, though. I blamed Stan."

Kenny smiled gently at him as he finished drying. "You still hold that against him?"

Kyle looked at him and let out a short laugh. "Haven't you noticed that since this whole...thing started that there hasn't been any lengthy amount of time I haven't seen him?"

"Losing you made him see just how important you are to him."

"Why couldn't he recognize that earlier though? I mean, why is it that only when our friendship is visibly on the line that he seems to care?"

Kenny froze. He knew those words. He shook slightly and bit his lip. Kyle looked up at him in concern. "You okay?" he asked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah," he forced out a chuckle. "Got cold that's all. Anyways, Stan's always cared about you, Dude."

"I know he's always cared, but it's just the actual maintaining of our companionship that he seemed to struggle with. If it weren't for you always being with me, I bet that I'd see him even more than I do now."

"Are you complaining about that?" he quirked his brow as he reached up to place the dishes back in the cabinet.

Kyle leaned back against the counter and sighed. "To an extent I am. I mean, I love the fact that I actually get to see my best friend occasionally. But at the same time, I feel like he's just here to make sure I'm not carving into my skin again, you know?"

"I would disagree with that...but I think in a way you may be right," he nodded, turning and leaning on the counter opposite his boyfriend. "Stan's a good guy, but he's too focused on certain things in his life. I think its switched from Wendy to you."

"But not in a very good way. Not in the 'oh this is my best friend' way. It's more of a 'oh god, Kyle lives somewhere where there's knives'," he picked one from the knife holder for display. "'I have to protect him from himself'," he finished with rolling eyes.

"Well, Ky in a way that's understandable. We were scared out of our minds when we lost you," he said softly.

Kyle sighed and replaced the knife. "I know, Dude. I know. But...I'm here now and that's all that should matter. I don't want my entire life to be centered around the fact that I committed suicide...or that I was raped...Ken, I just want everything to fall back into place again."

"And one day it will. But we have to take small steps to get there. We'll conquer this trial and then we'll place focus on getting you...getting both of us," he smiled softly, "back to where we're comfortable with being ourselves. Okay?"

Kyle smiled back. "Alright." He glanced at the clock and sighed. "Bed?"

"Yeah, sure," he nodded. He and Kyle met each and walked through the kitchen towards their room melded together. They changed out of their clothes and fell into bed, physically and mentally exhausted. Their ears perked as they heard shouting from outside and sighed.

"Goddamn kids," Kyle smirked.

"They better not be touching my lawn!" Kenny added, shaking his fist in the air. Kyle fell into a bout of giggles and cuddled tiredly into the blonde. Kenny absentmindedly stroked his soft hair, lost in thought.

"Something up?" Kyle asked.

"Why?"

"Your breathing's really deep," he said softly. "It's only like that if you're asleep or thinking really hard on something."

He chuckled, "I'm happy you're able to read me so easily now."

Kyle looked up at him and smiled. "Well of course. Now what's on your mind?"

"I'm thinking about kids," he shrugged simply. Kyle's face fell.

"Uh, kids in general or like...kid kids."

"Kid kids," he nodded.

"...Okay..."

He laughed softly, still stroking his head. "I was thinking about Stan's freak out over being a dad. It got me thinking...let's say we stay together like we want to and we get married or something."

"Alright..."

"Would you want to adopt?"

"Well, that'd be the only option really. Ken, why are you asking this?"

"I'm curious," he shrugged. "Would you be willing to raise a kid with someone like me?"

"Whaddya mean someone like you?"

He sighed, "I mean someone who could end up like their father." Kyle's eyes softened and he sat up and stared at him.

"Kenny, you're not gonna end up like your father. Except for maybe the trait of trying to better yourself. You're not abusive and you're educated, and you're not a heavy drinker...I don't see why you'd think that you'd end up so...so..."

"Messed up?"

Kyle winced, "I wouldn't say that..."

"I would," he sighed, leaning back into the headboard. "I don't think I'd be able to handle kids."

"But you want them," Kyle said softly.

"How do you figure?"

"You wouldn't have brought up the possibility unless you either wanted them or were undecided. And I think you'd handle kids just fine, Dude."

"How? I'm completely immature."

He chuckled, "yes, but in a good way. You know when to behave when it's necessary. You're patient and a good person. You'd make a really great father," he smiled lovingly.

"You think so?"

"I know so," he ruffled his hair a bit.

Kenny grinned and wrapped his arm around him and pulled him in, kissing his head. "What would we name em if we got a baby?"

He laughed softly. "I dunno...something that starts with a K."

"Why?"

"Well, we got two K's here. Might as well keep it going," he smirked.

"Hm. Good point," he smirked, squeezing him tighter and looking upwards in thought. "Kerry."

"Kassandra."

"Kennedy."

"Katrina."

"Kelly."

"Kelsey."

"Kylie."

"No way in hell." he stated firmly.

"Why not?"

"I would not name a child with one letter difference than my own name. That's just weird to me."

He laughed, "how is that weird?"

"I don't know, it just is."

He continued to snicker and played with his curls. "Oh well. We got eternity to think about that."

"Yeah, you're right," he smiled. He leaned his head against Ken's shoulder and his gaze fell to his side of the room. "What the hell?" he murmured.

"What?"

Kyle leaned off of him and went into his drawer, causing Kenny's breath to hitch. Kyle pulled out his notebook, and a spare piece of paper fluttered out onto the sheet.

Busted.

Kenny gulped as Kyle picked it up and read it over, his eyebrow raising. "Ken...what the hell is this?"

"I...I read it...I'm sorry," he apologized. "I just wanted to know why you were so upset...and why you wanted to hide them from me. Kyle, I didn't mean to betray your trust, I really didn't."

"Dude, it's fine...but what is this?" he held up the sheet. Kenny took it from him and sat up next to him.

"They're um...dream analysis'," he said slowly. "We...we learned a little about them in Psychology."

Kyle looked down at the paper and back up at him. "Seems like more than a little," he commented.

He laughed nervously. "Well, I thought it was kinda interesting so I kept looking into it while the class moved on...I was having some weird dreams and studying about them helped me a lot."

"Oh?" he blinked. "What did you research on?" Kenny hesitated for a moment before reaching down his side of the bed and grabbing his psych binder. He handed Kyle his notes from earlier and placed the rest of the binder on the nightstand. He watched as the Jew flipped through them, his eyes wide with interest.

"Wow...," he whispered. "Ken...these are...wow. I didn't know that dreams were so symbolic."

"Yeah. They say what your subconscious wishes that you would say on the outside," he nodded. "I just thought it was interesting, that's all."

"This is incredible. They're so detailed..." he said softly. He looked over at the notes on his dream again and then back at Kenny. "You were analyzing me?"

"Y-yeah."

"So...what did it say?"

"Huh?"

"What did my dreams say about me?" he pressed.

"Ky...don't you want Joe to -"

"Joe isn't you," he said softly. "I'd much rather hear this from someone I trust."

"But how do you know I'm right."

"Read it to me and I'll tell you," he smiled. Kenny sat up straighter and nodded, reading his analysis from the mirror dream. As he finished, he looked up to see Kyle staring back with glassy eyes.

"I think you hit it dead on," his voice cracked. He sniffed and looked down at the thick notes in his hands. "You...you really have a knack for this, ya know."

"Um, are you okay?"

"Yeah," he nodded, wiping at his eyes. "I'm just...I don't know. This is like a wake-up call for me, ya know? I just thought my dreams were out to get me, but apparently they're telling me something. Thank you, Kenny," he smiled sweetly. "Do you...do you think I'm crazy?"

Kenny frowned and took the notes and placed them on his nightstand, gathering the small boy in his arms. "No. I don't. I think that you're stressed, you're scared, and you're hurt. These dreams are telling you that, too."

He sniffed, "How do I get better, Kenny?"

He smiled and kissed him delicately. "You stay with me through the whole thing. You and I will beat this thing together, alright?"

"Ken?"

"Yes?"

He looked up at him. "Will you analyze my dreams for me from now on? I just don't feel comfortable with Joe knowing so much about me..."

He kissed him again, "of course I will," he grinned. "If you'll tell me everything, then I will. Can you promise me that?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I promise." he paused and looked away for a moment before laughing softly and turning back. "Ya know...you really amaze me sometimes."

He smirked, "Surprise number one."

Kyle blinked at him. "What?"

"I promised you twenty-one surprises today," he trailed his fingers up Kyle's arm. "I have twenty to go now."

"Kenny, each day we're together is an amazing surprise because I'm with you and I've turned out to be damn lucky," he smiled.

"No, the days aren't surprises," he leaned down and kissed his lips tenderly. "They're blessings."

* * *

_A/N: Few things here. First, thank you to Chocolate-SugarCube for two reasons. One: for being my 200th reviewer. It was like getting my 200th subscriber on Youtube a year ago, but this was so much more meaningful to me XD_

_And two: because she said she'd make fanart someday for this story and that just made me spastic with joy XD_

_So thank you, Dear. And to all the other reviewers as well of course!_

_Now then. Lot's of stuff here. Smex kinks, baby freaks, and some psychological hijinks...totally tried to rhyme and failed miserably. Ah, well. Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_BTW! (I know it doesn't affect you really...) But tomorrow, (December 1st) is my birthday!!!! How old am I gonna be? Guess and I'll dedicate the next chapter to you. Perhaps even take your suggestion for a smexy scene? Mayyyybe. Gotta review to get it!_

_Teehee, I'm devious._

_Lots o' love!_


	37. Speak

_A/N: Dedicated to StupidityisStupid because she knows how to use her resources and find people's age XD...I'm now 18, btw =)_

_Mmm, graduation time for all? Why yes. Yes it is. Wish it was in real life too. Being a senior's pretty pointless. _

_Oh well. Yay for fillers. Enjoy!_

* * *

He tapped his finger on the desk impatiently, listening to its steady beat as he held the receiver to his ear.

"Come on..." he muttered

"_South Park Library, how can I help you?"_

"Hi, can I talk to Kyle?"

"_Is this Kenny?"_

"Perhaps," he grinned. "Hello, Gloria."

"_Hello, Dear. Give me just a sec and I'll find him....ah, Kyle!"_

Kenny could hear a distant 'what' in the background and he smirked. _"It's Kenny," _she answered him. _"No phone sex, understand?" _He laughed softly.

'_Hey, Dude," _Kyle's voice rang through his ear and caused his heart to flutter.

"Hey. Well, Gloria kinda spoiled my plans."

He could just see Kyle rolling his eyes. _'Ha ha, very funny,' _he replied dryly. _"What's up?"_

"What time do you get off of work?"

He could hear some papers shuffling around. "_Looks like six. Why?"_

"I'm gonna come meet you and we're going out to dinner to celebrate," he smiled.

"_What's the occasion?"_

"It's a surprise," he smirked.

"_Number two?"_

"Yup. I think you'll be happy with it," he boasted.

"_I bet...," _he trailed off before groaning, _"Crap, I gotta go. Some kids are throwing things all over the place. See ya at six."_

"Kay. Love ya."

"_Love you, too," _he responded before hanging up.

Kenny hung up the receiver and smiled before flopping down on the couch. He placed his hands behind his head and let out a contented sigh. Life was good.

A knock came at the door and he raised his head in confusion. Life was good, but the couch seemed better at the time. Oh well.

He sighed and stood, walking over to the door and opening it to reveal Butters standing there with his trademark shyness emanating from him. "Hi, Kenny," he smiled.

"Hey, Dude," he grinned back, allowing him to step in before closing the door behind him. "What's up?"

"I...I kinda wanted to talk to you," he said softly.

"Alrighty, come into the kitchen and we shall have ourselves a talk," he threw his arm over his shoulders and lead him to the room. Butters sat at the table as Kenny procured a couple of drinks for them. He slid Butters over his soda and sat down across from him,

"So, how are things here?" Butters asked with his never-ending grin.

"Pretty darn awesome," he nodded. "How about with you?"

"I'm doing great. How's Kyle?"

"Better," he responded, taking a sip of his drink. "He's still a little iffy every now and then, but he's trying," he sat his can down and leaned back in his chair, a wide smirk spreading over his features. "So," he started. "I heard that you happen to be holding hands with a certain Bebe Stevens. Would this happen to be true?"

Butters chuckled lightly and sat his drink down as well. "Yup. For about a month now."

"I gotta know, Dude. How? I mean...you two are just like...God, it's just weird!"

"I know," he grinned. "To be honest, and as terrible as it sounds, I kinda have to thank Kyle for it."

"Why?" he blinked. "What'd Ky do?"

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well...when he was in the hospital, me and Bebe talked a lot when Wendy was sleepin' or just whenever we were around each other. I thought she was really sweet and she thought the same about me apparently and here we are," he shrugged. "I mean, I can't say I like the situation that brought us together, but I'm happy that it did," he smiled.

Kenny smirked. "Ya know, a lot came out of that situation in terms of relationships. Did you ever notice that?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"I got Kyle, you got Bebe, Stan and Wendy got back together for the millionth time, and we learned not long after that even Cartman had a girlfriend," he chuckled.

"Horrible scenarios tend to bring people closer," he smiled gently. "I mean, people think that Bebe's...well..."

"A skank?" he suggested with a shrug.

"Unfortunately, yes," he nodded. "But she's not. The closer I got to her, the more I learned about her...she's not one of them at all!"

"I have no doubt that she isn't," Kenny agreed. "I never thought of her like that. I tried to come on to her once and she got pissed at me."

"You didn't...do anything did ya?"

He shook his head. "Nah. If people say no, I usually back off. I haven't ran into that scenario too many times, but I know when I need to keep my hands to myself."

He sighed in relief. "Well good. No offense, but I kinda wouldn't be too comfortable if the last person my girlfriend slept with was one of my best friends."

"Totally understandable," he nodded. "So, what are you here to talk about?"

Butters took another swig of his soda and looked at him with his soft grin still shining. "I wanted to talk to you about you and Kyle."

"What about us?"

"Do you...do you love him?" he asked.

"Very much so," he smiled.

"Like...how do you know?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"I mean how do you know," he repeated. "What makes your relationship with him so much stronger than that of just friends?"

Kenny leaned back some more in contemplation before looking at the smaller blonde and smiling. "Everything."

"Like what?"

"Okay, you know how when a friend smiles, you get happy and excited for them? You like other people's happiness?" He nodded in response, staring at Kenny intently. "Well," he continued, "if I see Kyle smile, I'm more than just happy. Everything about him makes my heart feel like it's going to explode or something," he shrugged. "When he smiles, everything just seems so right with my life, ya know?"

He nodded along as if considering this idea. "So...greater feelings?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I mean, sex, Dude. The sex is fucking incredible."

He quirked his brow, "Ken, you've always said that."

"But I didn't have anything to compare it to," he shrugged. "That felt good physically, it's true. But when I'm with Kyle...everything feels good. My head does, my heart does...everything," he repeated. "I never wanna let him go if I'm holding him afterwards...I've never felt like this before. What other feeling can it be?"

Butters looked at him for a long time before slowly breaking into a smile. "Well...that's how I feel about Bebe, too," he said softly.

"Really?"

He nodded, "Mhmm. Bebe makes me feel so much happier. She really does. She makes me excited and nauseous and warm...it's just such a great feeling. I didn't think that I could feel that way. My Dad keeps telling me that I'm just confused, that I'm too young to understand love."

"Coming from a divorced man," Kenny raised his brow.

"Right. That's why I wanted to talk to you...I mean, I know that you aren't much older than me, but you've kept a fairly strong relationship with Kyle, so I figured who better to talk to than you?"

"What about Stan? Him and Wendy have been going for years."

"Yeah, but I don't think Stan likes me very much," he replied quietly. "Besides, I'm more comfortable talking to you than someone like him. He's real nice and all..."

"But he's just not that close to you," Kenny finished.

"Yeah."

Kenny couldn't help smiling at that. "Well, you know I'm always here to talk. And I'll be right here to listen about the first time you two do the deed as well," he winked. Butters looked up at him with a bit of a sly smile and Kenny's eyes widened before he broke into a wicked grin. "No way!" he smacked the table with his palm. "Hot dog, Dude! When?!"

"About a week or so ago," he shrugged, a slight blush tinging his cheeks.

"Dude, ya shoulda told me!" he complained. "I woulda taken you out for a beer or somethin'!"

"Kenny, we're too young to drink," his face dropped into a frown of concern.

"Eh," he shrugged, "never stopped me before. But Butters! You slept with Bebe Stevens! Holy freaking God, Dude! Why aren't you like, wearing a neon sign or something to advertise yourself?!"

"Well, it's a closed doors thing," he explained. "We both agreed that it's not something that needs to be told to everyone. She told Wendy, but I think that's it. And you're the first that I've told."

"Well, I'm totally telling Kyle," he stated.

He nodded, "I'm okay with that. Kyle ain't judgmental of me or Bebe, so that's fine."

"Well good, I honestly wouldn't be able to keep it a secret," he laughed.

"Just don't tell too many people?" he pleaded.

Kenny looked at him with gentle eyes, "Butters, you know I wouldn't. But why is it such a bad thing for people to know?"

"It's really not," he shrugged. "But both of us would prefer it if our personal lives were kept out of the mainstream, ya know?"

He nodded, "I totally get that. I'm dating Mr. Shut-in himself," he smirked.

"Speaking of which, he ready for tomorrow night?"

Kenny laughed softly, "I don't think so. He's been avoiding the topic like crazy. He hates making speeches."

"Aw, well I think he'll do great."

"I do, too. Now if only I could convince him of that."

"Well, you know Kyle. He doesn't like to show off or nothin'."

"That and he's stubborn as a goddamn mule," he snickered. "But I love him for it."

Butters smiled at him and finished off his soda, taking a large sigh. "I gotta go," he said sheepishly. "Bebe and me are shopping for her outfit for the party Saturday. Are you goin'?"

He nodded, "yeah, Ky's okay with it."

"He's not goin' with ya?"

"He doesn't like the prospect of getting beaten up by the entire class."

"Oh. Well, that's understandable," he nodded. "I don't see why he's so unliked. I always thought he was a great person. Still do," he shrugged.

"That's the problem," he sighed. "Oh well. He's almost free of those jerk-offs." They stood from the table and he walked the younger boy to the front door.

"Thanks a bunch for helpin' me out, Kenny," he smiled as he stepped out of the room.

"Anytime, Kid," he nodded. "Next time you get laid, you freaking call me, got it?" he smirked.

Butters chuckled, "alrighty. See ya tomorrow night!"

"See ya," he waved before shutting the door behind him. He laughed and shook his head. Butters losing his virginity to Bebe of all people. What the fuck were the odds?

Speaking of odd couples...he looked up at the clock, seeing that it was about 5. Just enough time to get ready.

* * *

Kenny stepped into the library, looking for that familiar form when he was bombarded by a woman.

"Kenny, hello!"

"Hey, Gloria," he smiled. "How are you?"

"I'm just fine, thank you, Dear," she grinned back softly. "You?"

"I'll be better once I find Kyle," he smirked.

"He's in the back," she gestured towards a door behind the counters. "Go ahead and grab him." He nodded gratefully and spun towards the door. He pushed it open, looking left and right for his Jew, finding nothing.

"Goddammit!" he heard someone hiss. He smiled as he followed the voice upwards towards the redhead who was struggling with a box up on the ladder.

"Having fun?" he called up.

Kyle glanced down and shared his frown. "No. This thing is fucking heavy!"

"Well, you expect one of the ladies to do it?"

"No, I'm just not fucking coordinated," he sighed as he continued to try to push it up onto the top of the shelf.

"Come down and I'll get it," he suggested.

"No, I'm perfectly capable of doing this myself," he growled towards the box as he stood on his toes to press it backwards. "Goddammit...come on...," he gave it a forceful push and sent it flying back into place and sending him stumbling on what little footing he had.

"Fuck!" Kenny cried as Kyle fell backwards. He held out his arms and caught him, sending them both crashing into the floor. They groaned and sat up, rubbing their heads.

"You know, it would have been less disastrous had you just let me fall," Kyle commented.

"And let you break that beautiful head? Not if I have anything to say about it," he smirked. They stood and Kyle grasped him in a hug, meeting lips with him softly.

"Guess I can't complain about you being my hero," he smiled.

"I'm sure you could find a way," he raised his brow in amusement. Kyle flicked him playfully and they turned to walk out of the room hand in hand.

"Leavin'?" Gloria asked.

"Yes. Your damn boxes are up," he rolled his eyes.

"Oh fine, just leave. Be lazy," she winked.

"I will. I have a date if you don't mind," he stuck his tongue out at her. Kenny's heart fluttered at the word 'date'.

"Alright, you boys have fun," she smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow night. That speech better be damn good, Kyle."

"Yeah, yeah," he waved her off. "See ya then."

"Bye, Gloria," Kenny waved as Kyle and he walked out the main doors and onto the sidewalk.

"So, what exactly are we celebrating?" Kyle asked.

"I'll show you once we get there," he smirked.

"Damn you, I hate suspension," he pouted.

"Well, I'm afraid you're going to have to live with it," he squeezed his hand gently. "How was your day?"

"Pretty good aside form those kids," he shrugged. "I spent most of the time playing solitaire."

"Shouldn't you be working on that speech of yours?" he raised his brow.

Kyle sighed, "I really really really don't wanna do it, Ken."

"I know ya don't, but you need to. You need to stand up and say 'look at me. I'm valedictorian. Bow down!'"

He chuckled lightly, "yes. Being a nerd totally gives me that kind of power."

"It will one day when you're rich," he smiled.

"Heh, maybe," he shrugged. "How's your day been?"

"Pretty good. Butters came over to talk."

"How's he doing? I talked to Wendy the other day and she said her and Bebe are talking more again."

"Our little Butters is growing up," he sniffed dramatically and waited for Kyle to catch on.

He blinked at him for a second before breaking into a smirk, "they totally did it, didn't they?"

"They grow up so fast," he cracked.

He shook his head and laughed softly. "Wow...that's just...wow."

"I know, ain't it?"

"He came over just to tell you that?"

"Nah," he pulled Kyle into his frame and smiled. "He was asking how I felt about you."

"And you said..."

"That I love you," he replied simply, kissing his head.

"Good. Anything else and I woulda had to kill you," he smirked, pecking his lips.

"Good luck with that," he quirked his brow amusedly.

"Eh, minor technicality." Kenny laughed and kissed his head again, leading him down the street towards his restaurant of choice.

"Dude, where are we going?"

"Right here," he smiled, walking him up to the joint. Kyle looked up and quirked his brow.

"Da Vinci's?" he blinked. "Ken, this place is expensive!"

"I know," he smirked. "I got it covered. Come on." He opened the door for him and pressed his back gently to lead him inside.

"Hello," the hostess greeted them with a gentle smile. "Two?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Kenny nodded.

"Follow me," she gestured walking off.

"I guess this is why you were dressed so differently than usual," Kyle pointed out, nodding towards Kenny's slacks and dress shirt.

"Well, I figured you deserve to go somewhere nice, Mr. Valedictorian," he smiled.

Kyle rolled his eyes in good humor as they approached their table and sat down.

"Your server will be right with you," she smiled, handing them their menus and walking off.

"Why here?" Kyle asked.

"I told you, special occasion."

"But what are we celebrating?!"

"I'll tell you soon," he teased, not taking his eyes off his menu. He silently snickered as Kyle sighed and looked over his menu as well. They sat in silence for a few moments before their waiter approached.

"Hello, Gentlemen, I'm Don, I'll be taking care of you tonight," he grinned. "Are you ready to order?"

"Yeah," Ken smiled. "I'll have a Coke and the steak marsala, please."

"Very good, Sir," he smiled. "And you?" he looked towards Kyle who was looking at Kenny in shock.

"Ky? He's talking to you."

Kyle snapped back and looked up at Don. "Um, Coke and chicken parmesan, please."

"Alrighty, I'll be back with the drinks," he said as he gathered the menus and walked away.

"Steak? Ken, you ordered steak?!" Kyle blinked.

He shrugged. "I like steak."

"I know you do, but it's kinda not within the budget. We're starting to run a little low on food money, Dude," he said worriedly.

"I'll have him take it back," Kenny sighed.

"No, no, no! Don't do that! Just...be more careful?" Kyle asked.

Kenny looked at him pathetically for a moment before breaking into a small smile. "Guess what we're celebrating?"

Kyle blinked at him. "Uh...graduation?"

"Nope."

"Did you beat Halo finally?"

"Psh, fuck no. I don't have the attention span."

"True," he mused, leaning his palm into his hand. "So, what are we celebrating?"

"This," he grinned as he pulled a paper from out his pocket and handed it to Kyle. He watched excitedly as Kyle's eyes widened.

"Holy...," he looked up at the blonde. "A paycheck?!"

"Mhmm," he smiled. "My second one."

"Where the hell'd you get a job?!"

"Well...you know how you said I have a knack for the dream analysis thingy?"

He nodded slowly, "yeah..."

"Well, I went down to the psychiatrist place, where you go," he added, "and I talked to the people down there, seeing if I could actually do anything with it. I was able to talk to my psych teacher about it and she vouched for getting me to work there as an intern. And I did," he grinned widely.

He watched as Kyle broke into a smile himself. "Really?!" he squeaked. "Ken, that's great!" He looked back down at the check and back up at him. "Dude, I'm so proud of you!"

"I'm not done," he sang. "More good news!"

"Jeez, I don't things could get much better for you," he beamed.

"And that my dear, is where you're wrong. This one, all credit goes to you," he grinned.

"How so?"

"Our final grades came today," he pulled two more papers out of his pocket and waved them.

"Lemme see!" He reached towards them. Kenny pulled them back with a smirk.

"Patience, Love. Here's yours." He handed one of the sheets off to the redhead and watched as he quickly scanned the page.

"Yeah, yeah, A's. Big whoop. Lemme see yours!"

He extended his arm and watched as he ripped the page from out his hand. He observed him proudly as his grin grew. "Kenny!" he exclaimed. "Ken, you did amazing! Lowest score a 78?! Dude, this is so incredible!"

He couldn't hold back his sheepish blush. Especially as Kyle got up from his seat and walked around to give him a tight embrace. "Ken, I am beyond ecstatic."

"Really?"

"Of course," he squeezed him tighter and kissed his cheek. "You're finally applying yourself. I am so proud of you right now."

"Will you show me later?" he purred suggestively.

Kyle snickered, "of course." He walked back over to his seat and sighed happily. "Dude, this is the best set of news we've had in a while. What inspired you to take a job?"

He shrugged, "Well, I get kinda lonely at home anyways and I figured that some extra money wouldn't hurt. And I told you that I should get one anyways since I'm not going to college."

Kyle nodded. "This could give you a lot of real world experience. It'll be great for apps if you ever do decide to try college out."

"That's what I figured, too," he grinned.

"So that's surprise two and three hm?"

"Nope, only two," he winked. "Good news about me only counts as one."

"As great as it is, I think it should count as fifty!"

"Well, you think wrong," he stuck his tongue out playfully. "My first paycheck will easily cover this," he gestured around the restaurant. "We'll cash that one later."

"How did you have a job for two weeks without me realizing?" he asked.

He smirked, "I requested to come in during your hours at work and I carried the house phone around with me."

He chuckled, "you really wanted this to be a surprise, huh?"

He nodded, "very much so. I think that you deserve some special treatment every now and then."

"You always give me special treatment," he smiled.

"But not like this," he sighed and grasped his hand from across the table, melding their fingers together. "I dunno how this whole dating thing really works, ya know? I mean, not the actual spending time together thing...but the going out and doing things like this or going to the movies or whatever. I just really wanna give you that experience and experience it for myself, too. I've never been able to afford anything...and now that I can, I wanna share it with you," he smiled at him.

Kyle looked back at him with soft and loving eyes. "We don't need to spend money to be dating. But I understand how you'd feel like that...," he looked around the restaurant before settling his eyes back on the blonde. "But you don't have to splurge, you do know that?"

"Of course," he nodded. "Like I said, you deserve something special every now and then and I finally got the opportunity to give it to you so I used it to my advantage," he squeezed his small fingers gently. "I wanted to share this stuff tonight with you and besides, you have a big night tomorrow."

He sighed, "yeah. No one seems to wanna let me forget."

He chuckled, "well, it's a big deal for us. You're getting your chance to shine and it's about damn time."

"Maybe I don't wanna shine," he grumbled.

"But you should. You've worked damn hard to get where you are and this is your chance to show it to everyone. You need to take full advantage of this while you can, Dude. Show them that you've accomplished more than any of them could hope for."

He sighed again and shook his head. "I just don't wanna."

He laughed again, "I know, I know. But you're gonna do fine. I'll be there watching the whole time."

"With about a thousand other people," he rolled his eyes.

"Just imagine them in their underwear."

"I'd rather only imagine you like that," he smirked.

He smirked back, "you don't have to imagine that and you know it."

"Here's your food, Gentlemen," Don stated as he placed the plates in front of them.

"Thanks," they responded simultaneously. They each took a bite and sighed together.

"So, whatcha gonna say in your speech?" Ken asked.

"Something along the lines of South Park High is the product of a generation of intelligent beings or something," he rolled his eyes. "You know, lying out my ass."

He chuckled lightly, "Well, that's what's expected of you."

"I don't really know how to drag it on for ten minutes, though. Honestly, I could say everything I've thought of in under two."

"Well, just talk really slow and e-nun-ci-ate," he winked.

He laughed, "I don't think that that would be appreciated. I don't think I'm supposed to stand up there and babble like a retard."

"Why not? Howard does on a daily basis."

"Yeah, but I'm 'representing the whole of our class. Our entire reputation rests upon me,'" he mocked.

"Well, I'm glad it's you representing us and not somebody like Cartman or something," he smirked. "We're not all bigoted assholes."

"We're not all nerdy Jews either," he raised his brow.

"Nope, that's what makes you unique. And I like it like that."

"How come?"

"Cause I like some different things in my life. You know I never did it with a Jew before you and I got together?"

"Well, there's no other Jews at school really."

"Never really did it with a redhead either," he said thoughtfully. "Hm. You're just all kinds of new to me," he grinned.

"Hopefully all in a good way."

"Well of course, my dear," he grinned. They smirked at each other and turned back to their food, letting a comfortable silence pass over them for a few minutes.

"Ken?"

"Hm?" he looked up with a mouth full of food.

"I'm nervous," he said softly.

He swallowed and looked at him in concern. "How come?"

"I...I don't know. I mean, I've never really done something like this...and all those people watching me...so many of them who hate me...I don't really think it's gonna end up well."

Kenny set down his fork and looked at him seriously. "Kyle, this is the biggest moment of your life thus far. And of theirs, too. Dude, this isn't a day for stupid thoughts about your superiority from them, this is a day where they'll look at you and go, 'Goddamn, that could've been me, but Broflovski was the only one who earned it'. You'll do great, I'll be there the whole time cheering you on," he smiled and grasped his hand again. Kyle smiled softly at him and intertwined their fingers.

They continued to eat their meals as they held hands. Kenny couldn't help but feel his heartbeat increasing with thoughts of this little date of theirs. Kyle was so genuinely proud of him, something that he had never received through anyone else before. He thought back to his talk with Butters, about how everything Kyle did made his feelings escalate to immense measures. It couldn't be any more true, he realized as he subconsciously tightened his grip on his small hand. He took a deep breath and smiled. Kyle was proud of him, but not nearly as proud as Kenny was of the small Jew himself.

_______________________(THE NEXT NIGHT)______________________________

"God I feel so retarded," he muttered.

He let out a little snicker, pushing some blonde hair from off his face, "we all do, Dude."

The last of them scoffed, "what's with the faggy dresses anyway?"

"They're robes, Cartman," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, Dude. Still faggy as hell. I know Kenneh doesn't mind that but I do."

"Oh shut up," Kenny hit his leg.

"Stupid poor ass motherfucker..." the larger boy muttered, rubbing his injured thigh.

They sat in their seats in the auditorium and watched as they continued going down the list and handing out diplomas. They had passed the T's finally, working their way down the line.

"God, how many people does this class have?" Kenny groaned.

"643," Stan replied.

"This is taking for-fucking-ever!" Cartman complained.

"_Sara Washington"_

"Think about how Kyle must feel," Stan nodded up towards him sitting in his spot on the stage towards the back, looking rather bored. "He doesn't get to talk to anyone."

"Me and him are talking telepathically," Kenny smirked.

"Oh?" he raised his brow in amusement. "And what are you saying?"

"How much I can't wait to get him home and get that robe off of him."

"Ew!" both he and Cartman exclaimed, prompting Kenny to snigger softly as Howard finished up.

"_Alexander Yancy" _They all watched as the boy bounced up and excepted his diploma before turning back to his seat. Howard finished the applause with the audience and then turned to talk to the parents.

"This year, we have a class of 657 kids who are graduating today," he started. Kenny looked at Stan and he shrugged, mouthing that he was close enough. "You all just saw 656 of them accept the diplomas that will set them on course for the rest of their lives. Those papers are the jump start to the next generation of America. For some of them, that idea absolutely terrifies me."

All the parents laughed but the boys merely rolled their eyes. There was no way that this was the first year he used that 'joke.'

After finishing chuckling himself, he continued: "The last to receive their diploma is the young man whom we've watched for four years climb up the ladder of education. He's hard working and driven and he stands at the top of his peers in the race of wit. His timeless dedication to this school and his work have placed him at the top of the ranks, and he is a shining example to those of us here today. He will deliver the customary prepared speech for the school before giving us a few words of his own. Everyone, please let me introduce South Park High's valedictorian of the class of '09, Mr. Kyle Broflovski."

Kyle stood from his seat and the audience burst into applause. Kenny and Stan stood from their seats and clapped louder than anyone else, only to be pulled down by Cartman with his mumblings of them being goddamn fags. Kyle walked up to Howard and shook his hand, leaning in to listen to something he whispered into his ear and taking the notecards the principal handed to him. He nodded and watched as Howard walked away, taking his place at the podium. He waited for the audience (and Kenny and Stan) to calm down before straightening up and putting on his best chauvinistic grin, looking at the notecards in his hand.

"Today," he began, "we are all here as students of South Park High. Tomorrow, we are considered the alumni. For twelve years, we've all grown, learned, and found our places in this little community, often finding ourselves on the short end of the stick due to our age, our intellect, and our rash judgments. Tomorrow, that won't matter. Tomorrow, we will find ourselves facing the real world as we prepare to take the next steps in our lives. Rather it be college, living at home, going on the road, whatever our aspirations may be."

Kenny smiled as he listened to the words flow off his tongue as though they were silken thread. Stan nudged him and smirked, "you're smiling awfully big there, Dude," he whispered.

"If Wendy was doing this, you would be too," he looked at him amusedly. Stan nodded in agreement and they turned back to watch Kyle continue.

"We have been trained for this day. We have been trained for this moment. But mostly, we've been trained for what lies outside this moment as we continue onwards. We have been given the reins for the first time in our lives. It seems daunting, it seems a bit frightening, but as students of this school, we must remember the lessons we have been taught here. Our knowledge has been building for twelve arduous years, we have continued step by step to obtain our final goal, which happens to be that paper you all hold in your hand," he gestured towards the students.

"Today you are the future, tomorrow you are the present. Remember as you step out into the real world that you represent this school. You represent what makes us who we are. Just remember your roots. This is who you are, it will always be a part of you. Walk around with your head held high because you represent South Park High School, and that's saying a lot. Congratulations on your successes and just keep in mind that should you ever fall, we stay banded together throughout our lifetimes. We are united by our accomplishment here today, and we are always here to help a fellow peer. Hold yourself with pride. You've earned it."

The students and audience broke into a thundering applause as Kyle clapped as well, looking in particular at a certain blonde.

"Thank you, Kyle," Howard smiled at him before looking back at the audience. "And now, the man of the hour will share a few of his own thoughts as well." He clapped the Jew's shoulder before going to sit down beside the podium.

He took a deep breath and looked out at his listeners. "When I was told about a month ago that I was to be valedictorian, my initial thought was, 'sweet'. Nothing more, nothing less really. It didn't really sink in as to what that meant until Principal Howard and I had a talk about my responsibilities as such. When he told me that I had to make this speech, my thought then was to run. To just run and get away because I personally hate public speaking. However, I figured that doing that was probably not going to set the best image for the school, so here I stand before you today."

He paused for a moment and looked around. "Howard informed me that my speech was to portray what my thoughts were on the school. To tell how being a member of the South Park High student body has affected me as a person, how it's shaped me into what you see now. He told me that I was to speak from the heart, so that's what I'll do...," he looked at the principal himself who was smiling and nodding him on.

"I thought for a month about what I as supposed to say. Nothing seemed right. It either made the school sound less than perfect or it made it sound like it was perched atop Mount Olympus itself. Before long, I decided that I wasn't going to try to write the speech. It honestly wouldn't work, so anything I say today, just be aware that this is unscripted, so things may jumble a bit," he smiled sheepishly.

Kenny and Stan stared at him with proud smiles upon their faces as Cartman played with his tassel and kept kicking Token's chair in front of him. Token turned back and gave him the finger as he merely stuck his tongue out at him.

"As I said, he told me to tell just how South Park High made me into what I am right now," he paused and looked through the rows of students until his eyes fell on Kenny, who offered him a comforting smile. He smiled back and took a sigh, "I'm sure that many of you are aware of the 'rumors' surrounding me two months ago. The one that said I killed myself only to come back..." he looked around some more, "well I myself am telling you that that was not a rumor," he shook his head. A few gasps were heard from the audience and several murmurs arose from the crowd. He marched on, "I can't place the school at the brunt of my decision to harm myself like that, because in the long run, it's not true. However, I would be lying to say that it didn't influence me in any way. My personal belief is that attending this school did indeed sway me in some way, shape, and form."

Kenny stole a quick glance at their principal, who was staring at the redhead in shock.

"South Park High is not so much focused on that of grades as it is on preparing us for the real world in different ways. We look less at science than we do at placing ourselves into real-life situations and teaching us just how to conquer them. At this school, I've watched people who speak more than they act," he looked at Cartman. "I've seen people who pushed studies away in the pursuit of something even bigger," he looked at Stan. "And I've watched people who were lacking in resources climbing their way up to accomplish more than they thought that they could do," he flashed a large smile at his boyfriend, who returned it ten-fold.

"This school has taught us all that we have to keep striving, that the way we are is just fine because in the end we can all make it. I've spent all twelve years of attending this cooperation being called the Jew. Aside from a few choice people," he glared at Cartman once more, "I really didn't see that big of a deal with it," he shrugged. "Being Jewish made me different and that was fine with me. I felt no reason to be ashamed for the mere matter of my religion. This school taught me that rash judgements on people got us no where because in the end, we all end up in the same way. We're all here today, dressed in the same robes, wearing the same hats, holding the same scrolls of paper."

"From this lesson, I was able to stave off my regretful decision until recently. I'm not going to lie and tell you that all was perfect in my life, I still made bad choices as we all have. However, the one that ended my life took longer because I had learned the art of patience. Of understanding. Of careful thought before I stepped out of line. Were it not for being placed into this school and being faced with the situations of everyday life within its walls, I can guarantee that I would not be before you today," he stole a sad gaze at Kenny.

"Hold up!" a voice came from the student section. They all shot their heads towards the source of the sound, finding Kevin Stoley standing with a cross look on his face. "This is all bullshit and we all know it!" He shouted.

Principal Howard stood as well and glared at him. "Mr. Stoley, take your seat," he demanded.

"No, Principal Howard! This is all crap! Broflovski's just spewing garbage and wanting us to feel pity or something for him!"

Kenny growled and stood from his seat, only to be stopped with a gentle, "Ken, sit down," coming from the speakers. He looked up at Kyle, who was staring at him with soft eyes. He growled again at Kevin before sitting down on the edge of his seat, ready to jump to his boyfriend's aide if necessary. Kyle sighed before looking at Kevin again, "I don't want anyone's pity," he said simply.

"Oh please," he rolled his eyes. "Then why the sop story?"

"Mr. Stoley, I told you to sit down!" Howard yelled. "Don't make me call security on you!"

"Hold on, Mr. Howard," Kyle stopped him with his hand before looking back at the accuser. "Alright. You want your moment? Come take it," he gestured towards the microphone. Kevin blinked at him before he continued, "this isn't just my moment, this is for every single one of you as well. Why not make your mark and come up here? This is America after all and we relish in free speech. But more importantly, this is South Park and we don't do anything by the rules here. So please, share your thoughts, Kevin."

Kevin broke from his trance and smirked at the boy, "gladly," he sneered, pushing his way past the other students up towards Kyle and prompting a loud bout of talking among the audience. Howard and Kyle were speaking briefly as he made his way up to the stage, but Howard backed off and sat back at his seat. Kevin walked up to the microphone and roughly pushed Kyle away, making Kenny's gut spike with rage.

"My fellow students, let me ask you something," he drawled out, taking in the full view of his audience. "Who is Kyle Broflovski? No, not just valedictorian. Not just the smartest kid in our class. Not just the annoying ginger Jew who wouldn't stop speaking up for his perception of the right methods of dealing with situations." He glanced over at Kyle, standing next to him and looking at him expectantly. "No, guys. This is the kid who pushed us all down. This is the kid who made it so it was damn near impossible for us to catch up in classes, for us to escape anything without anything above a C. Face it guys, this is the kid that we should be throwing chairs at. What good has he ever done for us? And I don't mean earning grants so we get bigger textbooks," he glared at the principal briefly. "The fact of the matter is that all we've ever gotten from this kid was a big load of nothing and groundings because our grades weren't 'up to par'. Why should he get special treatment just because he was born into a privileged life? Just because he was given every chance, every advantage to make something bigger of himself, he gains this kind of recognition? No, I refuse to recognize the extent of his so-called 'accomplishments.' Did anyone else notice in that little list of comparisons of people that he never once mentioned anything about a rich-ass Jew? I did. He seems to forget that not all of us are living in luxury. I say that we don't let someone like this speak for us. But we let somebody with a real life take the stand, don't you?"

Stan, Kenny, and Cartman all watched in horror as the student section broke into applause. Kenny looked at Kyle, who was already watching him, his expression blank and yet somewhat calm. The redhead looked at the speaker and sighed, walking back over and standing right beside him, looking at the clappers. They waited for them to calm down before Kyle spoke again.

"Alright. I've seen this for years and honestly, I'm not too heartbroken or anything. But before I leave as I intend to, Kevin, I need a favor from you."

"What?"

He gestured towards the rows of parents behind their peers. "I want you to look out into that audience. Do you notice anybody missing?"

Kevin squinted and looked around confusedly before jerking back and blinking. "How the fuck should I know?!"

"Mr. Stoley!" Howard lectured.

"I'll tell you who," Kyle replied calmly. "There should be a red haired woman out there, smiling because I'm right where she wanted me to be. There should be a middle aged man beside her, with his eyes shining in the idea that maybe one day he can open the Broflovski & Son law firm. There should be a little Canadian, looking bored out of his mind, but secretly proud that I'm up here, though he'd never tell me." He looked back at the students and sighed before looking at them in determination. "Where you all obtained the idea that I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth, I'll never know. The mere fact of my father's income is by no means anything to judge me on. I wore the same clothes as all of you, I didn't attend some private school in Denver, I ate the school lunch like every one of you."

He paused and glared a bit more. "Money does not equal success. In fact, it only makes it worse. Because of money, because of 'status', my parents drove me to the breaking point, trying to make me into this perfect little model for society with good grades and a good conscious on my shoulders. I don't think any of you understand just how much of my blood went into getting where I am right now. I didn't just wake up and write someone a check. I studied for hours on end. I typed notes and papers until my fingers bled while the rest of you were at the mall or movies or just out having a good time in general. I was literally a prisoner for school. My mother would lock me in the house just to be sure that I was studying and not out with my best friends because she was afraid that they would influence me to do poorly in school," he gestured towards the three boys looking at him sadly.

"There was no silver lining in that house," he growled. "I wasn't so much different than any of you. A few of you have came to school with bruises from your parents. A few crying because they yelled at you. I can honestly say that I wish I had been lucky enough for that. I'm not saying that I support that kind of behavior, but being a prisoner to them is worse than you may think."

"Oh please," Kevin rolled his eyes. "You had the world at your fingertips. You never got hurt, they just told you to fucking study, you drama queen."

He looked at him for a moment before laughing. "Oh really? No, Kevin. The goddamn world was on my shoulders!" he looked back out calmly. "Once in...I believe it was freshman year, I didn't study for a test. I know. Huge shock. Well, it was for my mother. She took away my insulin," he laughed humorlessly. "She made me bedridden and on the brink of a coma just so I had the time to study. I know none of you are diabetic, but it hurts like hell when you don't get your insulin." Kenny's jaw dropped as did Stan's.

"Told you she was a bitch," Cartman murmured. They merely nodded in agreement.

"I mean, you can't imagine the idea, the mere _idea_ of being Kyle Fucking Broflovski and getting anything below an A. I didn't get up here by fucking around with my friends like I wanted to!" he yelled. "I'm up here because I was driven to get here because I knew that if I failed, I'd get it coming to me!" He paused and took a few angry breaths.

"For twelve years, I lived in fear. I feared my parents. I failed failure. And I feared all of you. Do you know what that's like?" he asked. "To think that absolutely no one is on your side? You all know that Stan, Ken, and kinda-sorta Cartman are my best friends, but I was afraid of them, too," he let his gaze fall on them for a moment before moving on. "I was afraid that I'd lose the only means of communication that I had with the outside world, the only people I could ever fall back on, for the mere matter that I never fucking left my house because of my education. And one day...I did lose them." he said softly and Kenny's heart sunk.

"I lost them in April of this year. It was the day I killed myself. Everything fell to pieces. I only had a few shining parts of my life and I lost them and in turn lost myself. It was the day my parents kicked me out for finally being myself. I...I don't think that any of you fucking get it," he shook his head. "I wish that I was with you right now, listening to somebody else giving a speech. I wish that...that I had been able to be myself for these last twelve years. It wasn't until two months ago that someone finally gave me the chance to do that," he smiled softly at Kenny.

He took another wavering breath and straightened himself out. "I honestly don't see why you're all so mad at me. I was practically held at gunpoint to get where I am. But you...you all held the option. Every single one of you could be in my place right now. The problem is that you all stopped caring. You all just stopped and I don't understand why! I mean, you're all intelligent, you're all extremely talented and yet you just found that video games were more important in the long run!"

Kenny looked around, seeing people staring at him intently. Good. About damn time they pay attention to him.

"I...I've known so many of you for my entire life. I know what you can do!" he hit the podium for emphasis. "Not any of you ever showed that you were stupid or slow or anything like that! You were just lazy! And those of you I don't know, I'm sure that you're the same way. You...you could have done so much more with your time. I envy you for being able to break the chains of living like I did. However, the problem is that none of us found the correct balance...," he paused for a moment. "You know, I lied. I know one person who decided to straighten their act up. They took initiative and started focusing on school, all the while trying to keep up with a social life. That person, he passed his finals with nothing below a C+ when before, they were almost always D's and F's. Just that little step, just that bit of drive...he escalated so far and finally his potential shone through," he smiled lovingly at said boy.

He took his hat off briefly and ran his fingers through his curls and sighed heavily. "I'm not here today as just a valedictorian, you know." he said. "I'm here as a student. But a different student. One hated by almost the entire rest of the student body for reasons I may never understand. I didn't want to be like this, you know. I wanted to be more like you. I wanted my friends. I wanted to go and party every now and then. I wanted to be a kid," he shrugged. "I may be getting the so-called 'honor' of being the top of the class. But in all honesty, I couldn't care less," he shrugged again. "All I wanted was acceptance among my peers. I never got it. I'm lucky enough to have found two amazing friends who treat me like I matter. And also, the asshole third friend who treats me okay sometimes," he added.

"AY!" Cartman shouted. The students broke out into snickers. What was anything at that school without a Nazi/Jew banter?

"I hope that you all find success wherever you go," he said softly. "And I know that many of you will. There's a lot of options out in that world for you and I just know that you can grab them all by the horns. You're all intelligent, you're all able to make good decisions. I just hope that maybe one day, you'll be able to find that out for yourselves. You're going to fall at times, I know you will. But remember, you may not be invincible, but if you were strong enough to get through this high school unscathed...then the world can't throw much else at you."

There was a brief pause of silence as he stepped back from the microphone before slowly, people started clapping. The sound escalated until it was damn near deafening. Kenny and Kyle met eyes and raised their brows in confusion. Kevin backed away from the podium, applauding as well at the young Jew in the spotlight. Kenny stood on his chair and clapped wildly, grinning with pride at his previously-outspoken boyfriend.

His grin drooped slightly as he saw Kyle grab the podium and shake slightly. "What the..." he murmured.

Stan joined him on a chair and leaned over, shouting, "Is he okay?"

"I...I don't know!" he shouted back. He saw the boy stagger and panicked. Stan noticed as well and they jumped from their seats and ran onto the stage. The applauding died down a bit as they noticed Kyle struggling.

"Kyle?! Dude, what's wrong?!" Kenny shouted as he got to him, pushing Howard away from him.

"I...I don't know," he breathed shakily. "I hurt..." he started trembling violently and grasped his arms taking shuddery breaths.

"Goddamn, what's wrong with him?" Kevin asked.

The audience broke into murmurs as Kenny tried to lead him off the stage. He took a few steps and fell to the ground, still shaking. "Kyle? Ky, stay with me, Dude!" Kenny shouted. "What hurts?!"

"Everything," he coughed, trying to push himself back up, but falling again.

"Ambulance! Now!" Stan ordered to Howard, who nodded and pulled a cell phone from out his pocket. Goddamn hypocrite.

Kenny lifted Kyle and laid him across his lap. "Dude, it's gonna be okay...I promise!"

"Help him up!" Kevin shouted. Kenny nodded and started to pull him up. Kyle stood on quavering legs for a few moments before his condition got to him and he fell once more.

"Ky?! Kyle?!" Kenny shouted at him. "Goddamn he's unconscious!"

"Ambulance is on their way," Howard said softly. He went to the microphone and pulled it from out its stand. "Everyone, please quiet down," he asked. As it silenced he took a deep breath. "The ambulance is coming for Kyle, so please, remain where you are so they have easy access to him."

"What's wrong with him?!" Wendy shouted as she, Cartman, Bebe, and Butters ran onto the stage.

"We don't know!" Stan said, kneeling down with Kenny. "He just started shaking and he passed out!"

"Goddammit," Kenny sniffed, cuddling Kyle close to him, throwing his hat aside and stroking the delicate curls. He leaned down and kissed his forehead, fighting back sobs.

"Kenny, put him down, it may not be wise to move him," Howard advised.

"NO!" he screamed. "Fuck you! I'm not fucking leaving him lying on the fucking floor!" Howard's eyes widened and he back up in shock. The crowd watched as Kenny fell into cries, pulling the young boy closer into his chest and giving him tender kisses, each hoping that maybe they could wake him up.

The doors for the auditorium burst open and two men carrying a stretcher rushed inside towards the stage. They climbed up and took Kyle from Ken's arms, to which he protested and lunged for his boyfriend. Stan held him back as they checked Kyle's heartbeat.

"He's still alive, heartbeat is rapid."

"Get him on the stretcher," the other ordered. They placed the young Jew onto thebed and ran him back outside towards the truck.

"Let me go with you!" Kenny screamed, yanking himself from Stan's grasp and running towards them.

"Meet us at Hell's Pass," one of the men said firmly, rushing out the door and slamming it behind them.

Kenny stood in the middle of the aisle, shocked and heartbroken. He looked back towards the crowd who was watching him. Pity lining their expressions.

"I hope you're all fucking proud of yourselves," he hissed, not caring if any of them even heard him. He was joined by Stan and Cartman and they broke out of the door and ran outside in the direction of the hospital. They let the heavy door slam shut, the echo a deafening boom amidst the silence of the witnesses.

* * *

_A/N: A kinda sorta cliffhanger? Not really. You know he's gonna live XD_

_This was kinda fun to write in all honesty. Not one of my favorites, but I enjoyed it. Did you? I typed most of it in Film Lit class, haha. Yay for substitute teachers! Ken has a job now, so yays. That's important later on. And Butters got laid...not as important XD_

_Next chapter = some explanation and a party. W00t._

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_PS: I liked Kyle's speech, btw, haha. I really don't care if you didn't because I did. So dramatized XD_


	38. Mine

_A/N: Hi, all. I got a ushanka for my birthday and I felt it necessary to tell you that XD_

_Enjoy_

* * *

He hated this. Such familiar sights and smells. He couldn't stand it. To be quite frank, it pissed him off. Why did hospitals have to be so goddamn white? Couldn't they switch it up just a little so everything didn't feel so damn tense? He sighed and bounced his feet impatiently.

"Well, well, Mr. McCormick," a voice appeared. He turned to see Dr. Richards approaching him with a sympathetic smile. "I just can't seem to keep you two out of here, can I?"

"Is Kyle alright?" Stan jumped up along with Ken as Cartman watched carefully.

He nodded, "yes, he seems just fine. He apparently had a small seizure, that's all."

"Whaddya mean that's all?!" Kenny exclaimed. "A seizure isn't supposed to be something that sounds so normal!"

He chuckled lightly, "don't worry, Kenny. He's going to be alright. Do you know whether or not he took his insulin this morning?" he asked as he pulled out a notebook and a pen.

"I...I thought he did...," he said softly. "I don't know."

"Well, it's possible that he missed a dose and he just got hit pretty hard," he shrugged. "As of now, he's stable and we'll let him go home tomorrow morning. If this isn't insulin-related, we should be able to find out in the course of the next twenty-four hours."

"Is he awake?" Stan asked softly.

"He keeps fading in and out. We haven't been able to keep him awake long enough to really get any real information from him."

"Damn it," he hissed.

"Stupid ass lazy Jew," Cartman muttered, leaning back in his chair.

"Can...can I see him?" Kenny requested.

He nodded. "I doubt he's up, but I don't see a problem with that." he gestured to the door. "Go on in." Kenny smiled softly at him before pushing past him and making way into the small room. He came upon the pale figure on the bed and felt his eyes well up as he had a horrible feeling of deja vu. He sat down next to the bed and grasped the boy's hand, gently stroking his wrist and sniffling. He lifted his frail arm and gently kissed the soft skin.

Kyle groaned a little at the contact and stirred. He opened his eyes to the blonde and he broke out into a small smile. "Hey," he whispered.

"Hey," he croaked back. "I just can't leave you alone anymore, can I?" he laughed humorlessly.

He chuckled, "Guess not." he sighed tiredly. "Sorry."

"Don't be. Ky, did you take your insulin this morning before we left?"

Kyle looked at him guiltily. "Um...I don't think I did."

Kenny froze. "Kyle...please tell me you're not-"

"No," he said firmly. He sighed and weakly grasped his hand back. "I swear to Moses, Kenny, I didn't do that. I just totally forgot about it this morning and all the stress probably got to me."

"Are...are you sure?"

His eyes narrowed slightly, "of course I'm sure. Ken, I told you that I'm not going to try anything. Especially not like this again. Please trust me?"

Kenny sighed and got up, sitting beside him on the edge of the bed and holding him against him. "Alright. I trust you. But I'm keeping an eye on your insulin levels from now on, got it?"

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered, leaning into Ken and letting his eyes droop more.

"You gonna be okay?"

"I think so," he breathed deeply. "I've had seizures before. Just not quite so...publicly."

He chuckled, "Well, you gave them a performance they'll never forget," he smirked.

"Damn it," he murmured. I kinda liked the idea of them just forgetting about me," he nuzzled into Kenny further.

"Who could ever forget such a beautiful little Jew?" he asked, kissing his head.

He sighed. "I can't fucking believe I did that. I didn't even get my goddamned diploma."

Kenny snickered softly. "Well, Howard's gonna deliver it to you personally later after you're fully alert."

"I'm not ever gonna be fully alert. I need some fucking coffee." he grumbled.

Kenny shook his head in amusement. "I don't think they'll let you drink coffee, Dude."

"Just hook it up to the IV," he whined. He held up his other arm with the needle protruding and shook it. "It's already ready to go!"

The blonde laughed and kissed him gently. "Ky, just get some rest and you'll be back home by tomorrow."

"I...I don't wanna spend the night here," he pouted.

"Sorry, Kid. Doctor's orders," he shrugged.

"Who cares?" he scowled. "I wanna go home."

"Kid, you sound like you're three."

"Stop calling me kid! I'm not that much younger than you!"

Kenny laughed softly, "I think that those meds they gave you are making you a teensy bit moody."

He frowned guiltily. "I'm sorry," he looked at him sheepishly.

"See? Moody," he smirked. Kyle let out a yawn and he sighed. "Alright, Ky. You need to sleep."

"I...I really don't want to," he looked at him sadly.

"Why not?"

"I don't like sleeping in hospitals. I feel a little..."

"Uneasy?"

"Yeah," he nodded.

"Go to sleep, I'll stay with you until you're out," he smiled softly.

"I'm not gonna bug you," he protested.

"Dude, I'm not going anywhere until you're back home with me. So just sleep, will ya?" Kyle looked up at him sadly as he took the boy into his arms and laid him down onto his lap. He gently stroked his hair and leaned against the wall, looking down at him with a smile. Kyle smiled back and snuggled into him, closing his eyes and beginning to breathe deeply. Kenny sighed softly and looked up at the ceiling, still caressing the Jew's head.

Insulin. That's all. He shut his eyes and tried to ward off the doubts flooding his mind. He trusted Kyle, but had never seen him taken a fall like that, even on days where he blanked on his insulin. Was that really the only cause? Or was there something more that the little Jew wouldn't let him see? He let this thoughts flow through his head for a few minutes as Kyle's breathing finally simmered down to his sleeping state. He continually stroked his head, afraid to break contact with him.

A gentle rapping came at the door and he shot his head to look as it opened. He stared in shock as a woman with bright red hair stepped in and smiled at him. "Hey there, Kenny," she said softly.

"Hey, Ma," he whispered. He looked from the young Jew to back at her and she chuckled, walking over towards them.

"Come on, we'll move him," she stated, gently grasping under Kyle and lifting him a bit so Kenny could slide out. As his feet touched the ground, he turned to help her lower the boy without disturbing him. As they got him situated, Ken leaned down and kissed his forehead before the two looked at each other and smiled before exiting the room together.

He softly shut the door behind him before embracing his mother tightly. She laughed and returned his gesture. "How've you been, Ma?"

"I've been alright," she pulled back and brushed some hair out of his face. "I was at the ceremony and I was gonna come see ya afterwards. Obviously I couldn't do that," she looked at him sadly. "Seems as though you've been through quite a bit these past few months, hm?"

"We filled her in on a bit," Stan commented.

"Heh, yeah. It's been a living Hell," he shook his head softly. "You been making it okay?"

She nodded, "Yup. Got a house and everything."

He blinked at her. "Where? I thought you and Dad were on the road...," he glanced around the room. "Speaking of which, where is the old man?"

She bit her lip softly. "Ken...we...we need to talk about a few things. Your father's around, but not here at least."

"Is he drinking again?" he asked softly.

"I wouldn't know," she shrugged.

He narrowed his eyes. "Whaddya mean?"

"Hey Carol, you find him?" a voice called out. Kenny looked behind him and watched as a largely built man came walking towards them, a concerned look upon his face.

"Who the fuck are you?" he spat.

"Kenny!" his mom lectured.

"Ah, so this is the famous Kenny," the man smiled gently at him.

"Answer me! Who the hell are you and how do you know my mother?!"

"Ken, calm down," Stan raised his brow.

The man extended his hand. "Name's Peter Drayden." Kenny very hesitantly grasped him back and shook. The man continued, "And I met your mom at a single's bar."

Kenny threw his hand away as though it were poisoned. "Single's bar?!" he squeaked. He looked at his mother desperately. "You...you got a divorce?! And you didn't tell me?!"

"Kenny...," she started slowly. "Your father and I...well, we realized that things...just weren't going to work out. We tried for years and years and years...it just doesn't always work, Ken."

"But...why the fuck wouldn't you tell me?! When did this happen?!"

She sighed. "About six months ago."

He blinked at her. "Six months. You hid this from me...for six months."

She nodded, "yes. We didn't want you to worry."

He took an angry, deep breath and looked around, avoiding her stare for a bit. "What the fuck was going on?!" he growled at her.

She sighed again and sat down on the chair behind her, looking guiltily at Peter, Cartman, and Stan. "Could you boys give us a minute?" she asked softly. They nodded and went out into the halls towards the cafeteria. She looked up at her son with sad, blue eyes. "Kenny, you know what he was like."

"I'm well aware. That never stopped you before," he lectured.

"Well I finally got a hold of myself," she responded. "I realized that I could do better and I should. I'm not a stupid woman, Kenny."

"I never said you were," he looked down at her with crossed arms. "But why wouldn't you tell me?"

"Because, you needed to focus on your school work."

"Mom, news of you splitting wouldn't have done anything to affect my work effort," he stated. "I mean, it's understandable why you would. He's an abusive asshole. It's the fact that you didn't fucking tell me that's pissing me off so much," he snarled, starting to pace in front of her with his forehead in his palm.

Carol watched him and bit her lip. "We thought it would be best for you."

"Oh really?" he asked. "And just what if Ky wasn't able to take me in, Ma? Huh? What the fuck would've happened then?!"

She looked at him for a moment before dropping her gaze to the floor guiltily. "We were going to tell you the night that you moved in with him. We were packed up because you were going to be going with your father. But after you told your father that there was an opportunity for you to move in with Kyle, we figured that that would be the best of all possibilities if it could happen."

"You weren't even giving me a choice in the matter?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Ken, you were seventeen at the time."

"A month from being eighteen," he argued. He sighed heavily. "You were just gonna tell me and put me on a truck going to God knows where?! Did Dad really get that job or was that just a load of shit to avoid suspicion?"

She cringed, "I guess a load of shit."

"God fucking dammit," he growled. "I can't fucking believe you two. How could you even think that that was a good idea? What in the fucking world could have possessed you to think like that?!"

"Ken, don't you lecture me," she frowned.

"Why not?" he demanded. "Goddammit, Ma! That's just so wrong of you! What about Kevin and Karen?! Do they know?!"

"We haven't contacted them for years and you know it," she crossed her arms.

"Great. Just...just great," Kenny sighed angrily and yanked at his hair before looking back at her. "I hope you're fucking happy, Ma. You realize that our family is now completely obliterated?"

"We're not obliterated, we're-"

"We're what?!" he yelled. "We're done, don't you fucking get it?! You and Dad are off at God knows where, Kev and Kare are hanging out at the freaking prisons, and I'm here. I think that I'm the only one of us that's actually been able to accomplish anything other than officiating the fact that I'm a moron!" he stamped his foot.

She rose from her chair and glared at him, "How is me getting out of a destructive relationship moronic, Kenneth?"

"Don't call me that," he snarled.

"It's your name. I gave it to you and I'll use it if I want to."

"No, only Kyle can use it," he growled. "He's the only one allowed to lecture me if he sees fit because he's the only one who's actually been good to me in my life!"

"What are you yacking about?!" she retorted. "We didn't have the money to make your little dreams come true, Kenny. But at least we were family!"

"Family doesn't make up stories and plan on just shipping you somewhere without any notice! At least Ky gives me some goddamn respect!"

"Kyle isn't your blood!"

"I don't fucking care!" he screeched. "He doesn't have to be blood to be the closest damn thing to family that I have! Do you remember anything from our goddamn house or are you too drunk or high to remember, Ma?!"

"What are you talking about now?"

"You and Dad! You abused the living hell out of all three of us kids and drove two of us to prison because you just had to feed your goddamn addictions. Then you have Dad constantly drunk off his rocker and you always popping those goddamn pills of yours! Family doesn't treat each other like that! Family doesn't beat each other around and then tell them to go stealing for them to feed their habits!"

"We stuck together through our hardest times and that's enough to bond us," she replied stiffly.

"No, Kyle has stuck by me through my hardest times," he snarled. "Hell, even Stan and Cartman cared a little more than you two!"

"We paid for your millions of funerals! Did they?!"

"I didn't have that many funerals! Most of the time I was completely obliterated and you didn't even notice because you were high off your ass! And that isn't caring, that's just fulfilling what the government says you have to do! Who got me to study and make myself into something? Kyle. Who got me to stop drinking so much? Kyle! Who was there if I was hurt and needed bandaging? KYLE. And who was there when I'd go stumbling around because Dad and you had beaten the shit out of me?! Kyle, Kyle, KYLE!" He screeched.

Carol blinked at him for a minute. "Ken, what's gotten into you? You never seemed to care much before this."

"You know what's gotten into me?" he spit. "The idea that people really **can** care! I didn't know that people could actually give a shit about me and my well being until I got with Kyle!"

She scowled deeper and glared at him. "Kenneth McCormick..."

"It's Ken to you," he snarled.

"You're my child and I'll call you as I see fit!"

"Wouldn't know that I'm yours," he drawled sarcastically.

She growled, "Fine. Ken. I don't fucking care what you want me to call you but you need to listen to me. We did care about you, regardless of what you may think."

"No, Ma. You didn't. If you did, you would have dropped the bottle. You would have taken the cans from Pops. But no, you just kept on going, regardless of how you affected the family. Maybe that's what led to your divorce! Ever think about that?"

"No, your father's behavior is what led to-"

"There's two sides to a divorce, Ma! He had to have been thinking something similar because otherwise you wouldn't have gotten it finalized so goddamn quick!" he paused and looked towards the door of Kyle's room. "You never loved each other, did you?"

She sighed, "We did."

"And then things fell apart once you started drinking, right?" he glared at her. She stared at him for a bit before sighing.

"Yes. But there's more to it than that. We just...couldn't agree. Nothing seemed to go right for us."

"Yeah, things tend to happen like that if you don't make the effort to find common ground."

"Kenny, you're not an expert, stop blabbering like you are."

"No, I'm not an expert," he agreed. "But I am in a relationship and I've seen the way that me and Kyle work. We don't agree on everything but we find something to work for the both of us and our relationship strengthens on it. I don't really think that you and Dad ever tried."

She scoffed and looked away, "eighteen and he thinks he's the love guru," she muttered.

"Hey, you're just embarrassed because you know damn well that I'm right," he frowned. He sighed and shook his head. "Are we done here? My boyfriend's lying in that room alone and I'm not leaving him like this."

"I suppose we are," she nodded curtly. "I hope you're happy Kenny."

"I am. I have everyone I want right here," he looked at her sadly. "I really thought that you were better than that, Ma. I really did." He shook his head in disappointment before walking back into Kyle's room and closing the door between them.

________________________(THE NEXT DAY)________________________________

Together, Ken and Kyle quietly made their way back into their complex, exhausted from the events of the last day.

"Hey, boys," a familiar voice called to them. The two lovers looked up to see Sally and Joel looking at them with small smiles across their faces.

"Hey," Kenny nodded.

"Hello," Kyle said softly.

They walked over to the adults and set down their bags. "Kyle, are you alright?" Sally asked in concern.

"I guess you heard?" he smiled sheepishly.

"Heh, we were there," Joel smirked. "I must say that I loved your speech. You put that Stoley kid in his place, that's for sure. But still, are you okay?"

He nodded, "yeah. I just had a seizure because of my insulin. Nothing too major for me," he shrugged.

"Well that's good," Sally sighed in relief. "I was terrified when I saw you fall over. Good thing Kenny was there to save the day," she smiled sweetly at the blonde. Kyle's fingers closed around Kenny's tighter.

"Someone's gotta watch him," Ken grinned, ruffling the boy's curls.

"Well, he's got the right person for the job apparently," Joel commented. "Oh, and there's someone up there for you," he motioned towards the stairs.

Kyle and Kenny blinked. "Who?"

"I don't know, a few people," he shrugged. "We recognized a few of them, so we let 'em in. We've made sure no one leaves though, just in case."

"Thanks," Ken nodded as he grasped Kyle's hand tighter and pulled him closely behind towards the stairs. They paused for a moment and looked at each other before pushing their door open.

"About damn time," a voice commented. They looked and saw Toby, Wendy, Kevin, and Token sitting around the living room.

"Um...hi?" Kenny blinked as he and Kyle stepped into the room and shut the door behind them.

Wendy jumped from her seat and ran to embrace Kyle. "Are you alright?" she asked, clasping him tightly.

He laughed softly, "yeah, I'll live." He and Kenny shared an ironic smirk. "What's going on here?" he asked, looking around at them all with Wendy still in his arms.

"We...we uh needed to talk," Token said softly.

"Well, we needed to give you something, really," Toby added.

"What? A death threat?" he raised his brow. "'Cause I already have one of those, so take a number."

He laughed in return, "Nah, I told you, death threats are lame," he smirked. He stood and walked over to the small Jew, handing him a book. Kyle looked at it with a raised brow.

"You got me a yearbook? Dude, thanks but I have one."

"Not like this you don't," he grinned. "Look inside." Kyle flipped it open as Kenny looked over his shoulder. They looked through, seeing countless names throughout the pages.

"We figured that you of all people should go out with a filled yearbook," Token said sheepishly. "I mean, you do deserve it, Man."

"Jesus, how many people signed this thing?" Kenny asked.

653 people," Toby announced. "We all stayed at the graduation ceremony and passed the book through the student section and got everyone to sign. Some of them are obviously just names, but some people wrote you some messages, too," he shrugged. "Just so you know, a lot of girls think that you're cute."

"Oh...isn't that nice?" Kyle smirked.

"Why are you here, Stoley?" Kenny asked the boy sitting on the arm of the chair. He sighed and walked over to the small group.

"I owe you an apology, Broflovski," he said to the redhead. "I was honestly pissed at you for just being better...I'm a total douche and I'm sorry."

"It's fine," he shrugged quietly. "I mean, you were just saying what just about everyone else was thinking. Can't blame ya for that."

"I can," Kenny grumbled, looking evilly at Kevin. Kyle elbowed his side and he just shrugged at him sheepishly.

Kevin nodded, "okay. I can live with you hating me. Your opinion isn't that important to me, McCormick."

'_Or anyone else," _the blonde thought tiredly. He watched as Wendy continued to embrace his boyfriend and raised his brow at her. "Ya know, Wendy, he's taken."

Wendy smirked at him, "So? Doesn't mean I can't molest him every now and then."

"Don't make me call Stan," Kyle warned.

"Oh, he knows that I'd never really molest you...at least that's what I let him think," she winked.

"Okay, enough touchy feely from you, Missy," Ken scolded jokingly. "He's mine."

Defiantly, she grasped the redhead tighter and snuggled into his chest, sticking her tongue out at Kenny. He laughed softly along with her.

"Well, we need to hit it," Token commented, stretching tiredly. "We need to start gearing up for the party."

"You two coming?" Toby asked.

"Ken is," Kyle said softly.

"You should too," Kevin suggested. "You finally have that respect that you wanted, why not take advantage?"

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I just don't do well in social situations," he admitted. "Twelve years of house arrest will do that to you."

"What better way to overcome that than by coming and having some fun?" Token questioned.

"Thanks for the offer, but I really don't think it'd end too well. I might have another seizure or something."

"Then I'm staying, too," Ken stated firmly.

"No, you need to go," Kyle said. "You can have Joel or Sally or someone check on me every now and then or something," he shrugged.

"See?" Wendy smiled. "He didn't get to where he is by being a dumbass without a backup plan," she snuggled into the flustered boy further.

"So? You comin' or not, Ken?" Token asked.

Kenny looked at him and sighed softly. "I'll think about it."

He nodded with a small grin, "Alrighty then. We may or may not see you tonight." he paused and looked at the Jew. "Kyle...about what me and Craig did awhile back..."

"It's the past," Kyle interrupted. "I'm not mad or anything."

"We didn't really mean it," he winced a bit. "I was trying to make Stan feel better...I didn't really think that one through."

"No, you didn't," Kenny agreed.

"It's fine," Kyle smiled at him. "I mean...I was kinda used to it, Token."

"I still feel bad."

"Don't. I don't need anybody's apologies. It makes me feel like a douche."

Toby raised his brow, "I love how you feel bad over what people do to you. Very...odd to say the least."

He snickered, "well, I never have been considered normal."

"True," Ken mused. He looked back at Wendy. "Dude, let him go!"

"Maybe I don't wanna," she pouted.

Kyle laughed softly and patted her back. "Come on, Wendy. You're making Ken jealous."

"Damn straight she is," he pouted.

She reluctantly released him and smiled at the redhead. The small group turned to walk towards their door. "We'll catch ya around," Kevin nodded.

"See ya," Ken and Kyle both responded, waving them all away until the last of them finally passed through the entrance. They plopped down onto the couch and sighed tiredly.

"Ever think there'll be a day where we don't have to be welcomed back from the hospital?" Kyle asked.

Kenny sniggered, "Not us. We seem to be prone to misfortune..." he trailed off and frowned a bit.

"Apparently," he mused. His face fall as he saw Ken's newly disheartened expression. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern.

"Yea...I'm fine," he responded blankly.

"No, you're not," he argued. "Ken, what's wrong?"

Kenny sighed and fell to his side, landing his head on Kyle's lap. "I saw my mom while you were sleeping."

Kyle looked down at him questioningly, "What happened?"

He bit his lip and stared at the ceiling before taking a deep breath. "My parents split."

Kyle looked taken aback, "Holy...when?!"

"Six months ago," he grumbled.

"Wait...how does that work?"

"They didn't tell me. They were going to throw me in Dad's truck the night I moved in with you."

"Oh...," he murmured. He reached down and stroked the blonde's head tenderly "I guess we kinda lucked out on the timing, huh?" he winced slightly. Kenny smiled at him and reached up to play with a curl.

"I'd much rather be here with you," he assured him.

"Still...I'm really sorry, Dude."

"Don't be. Honestly, I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner."

"That just sucks, Ken," he looked at him sadly.

Kenny looked up at him a moment before a large sigh. "Yeah...it does. You know what else really sucks, Ky?"

"What?" he stared down at him sympathetically. Kenny lunged up and toppled the boy over, bringing them onto the floor.

"Me when I'm in the mood," he smirked.

Kyle shook his head, "Ken, does anything calm your libido down?"

"Less talky, more kissy," he demanded before locking lips with the boy. He moaned and rolled his hips into the Jew's.

"Ken," Kyle broke off a bit and breathed out, "are you sure? I mean...shouldn't we just talk about this?"

"Please?" he pled. "Angry sex makes me feel better," he pouted. Kyle looked up at him and slowly nodded.

"Alright."

Kenny sighed and sat up atop the boy's hips. "Okay, never mind. You're not in the mood."

"No, Ken, I mean, I'm cool with it," he insisted. "But...I don't think that sex is the best way for you to deal with this problem, ya know?"

"I know...but...," he sighed. "I just feel like I lost everything."

"You didn't lose everything," he said firmly. "I'm still here."

"I know, but I mean outside of you. I mean, yeah, you're the most important part of my life, but still...my parents should have at least had the decency to tell me."

"You're absolutely right," he agreed. "They had no right to treat you like that."

He chuckled. "Our parents suck."

"Indeed," he nodded. "But at least we've got each other, right?"

Kenny looked down at him and smiled crookedly. "Yeah. I'd take being with you above them any day." He leaned down and tenderly met his lips. "Can I still get that sex?" he murmured.

Kyle laughed softly, "Ken, you're impossible."

"Yeah, I know," he smirked. "Please?"

"Mm, did you hear me disagree?" he smiled innocently.

Ken laughed and roughly ground their hips together. "You know, I do love it when you're like this."

"Hmm, you know, you're always like this."

"So you always love me?"

"Always," he smiled widely.

"Glad the feeling's mutual," he smirked, fingering the hem of Kyle's tee shirt. He slowly pushed the fabric up and tickled Kyle's abs. "Mmm, perfect," he growled, leaning down and beginning to nip at the soft skin.

Kyle laid flat on his back and took a shuddery breath as Kenny continued to mark him for his own. He hissed as Kenny trailed further up his torso, beginning to bite down firmly on his nipples. "Ken...," he whimpered. Kenny sat him up and ripped of the boy's shirt, licking his lips as he took in his perfect form.

"God, you're sexy."

"Dude, you say that every time," Kyle raised his brow amusedly.

"Well, now you see just how much I feel it," he smirked. He tore off his own shirt and watched as Kyle looked at him with that familiar lust glazing over his emerald eyes. "Like what you see?" he smiled.

"No, totally not," he rolled his eyes with a small laugh.

"Oh, well that's disappointing," he chuckled. "Well, you're still letting me fuck you whether or not you like my bod."

Kyle giggled lightly, "whatever you say."

Kenny leaned over top of him and touched noses with him. "Will you let me do dirty things to you?"

"Depends, what's on your mind?"

"Mmm, too graphic for your innocent little mind to comprehend," he poked his forehead pointedly.

"Oh really?"

"Really," he nodded.

"Try me," he challenged with a grin on his face.

Kenny smirked once more and sat up in front of him, "You just might regret this, little boy."

"I'm shaking in my boots," he snickered.

"Speaking of boots...," he said. He scooted down and whipped Kyle's shoes off of his feet, throwing them behind him.

"Oh thank God," Kyle breathed. "I thought you were gonna sniff 'em or something."

"I'm kinky, not disgusting," he laughed, peeling off his socks and discarding them along with his shoes. He walked his fingers up Kyle's leg and ran his finger along the boy's a zipper, prompting a small gasp to escape his lips. "Loving this, aren't we?"

"Maybe," he smirked.

"Aw, Kylie. You're trying to make this challenging for me, aren't you?"

"No trying involved. You said you liked being the dominant one."

"And I do."

"So show me." Kenny couldn't help smiling widely at him. Amazing how that boy could make his mind turn like that at a time like this.

"If you insist, my love," he purred, grabbing him and throwing him backwards into the floor. He crashed his face against his and dove his tongue into the boys mouth. Their tongues furiously battled for dominance amidst their harmonious moans. Their bare chests pressed into each other. Kenny ran his hands up and down Kyle's small form, batting away Kyle's hands as he tried to do the same in return. "I didn't say that you could do that," he growled.

"And just how do you plan on stopping me?" he dared.

"Don't you test me, Kid."

"I believe that I just did," he quirked his brow.

"Alright," he sighed. "Well, just so I'm sure that we're on the same page here, you do trust me, correct?"

"How many times have we been over this?!"

"Alright, just checking," he smiled. "Stay," he ordered, standing and leaving the boy on the floor. Kyle blinked after him, but opted to stay planted as he was commanded as his boyfriend walked off towards their room.

Kenny leisurely walked around the room, gathering a few stray objects and strolling back out towards his lone lover.

"Stay turned around," he ordered. He saw Kyle jump slightly from his sudden voice, but stayed facing the wall. "Good boy," he said affectionately, patting his head and grabbing his curls. Kyle winced a bit and whimpered softly, but Ken could detect a hint of passion infused in his voice. "You gonna stay good, despite how weird I may get?"

"Sure," he nodded with Kenny's hand still entangled in his hair.

"Excellent. Did you know I have quite a few kinks, my love?"

"Somehow I'm less than surprised," he muttered.

He chuckled lightly. "How do you feel about the concept of pain?"

"Um...depends on who's dealing it, I suppose," he shrugged.

"Oh? Really? And just how would you feel if I was the one dealing it, hm?"

"Well I guess I'm about to find out, aren't I?"

Kenny smiled as he heard the slight quaver of Kyle's voice. "That you are my dear, that you are." He kneeled down behind him and took one of the objects from his hand and switched it on, lying it on the table. He turned back to his boyfriend and smiled deviously. He took his fingers and trailed them lightly up the boy's spine, feeling him tremble under him slightly. "You know that I only hurt you because I love you, right?"

"Otherwise I wouldn't let you," he responded.

"Good," he nodded. He took a belt in his hand and quickly secured it around Kyle's neck pulling him back so his back was arched and he was staring straight up into his blue eyes. He licked his lips and stared him down. "Mmm, what a pretty little boy," he cooed. Kyle gazed up at him lustfully and allowed Kenny to caress his face. "All mine," he said kissing his forehead.

"Ken?"

"Hm?" he looked at him. "You hurt?"

He shook his head so much as the belt's grasp allowed him. "Are you gonna...you know...like them?"

Kenny looked down at him and continued to pet him. "I think so. I'm gonna help you beat this, alright? You know that I'm not gonna do anything to seriously injure you like them. Are you alright like that?"

He took a deep breath and nodded. "I told you I trust you."

"You're sure?"

"I told you to show me whatcha got," he smirked.

"Okay, if you say so. On your knees," he ordered, much softer than the tone that Kyle had heard saying that in the past. Kyle did as told, his back still arched up towards Kenny. "Good," he complimented, standing and taking the leash with him. "Turn."

Kyle did so, looking up at him with eagerness playing in his iris' Kenny pulled up on the leash and straightened him out, looking down at him with a smile upon his features. "Guess what I want."

"Mmm...a sandwich?" Kenny smirked at him and pulled on the leash sharply, prompting a small yelp to escape the boy.

"No..., try again."

"Perhaps...a kiss?"

"Mmm, closer...," he yanked on the belt again. "It involves lips and a tongue...but only one."

"Oh. A popsicle."

"Kyle...," he warned, pulling slowly up on him. Kyle looked up at him innocently.

"I don't know what you want," he said.

"Want me to show you?"

"Please do," he nodded.

Kenny used his free hand and unzipped his jeans, allowing his arousal to pop out into the air. "See this?" he asked as he stepped out of his pants and kicked them aside.

"Yes."

"What do you think you should do with it?"

"Mmm, not sure."

Kenny smiled wickedly. "Alright. I'll show you." he ripped the belt up and forced Kyle's mouth open as he gasped for air. He yanked him forward and slammed his cock into the boy's mouth. Kyle gagged slightly as Kenny pressed towards the back of his throat but soon caught control of himself and grasped Kenny's hip before starting to bob back and forth, hungrily licking and sucking the blazing flesh. Kenny moaned and curled his free fingers through Kyle's hair. "Good boy...," he purred. His fist tightened around the belt pulling Kyle further up towards him as time passed. "Keep going," he ordered, pulling his curls firmly. Kyle whimpered softly, looking up at him as he continued to suckle at his sweet skin. Ken stared back down, locked in the sight of those beautiful jade eyes moving to and from his own body. He felt himself tensing and commanded, "finish me with your hand. No catching in your mouth."

Kyle raised his brow, but did as asked, continuing to gaze up at him as he worked his wrist, roughly jerking Kenny's member in his palm and watching as he tensed. Kenny felt himself hitting his edge and roughly yanked him as he exploded. Kyle's mouth involuntarily opened as he was pulled up and Kenny looked down after his release to see Kyle's hair and face coated. He knelt down and pulled him forward to crash lips. He pulled back and licked his lips, tasting that familiar mild taste.

"I believe I told you not to get any in your mouth," he said simply.

"I...I'm sorry?" he blinked

"Tch, tch, tch," he shook his head. "My love, I'm afraid that sorry's just not gonna cut it. Turn around," he ordered. Kyle did so, leaning on his hands and knees. Kenny reached under him and unbuttoned his jeans before roughly yanking them down with his boxers. He whipped them from under his legs, bringing the boy crashing into the floor.

"Excuse me...did I say stomach?"

Kyle quickly scrambled back up as Kenny threw his clothing across the room and lovingly ran his fingers across the skin of Kyle's ass. "What a beautiful boy," he smiled. "Shame I have to punish you," he dropped into a sympathetic frown.

"What're you gonna do?" Kyle asked shakily.

"Nothing you won't enjoy," he smirked. "Now, no more talking," he ordered, pulling on the leash harshly once more. Kyle coughed a bit before settling and obeying. "Stay turned, no looking at me," he stated.

He grabbed his object off the table and tested it, deeming it perfect. "This may sting," he warned. He took a curling iron and turned it in his hand, smiling at it. He always loved using this on other people to get them excited, but he usually used it as a makeshift dildo as opposed to what he planned to do with Kyle. "Ready?" he breathed huskily.

Kyle nodded and he lowered the rod onto the flesh of his ass. Kyle yelped as the heat began to sear into his skin. He dug his fingers into the hardwood and shook a bit as Kenny removed the iron just to place it into another position on his skin. Once more, Kyle let out a sharp yell, but Ken couldn't miss the need that edged his voice. Seemed his little Jew was enjoying this almost as much as he was. From a good glance under the boy, it would seem that his suspicions were true. "Four more...," he said softly, repositioning the iron onto his flesh again. As the last mark was made, he loosened his grip slightly on the leash, allowing Kyle to slacken a bit and catch his hitched breath.

Kenny lovingly caressed the wounds after he set the iron aside. He leaned down and licked the pattern of the markings, committing their shape to his tongue. Kyle hissed and whimpered all the while. Kenny slapped the skin a bit and made the boy lurch forward in pain. "There, there," he cooed as he reached behind him and grabbed some lotion he'd taken from the room. He pumped some into his hand and gently rubbed it over Kyle's wounds, prompting small moans to emit from the redhead. "Better?"

"Mhmm," he whimpered with a nod.

"Wonderful," he smiled. He reached under him and pulled him around to face him. "Still love me?"

He nodded softly.

"You like this kinda treatment?" he questioned.

Kyle looked from his throbbing erection to Kenny's eyes and raised his brow.

Kenny chuckled, "it would seem so. My little Jew has a bit of masochism hiding beneath his little angelic face I see," he caressed his cheek gently and kissed his lips delicately before pulling back and looking at him once more. Kyle stared at him in silence with a sheepish smile and a matching blush. Kenny grasped him from under and sat him on the coffee table. "Well, it seems we both have a problem," he gestured towards their members. "Want me to take care of it?"

Kyle nodded vigorously, giving Kenny a good little laugh.

"Well I suppose I'll have to oblige." He took some more lotion and pushed Kyle back onto the table grasping his leash tightly still. Kyle grasped the edges of the table and arched slightly as Ken pressed his finger into his entrance and teased him a bit.

Kyle gasped and whimpered heavily as Kenny quickly rubbed over his prostate, pulling on the belt and cutting off a bit of Kyle's airway. "Good...keep quiet...," he urged. He finished preparing him before pulling back and staring at him hungrily. He grasped his legs and hoisted them to over his shoulders, still pulling on the leash. Kyle looked up at him confusedly and he smiled wickedly before driving straight into him.

"AH!" Kyle yelled, throwing his head back as he was invaded. "Oh God!"

"Hey, no talking I said," Kenny breathed, trying to recover from the sudden movement himself. Kyle bit his lip and allowed himself to whimper as Kenny began thrusting. He moaned and pulled on Kyle's leash, causing him to gasp out from breath from both movements. Kenny held the boys legs in place as he increased his pace, slapping his own skin against the Jew's passionately.

"My perfect little Kosher treat," he cooed. Kyle looked up at him before whining and slamming his head back onto the table in bliss as Kenny thrust harder. His knuckles turned white as he tightly held onto the table as he was pounded into. Ken shut his eyes and listened to the sound of his balls smacking against Kyle's entrance, feeling that amazing feeling of completeness once again.

Fuck his parents. Everything he ever had, everything he ever wanted...it was all right in front of him. With a leash around him, burn marks on his ass, and a cock flying in and out of it quicker and quicker.

Absolutely perfect.

"All mine...," he repeated, a smile breaking over his face. He leaned down a bit and allowed Kyle's cock to brush against his skin for some stimulation. He pulled the belt and forced Kyle to meet his lips as he continued to move inside and out. He swallowed each of Kyle's throaty whimpers with vigor and for each sound uttered, he deliberately thrust roughly against the boy's prostate, causing them both to shake heavily with passion.

Kyle began tensing and Kenny broke their kiss, staring at him as they both panted heavily. "Love me?"

He nodded, his face red and sweat drenching his forehead and curls.

"Forever?"

Another nod.

"Tell me."

"I'll love you forever," he whimpered, looking at Kenny desperately.

"Who do you belong to?"

"You," he sniffed.

"Who?"

"You...," he repeated. "Only you."

"Damn straight," he lunged forward and made contact with the boy's lips once more as he began to hit his peak. He gave a few more hard thrusts before he felt a warmth coating his stomach as Kyle released onto his abs. He let go on his own for a second time balls-deep into Kyle, releasing a sensual moan against his tender lips.

As it passed, he pulled himself out of Kyle and stood, helping the boy to his own feet. He undid the belt around his neck and grasped him around the head, pulling him in for another loving kiss. "Mine?"

"Yours," he breathed heavily. "All yours."

Kenny pulled back a bit and stared at him lovingly. "You mean it?"

"Of course I do," he smiled. "I wouldn't trade being with you for anything in the world. I would proclaim to the world if I could that my ass belongs to Kenny McCormick."

"And beyond your ass?"

"Everything," he grinned gently before pecking his lips again. He pulled back and leaned his head against his chest tiredly with a sigh. "I'm so sorry about your parents, Kenny." he hugged him.

"Don't be," he kissed his head. "Ya know, I never really knew what love was until I got with you. I told my mother that out of obligation...but you...I don't have to say it to you. I just want to. I love you, Dude. I really do."

"I know you do, and I love you back," he smiled, clasping him tighter. Kenny hugged him back and looked down, smiling as he ran his fingers along the burn along Kyle's skin. Messy, but legible, read a small inscription marked K2. Kenny and Kyle. Together. Right where they belonged.

* * *

"McCormick!" a voice called out to him. He looked up to see Stan approaching him with a wide grin. "Hey, Dude, how are ya?" he slurred.

Kenny snickered. Drunk and it's not even nine. Nice, Stan. "I'm doing just fine."

"Where's Ky-Ky?" he hiccuped.

"Home. He'd rather read than hang out with a bunch of social degenerates and you know it."

He nodded. "Yeah...sucks though. I want him to have his first alcohol with us, ya know? Abduct him into the man's club," he grinned.

"Induct, Stan," he smirked.

"Yeah, that. Whatever," he handed Ken a beer and he took a swig and sighed, looking around.

"Looks like no expense was spared here, huh?"

"Token helped pay," he reminded the blonde.

"True," he nodded as they walked into the main room of Clyde's house and plopped down on the couch. "How many people are here?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "1000?"

"About 80, actually," Butters laughed from next to them with Bebe on his arm.

"Hey you two," Kenny beamed as they sat down beside them. "How've you been?"

"Amazing," Bebe gushed. "You and Kyle?"

"Perfecto," he smiled. "How's the party so far?"

"Psh, lame," Bebe rolled her eyes. "Everyone's either drunk or making out. Speaking of which...," she looked at Butters mischievously.

"Go have fun, Kids," Kenny waved them off. Bebe nodded and pulled Butters off his seat.

"See ya fellas," Butters waved as he was hauled off.

Stan looked after them and shook his head in laughter. "Wish Wends was like that."

"Where is she?"

"Home sick. She ate something bad at lunch," he shrugged.

"Ah. Sucky."

"Very," he nodded as he took another swig. "So, how's Ky? He all better?"

"Yeah, he didn't have any side effects or anything," he shrugged. "He's right back where he was. Yelling at me for not putting my socks in the hamper and all that."

"Heh, he's a housewife, ain't he?"

"He's my housewife and you better not be eyeing him," he joked, hitting his arm softly.

"I'll never tell," he smirked, leaning back into the cushion and sighing. "This is some damn good beer," he commented, swishing the bottle a bit.

"Better than nothing," Ken nodded.

Cartman appeared behind him and leaned over the couch. "That's because your bitch won't let you have any of the good stuff."

"Oh sit down and shut up, Fatass," he retorted. "Ky just knows I'm a pissy drunk."

"He's a pissy sober," he shrugged.

"Not the point," he rolled his eyes. "And he's only pissy to you."

"That's because you make his little Jew hole for a heart flutter," he rolled his eyes.

"Damn straight. You just make his little Jew stomach churn you racist dick."

"I would take that as an insult if it wasn't true," he smirked.

"At least you admit to it," Stan nodded at him and took a drink with Kenny.

"Whatever. I'm feeling good right now," he shrugged, stretching a bit.

"Alcohol does wonders to relieve stress," Ken commented.

"Couldn't agree more," a voice came from in front of them. They turned their heads to see none other than Craig Tucker staring at them. More particularly at Kenny. "Hey, Dicks," he greeted them.

"Greetings, Asshole," Cartman muttered.

"You better have a good damn excuse for being here, Tucker," Kenny growled. "In case you forgot, you attacked _my_ boyfriend of all people, so you best be on your toes."

"I actually came over to talk to you about him," he smiled at him.

"What about him?" Stan asked.

"Oh, well, I was just wondering what he's like in bed, that's all."

"None of your business, Fucktard," Kenny spat.

"What would you say to a bet, McCormick?" the boy smiled widely.

"Fuck no," he growled.

"Hey, you better wait before you answer," he stated. "More is on the line than you may think."

"Like what?" Cartman raised his brow.

"Like Broflovski, that's what," he shrugged.

"Whaddya mean?" Stan questioned.

"Do ya know Tyler Bates?"

Kenny tried to place the name with a face. Stan leaned over and whispered, "offense on football team. Freaking huge skinhead," Kenny thanked him before turning back to Craig.

"What about him?"

"We happen to be buddies. Buddies who do things in return for other things. I helped hide some pot in his backpack from the coach, so he's doing this for me."

"Doing what?!" he persisted.

"Why, keeping guard on Broflovski, of course," he smiled. "He's waiting outside your apartment just in case he tries to leave or you try to get in to him."

Kenny's brow twitched before Cartman jumped in. "Prove it," he demanded. Craig calmly took out his phone and shot a text, waiting for a few minutes while grinning stupidly at the three staring at him. His phone lit up and he opened the message and displayed it for the three boys, who watched as a picture of Ken and Kyle's home came into view.

"Believe me now?" he grinned.

"Don't you fucking mess with him," Kenny growled, standing from his seat.

"I won't so long as you cooperate. I've got at least seven other guys who can tell Tyler it's time to attack should you go after me or something. So...willing to hear that bet out?"

Kenny paused and looked between the others, who looked caught as well. He turned back to Craig and glared. "What kind of bet?"

"Drinking," he replied simply. "We drink until one of us goes down in drunken bliss. The winner goes to your house and takes Broflovski to bed," he smiled widely.

"Fuck no. Kyle would never sleep with the likes of you," Kenny growled.

"Who said I'd give him the choice?" he raised his brow. Kenny narrowed his gaze and started to advance on him.

"Uh uh uh," he shook his head. "Remember I have friends all around. Trust me, Tyler's been wanting to destroy our little Jewish friend for quite awhile. I wouldn't go against me if I were you because he may hurt a lot more in the morning."

Kenny stopped mid-stride and stared at him before glaring around at the people surrounding the area. He could be bluffing...then again Craig had a lot of friends so it was possible he was telling the truth. Damn it.

"What kind of bet?" he repeated.

"Drink till ya drop. Nothing more nothing less," he shrugged. "Deal?" he held out his hand to shake.

Not much else in the way of options, he shook. They sat at a table and had two shot glasses in-between them. "I say we whiskey the night away," Craig grinned.

"Shut up and pour." he ordered. Craig nodded and filled their glasses.

Kenny slammed it down easily as did his opponent.

"One!" a small crowd around them counted.

"Two!" another chant arose as the second round was gulped down.

Ken and Craig stared at each other. Each competing for the honor of Kyle's company.

"He's mine," Craig smirked.

"He's mine," Ken retorted. "He told me so himself just this morning."

"Well I'm afraid that won't be true tonight," he smiled. "I'll show him how someone can really make him feel."

Kenny growled as they gulped down their sixth glasses. Time seemed to completely blur as the numbers grew and became more separated.

"_Twelve!" _it echoed as time began to slow. Kenny looked around with blurry eyes in confusion. Where the hell was he? What was this all about?

"_Fourteen!" _Fourteen? Fourteen of what? Where was that? He looked up at Stan and Cartman cheering him on. He looked at the filled glass on the table in front of him and raised it shakily to his lips. Most of it dribbled onto his chin and he placed it back down.

"Trouble?" a voice asked. He looked across form him to that blue hat and growled, trying to swallow another glass. He failed and his head fell to the table swimming.

He looked up at the victor among the cheering teens and fell into tears for a reason he couldn't quite comprehend as to why, before his world faded to black.

* * *

_A/N: Aw, divorce._

_Mmm, kinky smex._

_Mmm, drinking Ken._

_Mmm...I dunno. I'm tired as hell. _

_Please review and all that and I'll love you. Aw, I already do if you're reading this =)_

_Thanks!_

_(lots to come next chapter, I promise. This was a bit lacking, I know.)_


	39. Faith

_A/N: Yawn. 5 in the morning. Haven't slept since...8-ish yesterday morning? Hm. Oh well. I'm gonna look a mess for family pictures and I don't care =)_

_Anyhoo, enjoy a plot twist of sorts but not really...just enjoy._

* * *

He awoke in a bit of a haze. His eyes slowly creaked open to reveal a dull fluorescent lamp beside him on a nightstand. He cocked his brow confusedly and slowly sat up out of bed, a blanket sliding down his chest. He took notice that he didn't happen to be wearing a shirt.

Uh oh.

He lifted the blanket to reveal another shock: he was lacking pants as well.

Double uh oh.

And a quick glance to the left of him revealed another pare of bare legs. Completely bare. As in, lacking underwear just like him.

Yeah, skip triple and go to about a million times uh oh.

He lowered the blanket down and looked at the sharer of the bed. The figure had the blanket pulled tightly over their head, so he couldn't make out much. He bit his lip and looked towards the clock on the nightstand. 5:17. He promised Kyle he'd be home by 1:00.

Oh fuck.

As he got out of bed, he noticed a slight pain in his ass, but ignored it for the most part. He had to get home. He fumbled around in his newfound eyesight until he found a piece of cloth and threw it over his head, squeezing into the fabric. He found his jeans and yanked them on as well. As he fumbled with his jeans, he heard the other bed occupant stirring and his breath hitched as he heard a familiar husky tone. "What time is it?"

Oh goddamn motherfucking mother of Christ.

He looked back and saw Craig Tucker staring at him with a soft smile and he shuddered in disgust. "You sick freak," he scowled, messing with his shoes.

"What? You were the one pawing at me like a starving puppy," he shrugged innocently.

"You lie!" he shouted, glaring heavily at him. "I would never cheat on Kyle, you got that?!"

"Well if it's any consolation, you called his name when you came," he shrugged.

Kenny's jaw dropped in horror at the causality of his voice. "You fucking sick bastard!" he screeched, regretting it as a sharp pain crossed through his skull. "Fuck," he muttered, clasping his head in his hands before looking back up at him. "I can't fucking believe you," he spat. "You fucking raped me!"

"You agreed."

"I was drunk!"

"Still agreed. I must say, it was much better than my original plan," he nodded to himself.

"What plan you fucker?!"

He shrugged once more, "to go seduce Broflovski. I just wanted my share of his ass."

"Kyle isn't just an easy piece of ass, you fucktard! You don't fuck with my boyfriend!"

"And I didn't. I figured you were here and I wouldn't mind another round with you if we switched roles."

Well that explains the pain in his ass. "How can you sound so calm about raping someone?!" he shouted to the loudest extent he could without hurting his head again.

"Didn't rape. It was consented."

"You're a fucking retard, you know that?" he spat.

"I'm a fucking retard who took your innocence," he smirked.

Kenny crossed his arms and drummed his fingers on his forearm. "Actually Kyle beat you to that."

Craig blinked at him before breaking out into a wide grin. "Really? Little Kyle has that in him? Hell, if he's got that kind of endurance I kinda regret not going over there for him. I mean, you were fun and all, but how many people get to say that they nailed Kyle Broflovski?"

"One and only one," he growled.

"How about the ones who raped him?" he smiled evilly. "Technically they have, too."

Kenny froze. "How...how did you...?"

"You're rather talkative when you're drunk," he smirked. "Didn't know that Jew boy has a submissive fetish. Neat idea, though. I mean, who's more submissive than a rape victim?"

Kenny felt his eye twitch and he lunged forward, grabbing Craig by his hair and pulling his head back to lock their eyes. "Listen to me you fuck," he spat. "You are never, NEVER to tell anyone about this or I will fucking gouge your eyes out, you understand me?!"

"Oh please," he rolled his eyes. "I bet everyone knows. You're loud. Wouldn't be surprised if one of them called Kyle." Kenny froze once more. "Well," he continued, "if he dumps your sorry ass I'm going for him. Or if he doesn't I am," he shrugged.

Kenny tightened his grip. "Know what happened to the last guy who attacked my boyfriend like that?" he asked. Craig shook his head. "I shot him," he finished, throwing him back and briskly exiting the room.

"Tell your 'lovely little Jew' I said hi," he mocked. Kenny ignored him and continued to speed out past the unconscious forms sprawled out across the house. He ran outside and met the chilled air welcomingly. He shivered and looked up at the sky, seeing the sun peeking out from behind a few clouds far in the distance. He shook his head and removed himself from his trance before breaking into a sprint back towards home. His feet pounded harshly on the concrete beneath him and echoed around the street.

As he ran, his mind was racing. What the hell could he tell Kyle? Should he tell him what happened? Okay, there was no way in Hell he was doing that. But what could he tell him to make up for being four and half hours late, reeking of booze and probably sex?

He bit his lip as he approached the complex and looked up into it, taking deep breaths rapidly. He took a final deep breath and headed into the complex up the stairs. He paused before placing his ear on their door and listening. Silence. Probably not a good sign. He placed his key in the lock and slowly opened the door stepping inside. He closed it behind him and looked in front of him, seeing Kyle passed out curled up onto the arm of the couch and breathing softly with a book under his head.

Kenny bit his lip harder as he stepped towards him and looked down on him. How could he? Could he really have willingly done something so horrible to someone who meant so much to him?

He watched as Kyle creaked his eyes open and looked up at him. "Ken?" he croaked.

"H-hi," he stammered nervously.

He glanced past the blonde's shoulder towards the clock. "It's 5:30...where were you?"

"I...I passed out. Sorry I didn't call," he stated. Not an entire lie, he_ had_ slept.

"Oh, okay," he smiled softly. Kenny leaned down and helped sit him up. The redhead rubbed his eyes and looked at him confusedly.

"Is...is something wrong?" he stuttered.

"That...that's not your shirt," he frowned.

Oh god.

"Sure it is."

"I do the damn laundry. You don't have that shirt. You were wearing that red and orange thing you like so much," he said as he stood in front of him. "Ken, why are you wearing a different shirt?"

"W-well...I got some stuff on my shirt and Clyde gave me a backup."

"You said it was your shirt."

"I...I know...but I meant _now_ it's my shirt. Not....not um...," he looked into Kyle's confused and now hardened gaze and panicked.

"Who?" he asked simply.

"Whaddya mean?" he laughed nervously.

"Who. Was. It?" He breathed evenly and heavily. He was pissed.

"I don't know w-what you mean..."

"Bullshit! You're wearing someone else's shirt and your stuttering like you're fucking Porky Pig!" he shouted. Kenny winced as a pain shot through his skull. "Ken, who was it?!"

"Kyle, I can explain," he pleaded.

Kyle froze. "I knew it," he whispered before turning and yanking his hair in frustration. "I don't fucking believe this!" he shouted, pacing around. "Ken, who the fuck did you...why would you...what did I do?!"

"Kyle, you didn't do anything," he assured him. "Look I can explain," he repeated.

"Please. Do," he crossed his arms and stared him down, making the taller boy gulp and shakily sit on the chair.

"I...I was drunk?"

Kyle took a deep breath. "There better be more than just that."

"Uh...sort of," he winced.

"Well?" he demanded.

"I...I met up with Stan and Cartman at the party and we were just sitting around and talking and having some beer," he started, looking at his hands sheepishly. "Then Craig showed up."

"Oh no..."

"Um...yeah. We kinda...we kinda made a bet..."

"What kind of bet?" he asked, his anger rising in his tone.

"Before I tell you the bet can I explain the situation?" he pled, looking at him desperately.

"Go ahead," he nodded.

"Okay...well...do you know Tyler Bates by any chance?"

He raised his brow. "That Nazi kid who makes Cartman look tame? Yeah, why?"

"Well, he's friends with Craig...and Craig had him stationed outside the apartment in case I didn't agree to going through with the bet."

"Why?"

"Because he knew that between the prospect of either taking a bet or coming home and seeing you lying on the ground beaten to a pulp with swastikas carved into you, I would obviously listen to him!"

Kyle took a moment to absorb this before another deep breath. "Alright. What was the bet?"

"Um...um...," he looked around for a lie, coming up short.

"Ken, answer me," he ordered.

"You," he squeaked out.

"What about me?" he raised his brow.

"Uh...," he drawled out.

"Ken, please just tell me and maybe my blood pressure won't keep rising like this," he growled.

Kenny winced and looked up at him guiltily. "He um...he wants you, Dude."

"We've established this," he said flatly.

"No, I mean _wants_ you," he emphasized.

Kyle blinked for a moment before his brows furrowed. "You fucking bet my body?!" he spat angrily.

"Either way you were in danger in some way. But I figured that unleashing the sex hound as opposed to the Nazi might be safer. At least maybe someone would have a chance of stopping Craig!"

"I can't fucking believe you!" he lectured.

"Ky, I did it for you!"

"Alright, alright," he calmed himself and placed his fingers on his temples before looking back at him. "You made the bet. What did you have to do?"

"Whiskey shots?" he winced.

"Kenneth!"

"I'm sorry, alright?! Ky, you know that I promised you I wouldn't get too drunk, but I had to do it or you would have gotten hurt!"

"Okay, who the hell won, Kenny?"

"Craig," he sniffed.

Kyle blinked at him. "And yet you...wait, what?"

He sighed and looked down at his hands. "He figured that it'd just be easier to be with me because I was right beside him and I was fucking drunk off my ass. When I came to, he told me that I thought he was you," his voice cracked. "Look, I don't...I don't remember any of it. All I know is I got drunk, then woke up with my ass hurting and my head pounding."

Kyle froze. "He...he...oh god, Ken...," he looked down at him sadly before sitting on the couch.

Kenny continued to look at his hands. "Ky, you know that I would never do that if I could think straight, right? And I told him that I'd kill him if he ever came after you...," he placed his head into his hands and sobbed a bit. "I really didn't mean to...I feel so fucking disgusting! I didn't mean to!," he repeated as he sniffled loudly. He felt the arm of the chair being sat on and looked up to see Kyle staring down on him sympathetically.

"Come here," he gathered the blonde into his arms and gently kissed his hair.

"I'm so sorry...," he cried into the boy's shirt.

Kyle rested his head atop Kenny's and sighed. "I know you are. And I also know you when you've had a bit too much. Once you kept calling_ me_ Kenny, so I can see how you would mistake people..." he sighed again and ran his hand in soothing circles along his back. "Look. I'm not happy right now. I'm really not. But...I know you. You never would have done something like that under normal circumstances. And the fact that you took the bet for my sake is admirable to say the least."

"I told him to go fuck himself until he told me about Tyler being here," he sniffled.

"I'm sure you did," he nodded. "We'll get through this just like everything else we've gone through. Minus one technicality of course."

"What's that?"

"Murder charges. I'm going to fucking kill Tucker," he growled, pulling Kenny in closer to his chest. Kenny's eyes widened and he yanked Kyle down into his lap and held his wrists, pulling him forward and mashing their lips together. They pulled away and stared into each other's exhausted gaze.

"Don't," he said softly. "I don't hurt."

"He raped you," he said flatly.

He nodded and gained a small smirk. "Can you say role reversal?" Kyle gave a short laugh before looking away and back at him again.

"Can I punch him again?"

"Nah. He might be expecting it."

He raised his brow. "If he was planning on coming over here to get me, he probably would have been expecting it then. Betcha wouldn't have complained if I had punched him then."

Kenny nodded, "true. But that's not the circumstance. Look, Ky, I really didn't mean to, I swear. I thought I could drink him out..."

"In a way I'm glad you couldn't..." he sighed. "Can you promise me something? Just...at least just to humor me?"

"Okay, what?"

"No more drinking unless I'm around?" he asked. "I trust you more than anyone, Ken...but you are a bit retarded under the influence, ya know?"

He nodded and turned the boy's hands around in his grip, kissing the soft skin. "I promise...besides, I'd love to see you drunk. Who knows how frisky you can get?" he smirked.

Kyle smirked right back, "Well, we'll leave that for another day, shall we? Let's get you to bed," he suggested, standing from his lap and pulling him up and leading him into their bedroom. "Oh, and first things first," he said. He took the shirt from off of Kenny and walked over to the door for the balcony, opening it and hurtling the shirt out into the open air and slamming the door behind him.

"Thank you, that was my plan," Kenny nodded. He fell onto the bed exhaustedly. He sniffled lightly and watched as Kyle sat next to him and stroked his head.

"You gonna be okay?" he asked softly.

He nodded. "Yeah...I mean...I don't remember any of it."

"Doesn't stop it from hurting though, does it?"

He shook his head. "No...no it doesn't. Kyle leaned down and kissed his cheek.

"I bet," he sighed. "Look, just get some sleep, will ya?"

"Kay," he smiled at him. "I love you, Ky."

"I know you do," he smiled back, kissing his lips. "Sleep well, Dude."

"I'll try," he nodded. Kyle patted his head a few times and stood from the bed, walking out of their room and shutting the door behind him. Kenny stared after him and sighed. What he did to deserve someone so forgiving, he'd never know.

He shuddered as he thought of the mere idea of sleeping with the likes of Craig. Disgusting. From what he remembered from their first encounter, Craig wasn't exactly a wonderful person, inside or out.

Kenny ripped off his jeans as he thought of Craig's clammy hands on his zipper and he curled up into himself shuddering and sniffling wildly. He threw the blanket over his head and let the warmth encompass him, but he still felt frozen. He needed something...no, somebody.

"Ky?" he croaked out, peeking out from under the covers. "Kyle?" he asked louder. He watched as the door opened back up.

"Yeah?"

"Can you...um..." he fumbled for words. Kyle looked at him in understanding and made his way back into the room. He sat on his side of the bed and laid down, taking Kenny's shaking form into his arms. Kenny smiled slightly and cuddled into his sweet warmth.

"I'm here," he assured him, grasping him tightly as he still trembled. He shut his eyes and nuzzled into Kyle's neck, clasping him back for fear of losing him if he let go. "I'm not going anywhere," Kyle told him, as if he was reading the blonde's petrified mind. "You're gonna be okay."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," he kissed his head. "I'm here for you, Dude." Kenny felt the warmth emanating from his words and felt his heart melt. He snuggled in as close as physically possible and allowed his breath to slow down. He fell into a state of unconsciousness, his mind blocking out the pain and allowing Kyle's comforting words and loving arms to take over his feelings and send him into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

"I don't know, Stan...I have no idea what to do."

Kenny creaked his eyes open again and found himself in his own room. He smiled and snuggled into the pillow. He looked around, seeing that Kyle had left at some point in time and was pacing the living room with the phone in his hand.

"Dude, I just wanna run out of here and kill the fucker, ya know?"

Kenny frowned. It was pretty obvious who they were talking about.

"I know...I know...but just put yourself in my perspective for a second. What if it was Wendy?...Stan, this is different!" he apparently argued.

Kenny hid a little under his blanket. He didn't like causing Kyle so much anxiety.

"Because, Stan, those were fucking strangers, not kids we've known for twelve years!" he shouted. "No...Stan, what if Clyde raped Wends? Huh? How would you feel? What would you want done?!....I dunno. I'd...punch his lights out and rip off his balls I guess," he sighed. Kenny sighed as well and sat up in the bed, clasping his knees in his arms sadly.

"I don't care if he's after me, too. Ken got hurt, not me....I don't care if he's three times my fucking size, I'd still beat the living shit out of him for what he did!" Kenny's heart sunk in terror at his thought process. There was a moment of silence as Kyle probably listened to Stan's retort.

"I...I would for him," he said softly. "Don't you fucking lecture me!" he replied, regaining his vigor. "Look, I'd do anything for Ken and I don't care what the fuck happens to me in the process, Stan! I'm gonna find some way to bring this little bastard down to his knees!"

Kenny placed his face into his palms and shook his head with little sniffles escaping him. What a fucking disaster.

"Oh, I see," Kyle drawled out. "I get attacked and you want nothing more than to kill the guys. Ken has the same happen to him and yet you have no desire to go smear his blood down his fucking throat?!"

"_I'm not his best friend," _Kenny thought sadly. _"I'm not as important."_

"Stan, it doesn't matter which one of us was attacked more brutally...it's still the same! I mean...I don't want him to end up like I am, Dude. I want him happy."

Ken's heart stopped. Kyle wasn't happy?...Was this relationship so strenuous on the little Jew that all of his happiness was fading? He felt tears welling up in his eyes and he sniffled a few times.

"I'm just happy that he doesn't remember it," Kyle continued softly. "I wouldn't be able to stand having to watch him replay it over and over...," Kenny could relate. He hated seeing Kyle's terrified features in his sleep as he dreamt of that night. "Stan...please help me. Help us both, please?" the young boy pled.

There was another pause. "...Fine, Stan. You just don't understand. I'll talk to you later," he muttered. Kenny heard him click off the phone and fall onto a seat. His heart sunk as he heard sobs escaping his lover before noticing he had tears of his own streaking down his face. He took a deep breath and stood from the bed, peeking out the door towards the redhead. He saw him seated on the couch, covering his eyes with one hand as he cried. He stepped out into the room and stared at the Jew for a while.

"Ky?"

Kyle shot his head up and looked over at the blonde. He cleared his throat and wiped his eyes.

"Why are you up?"

"Couldn't sleep," he shrugged. "you okay?"

"Me? I'm fine, I'm fine," he plastered on a fake grin and damn near broke Kenny's heart. "Um...are you?"

"I'll be okay...once you stop lying to me."

"I'm not lying," he defended.

"You're not happy," he said quietly.

Kyle's face fell, "you um...you heard all that, huh?"

He nodded and sat down next to him. "Ky, is this relationship really that hard on you?"

"WHAT?!" he looked throughly scandalized. "Ken, no! Our relationship is fine! It's all the other stuff that's stressing me out!"

"You're sure?"

"Of course I am. Why would you be stressing me out?"

"Let's count, shall we?" he muttered. He leaned back and sighed, counting off on his fingers. "Were it not for me, you wouldn't have been raped."

"I'm the one that ran out of the house to find Morgan," he countered, leaning back as he had and crossing his arms.

"Mitch wouldn't have gotten ahold of you again."

"I was sick. You were just trying to protect me."

"You wouldn't have been dragged into this whole ghost thing with all these power and so much fucking confusion!" he exclaimed, tears brimming his eyes.

Kyle stared at him for a moment. "I'd still be dead." Kenny blinked back before throwing his head into his palms. Kyle scooted closer and grasped his chin, forcing his direction towards him. "Look at me," he said softly. Kenny slowly met eyes with him, confused as he saw specks of a somber black tinting his eyes.

"Ken," he started, "I really don't think you get it. I don't blame you for anything but my happiness. And when I'm with you, I am happy. Things calm down...the voices stop. All this shit that's been going on...none of it by any means is by your hand."

"But I feel like-"

"I know what you feel like," he interrupted firmly. "But you're wrong. Ken, if I truly felt that way, I wouldn't be here right now. Stop doubting yourself so much."

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Ken, is there anything I can do to make you feel better?" He asked. "I know you've been through a lot," he rubbed his back lovingly.

He shrugged. "I'm fine."

"You're a bad liar," he sighed. "Come on, I can make you some food."

"Not hungry."

"You can sleep."

"Not tired, thanks."

"Um...I can call Cartman over and kick his ass for your amusement."

"That sounds like more of a perk for you," he half-smirked at him.

"Two birds, one stone," he smiled back. "Come on, Dude. I hate seeing you so down."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop being sorry," He frowned. He paused for a moment and sighed. "Aggressive sex?"

Ken looked at him with a raised brow. "You think that I'd do that to you just to feel better?"

"Of course I don't. I was offering. And if you happen to feel better, well that's just a nice little perk," he smiled innocently.

Kenny smirked back. "You'd really do that for me?"

"Anything to make you feel better," he looked at him lovingly.

"Even if I'm out of my mind kinky?"

"You burnt me with a curling iron," he raised his brow. "I'm not too worried."

Kenny smiled gently at him. "Dude, you're the best," he nuzzled his face into Kyle's neck. "But I don't think so right now. This is just fine with me," he wrapped his arms around his frail form and cuddled into him.

Kyle sighed contentedly and snuggled back into him. "As you wish."

"Mmm," he moaned as he took in Kyle's scent. "Love me?"

He chuckled lightly. "Of course I do."

"No killing Craig?"

There was a short pause. "I....I don't know," he said softly. "I won't unprovoked. He touches you again and I'm not being held accountable for anything I may do."

"My hero," he smiled. "But Stan was right. Craig's a little big for you to take on."

"Mere obstacle," he shrugged. "I've punched his lights out before and I could do it again."

He sighed and looked up at him with shining blue eyes. "Don't? I really really don't like putting you in the hospital, Dude."

"Speaking of which, I think you should go."

"Why?"

"Uh, I don't think that I need to explain that to you," he frowned. "Ken, I think you should be looked at."

He rolled his eyes, "Ky, I'm fine. I'm no where near the shape you were in."

"Well, I was a bit distracted," he retorted.

"Not like you could forget or something."

"No, I couldn't. But I wasn't about to just wander off into my own room and leave you alone."

He sighed again and leaned further into Kyle's chest. "I don't know what to do anymore," he said softly.

"Whaddya mean?"

He looked back up at him pathetically. "Both of us are getting the shit beaten out of us and I don't know what the hell to do to stop it," he sniffed.

He looked down at him sadly, "We stick it out together. We may not be able to stop it. We've pretty much thrown ourselves into the ring of fire, Ken. We have to take the bad along with the good."

"I hate the bad," he muttered. "Most people's bad is failing a test or stubbing their toe. We get raped and get the crap beaten out of us and are disowned by our parents."

"And most people's good is passing a test," he smiled ironically. "But our good is that despite all the crud we've gone through, we still have each other. Who knows, Ken," he shrugged. "Maybe things will start to cheer up a bit. We just have to be patient."

"Yeah...," he agreed quietly. "I just wish it wasn't taking so long."

He chuckled and patted his head, "we'll be okay," he assured him. "We may both have the patience of a three year old, but we can make it."

He smiled up at him, "If you say it, it must be true, Mr. Valedictorian."

He smirked back, "Damn straight." he looked around the room and sighed. "Whaddya say to getting out of here for a bit?"

"Huh?"

He looked back at him, "getting out of this damn apartment."

"Where would we go?"

"Hell if I know. I say we just go somewhere to try to calm ourselves down."

Kenny sat up off him and smiled crookedly, "okay," he agreed.

"Go get dressed," he instructed.

"Kay. Take your insulin."

"Already did," he assured him. They sealed it with a quick peck on the lips before Ken walked back into the room. He threw on some jeans and a tee shirt and quickly combed out his frazzled hair. He reached down into his shirt and took his pendant out, placing it in front of the clothing for display. He observed it hanging proudly from his neck and couldn't help but smile before dropping into a realizing frown.

Craig had seen this. Craig watched it move as he took Kenny over. He shuddered with disgust. Sure a few other people knew that he wore it, but no one else had seen it as he was in that kind of state. No one else knew that the necklace never came off.

"You okay in here?" Kyle asked, stepping up behind him.

"Y-yeah," Ken replied, still staring intently at the star and cross in his reflection. Kyle followed his gaze and bit his lip. He wrapped his arms cautiously around Kenny and kissed his neck. "I'm so sorry," Ken sniffed.

"Don't be," Kyle looked up and placed his hand over the pendant. Ken put his own hand atop Kyle's and stared at their melded appendages. So much happening to two people...it was overwhelming. But the course of events playing out had done so much for them, brought them closer; deepened their love. Was it possible that perhaps these things were indeed fate? That maybe so much had affected them for the mere purpose of being a catalyst for the comfort of each other.

Kenny knew one thing for sure: it sure as hell seemed like it.

* * *

As they walked the park with their fingers intertwined, ignoring the occasional catcalls from slack-jawed gawkers, Kenny couldn't help but feel a large surge of pride. He felt as though he were showing the young Jew off, and why shouldn't he? He got the smartest kid in South Park. He got the unique beauty that only someone like Kyle could possess. And he got to experience every emotion known to man through that boy.

Why wouldn't he flaunt that?

They continued their walk in silence, just enjoying the company of each other and dismissing everyone else around them as mere props to their afternoon walk. As they strolled deeper into the park, down into the woods, they came across a large oak tree. Kenny stared up at it, in awe of its size. Kyle looked with him, gazing inquisitively.

"Wow...," he murmured. "How old do you think it is?"

"Dunno...," he replied. "Betcha we'll outlive it though," he smirked.

"That's a bit sad to think about."

"Well, it had a long life," he shrugged. He released Kyle's hand and lifted himself up onto a low branch and extended his hand out to the Jew. "Come on," he nodded him on. "Let's climb."

Kyle looked hesitant for a moment before taking Kenny's hand and allowing him to pull him up towards him. "You sure it's safe?"

"Psh, no," he smirked. "Come on, it'll be fun," he winked, starting to hoist himself onto the next branch. Kyle shook his head before following suit. They continued to climb upwards until they were about 200 feet off the ground.

"Dude, there's no way that this is safe," Kyle bit his lip.

"Aw, come on," he rolled his eyes. "This branch is big enough for two people to stand side to side across it. And...," he jumped up and down a bit. "It's pretty damn sturdy, too."

"I just dunno...," he looked around uneasily. "I really don't wanna fall," he looked down and gulped.

"You won't," he promised, stepping towards him.

"How do you know?!" he grasped around the trunk in panic.

He stepped up to the fretting boy and leaned in close. "Because I won't let you," Kenny whispered hotly into his ear. He reached around and closed Kyle in against the tree, gently nibbling at his throat. Kyle let out a little moan and he smiled. He was getting better at finding Kyle's weaknesses.

He reached down and removed his belt before reaching back around and securing Kyle's wrists together on the opposite side of the huge trunk. Kyle gasped as Ken placed his hips against his rear and gently thrust against him, letting him know his intentions.

"Dude, we're in the air!"

"I'm walking on cloud nine," he agreed, leaning in again and blowing the hair at the back of his neck.

"Not what I meant!" he looked down in a state of mild panic.

"Oh admit it," he growled. "This is hot."

"Yes, sex in a tree is just oh-so-arousing!"

"So glad you agree," he smirked, chewing at his ear.

"K-Kenny," he shuddered. "We could fall..."

"Not if you keep still and keep quiet," he growled authoritatively. Kyle looked back into his domineering gaze and gulped.

"O-okay," he nodded.

"Good boy," he murmured, working his way up the Jew's shirt. He teased his nipples lightly as he chewed on him. Kyle gasped upon his teeth digging into his soft flesh. He let out a light purr and persuaded Kenny to keep going. He took the boy's hardened nipples into his fingers and tightly pinched them as he harshly bit into him once more, causing Kyle to throw his head back and hiss.

"Oh God," he bit his lip and started to pant a bit. Kenny started stroking his way down Kyle's torso until he reached his pant line. He gently ran his finger over the growing bulge and continued to suckle at his skin.

"Mmm, tell me something," he murmured.

"What?" he whimpered.

"Why is it I can't seem to get enough of you?" he chose his words very deliberately. Kyle could tell as well as he paused for a bit.

"Because...you're a sick pervert?"

"Perhaps," he mimicked. "Or maybe I just have a thing for pretty little things like yourself. Now then Beautiful, mind if I continue?"

"Please do," he purred.

"Good, you weren't really getting a choice," he laughed huskily and unbuttoned the boy's jeans. He reached down and grabbed his hardening flesh, listening to his suppressed moans hungrily. "You're mine," he growled possessively.

"I know."

Kenny smiled and continued his work. He took Kyle's jeans and boxers and pulled them down, exposing him into the open air.

"Dude, we're not exhibitionists!" Kyle cried out.

"We are now," he chuckled. "We're hundreds of feet in the air. So long as you keep your pretty mouth shut, no one will be any the wiser, alright?"

"It's hard when you're pushing me against a tree!"

"Well, I guess you need to find a way. Want me to shove leaves into your mouth?"

"No!"

"Then just find a way," he repeated. He held out his fingers towards Kyle's face. "Suck," he commanded. Kyle tongued his digits before taking them fully into his mouth, sucking and swirling his tongue around them, as if he were encoding Kenny's fingerprints into his memory. "There we go," he cooed, taking his wet fingers from out the boy's mouth. Kyle looked back at him with a desperate look in his eyes and he smiled maliciously at him. He pressed one of his fingers into Kyle's entrance and licked his lips as Kyle shook under his touch. He gently rubbed him, watching as his face contorted uncomfortably with spastic glances of pleasure. He stuck his second digit in, watching the same expressions pass over his features. He was vaguely aware of himself growing harder, but paid little mind. This moment was all about watching Kyle.

Kyle let out a little meow and Kenny shoved a third finger into him. The boy hissed at the addition and quivered in delicious pain. Kenny shoved his fingers in up to his third knuckle, watching as Kyle's knees buckled as he cried out softly in pain. The belt held him tightly against the tree, so Kenny was able to keep thrusting into him with his fingers, watching the boy closely. Kyle shut his eyes and his face turned red as Kenny continued to drive into him with his bony appendages. He leaned forward and nibbled on his ear, listening as he whined quietly.

He removed his fingers, watching the kid as he calmed down a bit. He gently stroked his red face as he undid his own jeans. Kyle panted and stared into his eyes, his need blatant and strong. Kenny was happy to oblige as he leaned forward and licked his cheek before forcefully shoving himself into him. He clapped a hand over Kyle's mouth as he yelped in pain from the sudden thrust and kept his hand in place as he began moving. He felt Kyle's moans vibrating into his palm and became all the more hungry for more.

He pounded into him relentlessly, not even allowing him to catch his breath. The sound of slapping skin echoed in the branches around them, co-mingling with Kyle's muffled shouts and Kenny's husky moans.

"Oh god...," Kenny could hear him mutter. He took his nails of his free hand and dug them into his hip, hearing him hiss with pleasure.

"You love this, don't you?" he whispered into his ear. "God you love this. Just me and you, huh?" Kyle turned his eyes towards him, glazed over with a furious lust. "Tell me how much you like this."

"So much," he mumbled into his palm.

"How much?"

"More than anything," he whimpered.

"What do you love about it?" he demanded.

"You," he said simply.

"What's that?" he smiled as he drove into him harder.

"Ah...ahh....," he moaned. "Y-you...I love you!" Despite his muffled state, the words ran clear as a bell through Kenny's ears.

"You too," he breathed as he took his hand from off his hip and started jacking the boy's cock. Kyle moaned and squirmed under him, thrusting his hips back to match the blonde's rhythm. Kenny watched as Kyle's eyes subconsciously flittered downwards in the attempt to make sure that no one was watching. He smirked as he remembered their conversation about the thrill of getting caught being one of Kyle's kinks. He looked so damn nervous and it was just so damn cute to the blonde. He pounded into him harder for a while, seeing just how far he could take this kink of his. Kyle shouted and mumbled against his hand, pressing further and further into him.

"Nn-nngh...," Kyle moaned as he tensed. "Ken...oh god, Ken..."

"Come for me," he demanded, slamming harder into him. "Come on, Ky..."

"Ahh...oh God...ahh...ah fuck...oh fuck! KEN!" he screeched into Kenny's hand as he released all over the trunk in front of him. Kenny pulled out of him just in time to release off to the side of him to avoid making a major mess all over his panting lover. He chuckled lightly as he zipped his pants, looking over at the Jew. He bent down and pulled up Kyle's clothing, zipping and buttoning his jeans for him as he remained tied to the tree. He wrapped his arms around his waist and snuggled into his neck.

"Dude...dude, let me go," he breathed heavily. Ken looked up at him and smirked.

"But now the whole world can see your beauty."

"As I'm tied to a tree?!"

"Mhm. You know, they used to tie the most beautiful of people to trees as sacrifices back in the old days."

"Yeah, two problems there," he retorted. "They were girls, and usually virgins!"

Kenny snickered, "I'm sure a few of 'em got laid at some point in time."

"Please untie me?" he pled. "I think my face is bleeding."

Kenny reached over and undid the belt, pulling it off of Kyle's wrists and wrapping it back around his waist. Kyle shakily turned and Ken saw that he did indeed have scratches going down his face.

"Oops," he gulped sheepishly. Kyle raised a finger to his face and pulled it back, looking at the smear of blood trickling down it.

"Definitely aggressive," he smiled at the blonde.

"I'm sorry," he stared at him guiltily.

"Why?" he raised his brow. "I don't care. They're scratches. Big whoop."

"Well..., that's not exactly nice of me...," he said slowly.

He snorted, "So? If I was in pain, I'd tell you to stop, alright? Now can we please get down? I'm starting to freak out a bit."

He snickered and nodded. "Alright. Come on," he hopped down to the next lowest branch and held his arms out to help him down. Kyle slid down beside him and they continued until they were about halfway there, noticing that they were pretty beat.

Kenny sat on the branch and panted as Kyle joined him. He laughed, "We are so out of shape."

"Nah," Kyle smiled. "We just had a vigorous exercise, that's all." He looked out and sighed happily. "Dude, look at that," he nodded towards the scenery. Kenny turned his head to look as well and broke into a wider smile.

"Wow...," he murmured. "you can see fucking everything!" He and Kyle panned their heads, looking down on the pond and trees scattered around the park.

"Beautiful," Kyle said softly.

Ken looked over at him and smiled. "Very," he agreed. Kyle looked over at him and smiled back, a faint blush tinging his cheeks as Kenny leaned in towards him and they pressed their lips together. Their hands slowly found each other and their fingers moulded together. Their tongues swirled around each other sensually and their breathing deepened, synced together in harmony.

"Yoo hoo!" a voice called from below. They ignored it and continued their work. "Hey, I'm talking to you two up there!"

They sighed irritably and looked down. "What?!" Kenny shouted angrily. They stared down at them and noticed a green girl staring up at them.

"Holy...you can hear me!" she said, backing away.

"Whaddya know. They found us," Kyle smirked.

"Bout damn time," Ken muttered.

"Don't go!" Kyle shouted after her.

"How the fuck can you hear me?! Or see me?!" she looked between them panicking.

"We'll explain in a minute," Ken said. He looked back at Kyle, "ready?" He nodded and they began climbing down the remainder of the branches together. They jumped down onto the ground and faced the girl, causing their brows to raise.

"Um...hi?" Kyle blinked. Kenny just stared. Yeah. Take hooker and times it by about thirty and you'd have this girl in front of them.

Her platinum blonde hair was pulled into a messy bun behind her, her eyes were an electric blue, much more shocking than Kenny's by a long shot. Kenny eyed her up and down, observing her outfit: tight fitting shorts with a tube top revealing her toned midriff, black stilettos to top it all off.

Oh goody. Another one.

"Well?" she stared at Kyle impatiently. "Explain!"

"We um, help dead people," he shrugged. "We're special like that."

"Whatever you say," she replied. "That's kinda cool. How do you, like help us?"

"We get you to Heaven or Hell, wherever you're going," he smiled gently at her.

"Oh, cool," she grinned. "That's kinda neat. I mean, like you're like saviors or something."

"Sort of," he shrugged. "What's you're name?"

"Candy," she smiled.

"How very...," he started.

"Cliche," Kenny finished. She finally directed her attention to the blonde and her eyes widened. "Oh my god!" she screamed.

"What?! What's wrong?!" Kenny asked. He watched as Candy lunged towards him and clasped him tightly.

"Ryan! I missed you," she gushed.

"Ryan?!" he squeaked. "I'm Kenny! Leggo of me!"

"Hey, get off of him!" Kyle narrowed his eyes at her.

"Ryan, God it's been, like years!" she grinned wickedly, swaying him back and forth.

"My name's not Ryan!" he insisted, prying himself out of her grip. She let go of him confusedly and he quickly backed up back beside his boyfriend.

"His name is Ken," Kyle said, placing his hands on his hips. "And he happens to be taken, so don't molest him!" Kenny's heart fluttered as those words passed his lips.

"But...you look, like, just like him," she pouted.

"Well I'm not," he snapped.

"Ken...," Kyle looked at him softly. He felt a twang of guilt.

"Uh, sorry," he shrugged at her. "I'm not Ryan, though. So you know...hands to yourself and all that."

She continued to pout and then let out a sigh. "But you do look like him."

"But I'm not," he restated. "So, follow us." he waved her to follow them and Kyle turned together.

"Where are we, like going?"

"Home," Kyle replied. "Come on," he motioned his head and they started walking off. She followed closely behind them like a puppy. Kyle's hand found Ken's and they intertwined again. He smiled up at him and he returned the expression before they turned back to watch their step. God knows they needed to start doing that more.

* * *

Kenny sat up on the couch cross-legged, watching some show on the History Channel with blank eyes. He couldn't quite keep his focus on the show, his mind fading to the night beforehand time and time again. He kept trying to piece together what had happened. Craig just said he wanted another round...but if he was after Kyle, why wouldn't he have actually went for him while Ken was down and out? It's not like he wasn't an easy target at the time. He sighed and leaned back into the cushions, not quite happy with the way his mind tended to work. A few months ago, he had no trouble completely zoning out, but now it seemed as though his mind was always racing.

He turned as he heard the bedroom door and watched as Kyle walked out and shut the door behind him, running his fingers through his dampened curls. "She out for the night?" she motioned back towards the door.

He nodded, "yeah, she was tired so I just sent her to bed."

"We need a guest bed," he smirked.

"Heh, yeah," he agreed. He watched as Kyle sat down next to him and pulled him in close, enjoying the warmth from the shower still emanating from him. "I love your face after you shower," he smiled.

"Why?"

"It's red and cute as hell," he gushed, nuzzling into his cheek. He saw as the shade went up about two notches.

"You're so gay," he rolled his eyes.

"You know it, Babe."

He chuckled and leaned into him. "So."

"So?"

"I'm guessing we're lacking clues on her?"

"Well we haven't done the damn vision thingy yet," he complained.

"That's because she keeps attacking you," he said. Kenny could detect that venom in his words and pulled him in closer.

"She's attention starved."

"Well, she needs to stop eye humping you!"

He chuckled, "jealous much?"

"She's trying to fuck you while I'm like ten feet away!"

"You know I won't let that happen," he assured him. Kyle looked up at him and smiled.

"I know. I'm actually quite happy with the way you keep pushing her away."

"Well good," he smiled.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," he nodded.

"Would you have had no second thoughts about sleeping with her had I not been in the picture?"

"Dude, she's dead!"

"Okay, ignore that fact. A girl walks up to you dressed like that and talking like her resume just says prostitute. Would you have slept with her?"

"Define you not being in the picture," he raised his brow.

"Not here."

"Okay, there are two ways to look at that," he started. "Let's say that you and I weren't together. Then yes. I probably would have gone and fucked her brains out," he observed Kyle's frown and smiled at him. "However," he continued, "if we're talking you're not here as in just not in the room or whatever, then no. Kyle, you know that I wouldn't do that to you. I may be a horny jackass, but I'm **your **horny jackass. I wouldn't dream of doing anything like that to you...," he trailed off and looked away guiltily.

Kyle's face dropped guiltily as well. "I'm sorry," he said softly. "It's just the way she was throwing herself at you...it made me so..."

"Jealous?"

"Frustrated," he corrected, then looked away a little. "And maybe sorta jealous," he shrugged.

He laughed softly, "why? I was pushing her away like she was on fire or something."

"Yeah, but....I dunno."

"I get it," he broke into a shit-eating grin. "You didn't like that she stole my attention from you, didn't you?"

Kyle's face glowed, "n-no!"

"Oh my god, you really did feel like that!" he laughed. "Jeez, Ky."

"I wasn't jealous of that," he crossed his arms firmly.

"Why not? I would be. I get that way too," he shrugged, still grinning. "When you hang with Stan or whatever I get massively jealous that you're looking at him and not me. Nothing to be ashamed of or anything, Dude."

"Well, okay maybe it did bug me a bit," he shrugged. "But I mean, me looking at Stan is a bit different than her trying to stick her hand down your pants!"

"True," he mused. "But either way, we're just a jealous couple. I like it like that though," he smiled. "Shows me how much you care about me and want me to yourself."

"Same to you," he smirked back. His grin faded a bit and he looked at him thoughtfully.

"What's up?" Ken asked, switching off the muted television.

"I feel like playing role reversal," he smirked lightly before it softened again. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Heh, yeah," he nodded. "I mean...I still feel...grossed out...but I'm not, you know, reliving every moment or something. In fact, I'm trying to remember just what happened so I can be sure that it was my drunken mind that overtook me and not my dick, you know?"

He nodded, "I can see why you would want to, but I don't want you to have to think about it, Kenny. I mean...it's not a fun thing to think about," he frowned sadly.

"I feel like I need to," he sighed. "I mean, yeah, I was raped, but...look at you," he glanced at him sympathetically. "You went through it and you're dealing with the after effects. Why should I just have it happen and brush it off my shoulders?"

"Because you don't deserve to be reminded," he said softly.

"But why should you deserve it?"

"Maybe God's punishing me," he said softly. Kenny blinked at him for a moment before raising his brow.

"Wait, what?"

"Well...I did kill myself, Ken," he looked away and sighed. "Look, it may sound weird to you, but that's really how I'm dealing with the whole thing. Making it seem as though I had it coming to me is a lot easier to comprehend than just making it so it's some random occurrence that happened to befall me," he looked back into Kenny's eyes sadly. "But it happening to you...everything just seems to be thrown back into the air."

"I...I..."

Kyle held up his hand, "don't you dare apologize again. Look, you did it for me, alright? I blame Craig and only Craig. Do you understand me?"

Kenny slowly nodded, "Ky...," he swallowed, "I...I've been wondering something about you."

"What's that?"

"Well...you know how Cartman was talking about your spiel about you losing faith and such when Ike came over?"

Kyle looked up thoughtfully for a moment before looking back at him. "Yeah, why?"

He looked at him seriously, "do you still believe?"

He laughed a bit, "what?"

"God. Do you still believe in God?"

"Ken...we work for Satan," he raised his brow.

"That's not what I meant. Physically, I know that you know."

"Oh...you mean like, do I think he's divine or whatever," he said softly. Kenny nodded and waited as Kyle leaned back and contemplated his response. "Why?"

Awesome response.

"Because," he started. "You're Jewish, right? I mean, your family was pretty much Orthodox about it. But...you always had those traces of doubt in your head. You always focused more on the logical side of things as opposed to just going into something out of pure faith. What do you believe?"

He stared at him for a moment before looking towards the ceiling. "I believe in God," he said softly. "But...I don't think that He's so powerful. I don't believe that...that He's the master of destiny or whatever. I don't believe that He judges the outcome of everything we do. I think that He gives us our start and then let's us go on our own. He doesn't intervene in our affairs, He just sits back and watches us screw ourselves over or make something of ourselves. I believe that only when He sees that you really need Him does He step in. And in very few instances do we really need Him...," he looked back down at Kenny gently. "I believe in Him because I have you. I really do think that something must be at work between us. When I killed myself...there was no God. All I saw was a bleak and unforgiving world that had completely destroyed who I was. But as soon as I came back and I had you...things looked so much better. I could actually feel sunlight again. I wasn't so...distant, you know?" he looked away again and stared at the blank television. "Whether or not that was the work of some deity, I'll never know. But it was something. And as I said, the idea of a plan as opposed to a random scheme of life is just better for me to try to understand. Maybe we're just not meant to get it," he shrugged. "Maybe...maybe it's just better for us to be like this. To focus on things and find the good, to see the possibility of something bigger at work here than just our lives. Maybe that's what this world needs," he looked at him once more and smiled.

Kenny stared at him in silence for a long period of moments. "You...you're gonna make a great writer," he smiled, choking back some emotional tears. He pulled the young boy into his arms and kissed his head sweetly. "Can I get the first copy of your book?" he asked.

"Of course," he laughed.

"With an autograph, too?" he smirked.

He looked up at him and leaned in towards his lips and whispered hotly, "And a kiss."

* * *

_A/N: OMG, CRAIG RAPED KENNY!!!! (that bastard!)...yeah. That thing I said about Craig liking Kyle just being a side-story...I guess I totally lied on that XD_

_Teehee, who was taken aback? I mean, come on! It's one of my chapters and Kyle __**isn't **__the one raped. Holy freaking god even I'm concerned XD_

_And...they had sex in a tree. Yeah. I was staring at this ginormous tree outside of school and was like, 'wow, that's big.'...which was promptly followed with the thought, 'that's what he said.'_

_Yup. Even my lame inside-of-my-head jokes are yaoi related. So Ken and Ky sexed up a tree. Sweet. _

_Kenny and Kyle standin' on a tree, F-U-C-K-I-N-G =D_

_And Candy is another ghost thought up by my photo buds, so she'll be getting her moment next time._

_And Ky's little religious speech...try being an Atheist and writing that. THAT WAS DIFFICULT!!!!....Did I do okay on it? I honestly don't know! I have nothing to like...compare it to or anything! Feedback makes me better!_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_


	40. Seeds of Doubt

_A/N: Chapter 40. Jebus. _

_Okay. So I re-read every chapter starting with chapter 24 (that happens to be one of my favorites =D) and Holy Freaking GOD people! I don't know how you're staying interested in this story! I kept dozing off, lol. Maybe it's just because I wrote it and there's nothing new there for me? I dunno, but God it's so fucking long and confusing! _

_So, thank you so much for keeping with me through all this! People keep telling me that they read it all the time and it feels so great knowing that! _

_And because she whined that I forgot, thank you to my best friend in the outside world, Abbyroxs100. I was frustrated and didn't want to write the sex scene in chapter 38, so she tried...I deleted it and rewrote it because she totally had Kyle and Ken hitting each other and calling each other bitch even though I told her not to do that. I love me some good S/M every now and then, but it can't be like, Kyric material for Ken and Ky, ya know? It needs to be a bit more outside the box for me or else it's like it's someone else's writing. I just can't imagine my Ken ever doing that...and especially not my Kyle XD...then she didn't understand that Ky bottoms, so that was kinda like, 'okay. No one else can write this for me' XD....but still, she tried. And that matters =)_

_I love you, Emi-san!_

_Okay, sorry for the bit of a rant, but you've seen worse from me XD_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

He felt a tickling on his stomach and let out a soft sigh. It continued, flowing around his broad chest, it brushed lightly over his nipples. He felt the caress of hand toying with his hair and gently stroking his face adoringly.

"Mmm...Ky...," he moaned, still in dreamland.

He felt cold lips press against the nape of his neck and he shivered.

"You're cold..." he murmured. "I'll warm you up," he smiled grabbing his face in his hands finally creaking open his eyes. He came face to face with a glowing girl and he paused for a moment in utter confusion until he screamed and pushed her away.

"Like, good morning," she grinned wildly.

"Dude! What part of 'don't touch me like that' aren't you getting?!" the blonde shouted.

"Um...the don't part?" she blinked innocently.

"Stop doing that, Candy!" he demanded. "Kyle is my_ boyfriend_! I'm gay! Get that through your fucking skull!"

"But...but..."

"I know I fucking look like whoever this Ryan dude is, but I'm not him! Goddammit!" he groaned in frustration and threw himself off the sofa bed away from her. "I'm getting fucking pissed at you, Dude!"

"Jesus, you need to like, chill, Dude," she rolled her eyes.

"Chill?! You're trying to fuck me in the house I share with Kyle!"

"If you'd actually let me get farther I bet you wouldn't be complaining!"

Kenny felt his eye twitch. "I thought you were a fucking waitress, Candy. Not a whore," he muttered as he walked into the kitchen.

"Don't you call me that!" she shouted. "I, like, am not a whore, kay?!"

"What the hell's going on?!" Kyle stood at the doorway looking at them both with hands on his hips.

Kenny blinked at him before regaining his vigor and pointing at Candy, "She's trying to play touchy feely with me again!"

Kyle narrowed his eyes at the girl. "What the hell is your problem?" he asked lowly. "I don't care if this Ryan guy was the bane of your goddamn existence or something but you need to leave Ken alone!"

She scoffed. "I don't know what your problem is. If you were better for him, he wouldn't keep coming for me," she smirked, grasping the blonde's arm. Ken looked at her in disgust and pried his arm away.

"Jesus Christ, stop it!" he backed away quickly, stumbling and falling down, crashing his head into the floor. "OW!" he hissed.

Kyle was at his side in a second, "Dude, are you alright?"

"Yeah," he muttered, sitting up and rubbing his head. "I'm fine." He directed his gaze up towards Candy. "Look, I'm not fucking interested in you, alright? Just back the fuck off!"

She looked at him and pouted some more. "You obviously have no taste."

"I'm gay!"

"If I had a nickel," she rolled her eyes. She glared at Kyle. "If it weren't for you, he wouldn't be so confused."

Kyle blinked at her as Kenny rose to his feet angrily. "I'm not confused by anything except maybe how someone can be so fucking dense!" he yelled. "I'm with HIM," he pointed at the redhead. "I have no interest in somebody like you!"

"Whaddya mean somebody like me?!" she narrowed her eyes.

"I mean someone practically dry humping me every chance they get!"

She laughed, "what? You virgins or something? I mean, God. Someone like me comes up to you and, like, all you do is poo-poo me away?"

Kyle shook his head in disbelief. "Holy shit, Dude. Could you be any more narcissistic?"

"Narc-a-what?" she blinked.

"Did you seriously just call us virgins?!" Kenny fumed.

"Ken, that's not too much of an insult," Kyle raised his brow.

"It's totally untrue though!" he whined.

He sighed, "right." he turned back towards Candy and took a deep breath. "Look, Dude, just stop. Alright? Ken isn't for sale, so stop grabbing for him."

"But..."

"But he looks like Ryan," he groaned. "I know. He knows. Everyone fucking knows! Would you be so inclined as to actually tell us who the fuck Ryan is?!"

"Hmph," she scoffed, turning away. "None of your business."

"Actually it is," Ken growled. "We have to figure out why the Hell you're stuck and I'm betting that this guy has something to do with it!"

"I don't have to tell you anything," she snarled.

Kyle groaned and looked at his watch. "I have to leave," he looked at Ken apologetically. "The new shipments are in at work and I have to unload the truck."

He looked at him pleadingly and his lip quivered slightly. "You're leaving me with her?!"

"Ken, I can't just skip out on work. We need the damn money," he stated, he leaned up and pecked his lips and started to pull back, only to be forcefully pulled back into Ken's mouth, letting their tongues duke it out. Kenny released him finally and he slowly backed up, looking at him lustfully before turning back towards Candy, who was glaring at the both of them.

"See? I'm Kyle's," he stuck his tongue out.

"Damn straight," Kyle agreed. "Touch him again and I'll re-kill you," he turned back to Ken and smiled softly. He pressed his lips to his cheek and started to walk away. "See ya at 7:30-ish," he waved.

"Bye, Love," he waved back. He watched as the door closed and turned back to look at Candy. "Sorry, but I'm taken."

"Whatever," she muttered.

He sighed in aggravation and massaged his forehead. "Go wait in the living room, will ya? We need to fucking talk." He didn't get a response, just the sound of her stilettos clacking against the hardwood. He shook his head and mumbled to himself as he made way to the bedroom. He threw on some clothes and straightened out his hair a bit, taking a deep breath.

Maybe he should invest in a chastity belt or something.

He walked back out and found her waiting impatiently on the couch, a deep frown set upon her narrow face. He took another breath and walked back over, sitting himself down on the chair. "Okay. Can we talk here?"

She shrugged, "your house. Oh I'm sorry. Yours and _his_," he rolled her eyes.

"Don't talk about him like that," he crossed his arms.

"Why not?"

He growled, "he's my boyfriend. He's the person I happen to be with. You don't like it, tough shit. I'm not sleeping with you, so you might as well just talk to me."

"Fine. What the fuck do you want to know?" she scowled.

"How'd you die?"

"I was killed," she shrugged.

"By...?"

"Some kids from my school. They mugged me and killed me."

"Well...that sucks."

"Whatever. I didn't really care at that time."

"Why not?"

"I just didn't."

"Because of Ryan?"

She sighed. "None of your damn business."

"And here I repeat myself," he rolled his eyes. "It is my business. Mine and Kyle's job is to get you to where you belong. Now listen," he leaned forward in his seat. "I don't really know you, you don't really know me. But I do care about you to the extent that I need to get you back home, alright?"

She looked away from him and sighed. "Ken...," she said slowly. Kenny had to smile a bit at that, she was finally using his actual name. "I...I really don't want you to know about my problems and such. I mean...I don't freaking know you."

"You were trying to make me sleep with you," he raised his brow.

"You just look so much like him...," she said softly. "The same damn hair, same damn face...only difference is the eyes...his were brown."

"Who was this guy? Boyfriend?"

"Not...technically."

"Please don't tell me he was your pimp because I've had enough of them to last me a lifetime," he scowled.

She looked at him angrily, "I told you that I wasn't a fucking whore!"

"Just double checking," he defended. "If you knew the situation, you'd be asking it, too."

"Uh huh," she rolled her eyes.

"Now. What did you mean by not technically?" he asked.

"I mean that we'd just broken up, like, a few days before I was killed. We were talking and trying to work it out when it happened. I just really wish I'd been able to, like, reconnect with him before it happened, ya know?"

"So...this is probably why you're stuck?"

"I wouldn't know. Isn't that, like, supposed to be your area of expertise?"

"Heh, yeah, but I'm not quite there yet. Myself and Kyle haven't done too many of these things, but it's starting to go a little easier. And usually if I hear a story like that, it shows me that it's weighing on your mind. So it's probably holding you back."

"Maybe," she shrugged.

"So why'd you break up?"

"He um...he didn't really...like how I was."

"You mean dressing like a hooker?" he raised his brow.

"The opposite actually," she ran her fingers through her hair and sniffed a bit. "He thought I was too....nerdy I guess," she shrugged. She pulled her hair from out the scrunchie and Kenny watched as the hair fell down softly to her waist. "I hate that he wanted me to be more...more..."

"Um, seducey?" Kenny guessed.

"Sure," she laughed a little.

"Well, why would you bend to his will?"

"I didn't really...bend, per se," she shrugged. "I mean, I always wanted to be kind of more attractive to people."

"Doesn't mean you should act like a whore, Dude."

"Please stop," she sighed. "I had to basically train myself to think along the lines of sex first, questions later. He wanted it like that."

"You shouldn't have done that to yourself."

She looked down guiltily, "Yeah, yeah, I know. But haven't you ever done that?"

"Done what?"

She looked back up at him, "Changed for someone you care about?"

He smiled at her softly, "to an extent, yeah. I used to be a horrid sex hound," he laughed softly. "I'd go after anything that could move. But once me and Ky got together I had to settle myself down."

"And did you?"

"I batted you off, didn't I?" he raised his brow. "But I didn't completely change my personality. I'm still a perv," he laughed. "Ky likes me for me and that's one of the many many many reasons that I love him," he smiled.

"Oh...well...that's good for you," she smiled softly.

He leaned back and sighed, "you want something to drink or something?"

"Any beer?"

"Sorry, I'm going sober," he muttered. "We got soda," he shrugged.

"That works," she smiled.

He stood and smiled back. "As you wish, Ma'am. Be right back," he sauntered off towards the kitchen and grabbed the drinks. He walked back out, finding her combing her hair with her fingers.

"You look better like that, ya know," he commented, handing her off her drink.

"Thought you were gay."

"Yup. Means that I have incredible fashion sense, Honey," he limped his wrist and stuck out his hip. She broke into laughter.

"Wow," she shook her head amusedly. "You do that a little too well."

"Nah, I'm just perfect," he smirked, plopping back into the chair.

"Well, you certainly don't look gay, minus the jewelry of course," she nodded towards the necklace clasped around his neck as she sipped her cola.

"Hey, it's not gay," he frowned. "Ky gave it to me for my birthday."

"He got you jewelry? Seems a bit...well, gay to me."

"He also gave me sex, but that's besides the point," he smirked.

"It mean something?" she squinted at it.

"Can't you see?"

She cleared her throat, "Ryan liked me without my glasses. I stopped wearing them."

"Well...that's silly. You need to see."

"It's not important. What's the charm for?"

"It's a Star of David with a cross in it," he smiled. "Ky's Jewish and I'm Catholic, so it works."

"Oh. How cute," she grinned.

"Very. Ky's a cute guy. Just ask the girls around school," he laughed softly.

"He does have a baby face," she nodded.

"Yeah. I love that face, though."

"You...your relationship is...different, that's for sure."

"From everyone or just you?"

"Just me I suppose. Ryan never called me like, cute or pretty. It was always hot or smokin' or some other dumb word that I didn't really wanna hear."

He frowned, "Well, he was an asshole, then."

"He was, but I loved him nonetheless," she smiled.

"You don't have too healthy of tastes there, Candy."

"No, no I suppose I don't."

"Question."

"Shoot."

"Is Candy your real name?" he asked.

She grinned, "In a way. My real name is Candace. But everyone said I was sweet, so Candy I became."

"Did Ryan call you sweet?"

"Not...not really," she blushed. "He thought doing things like that emasculated him or something."

"What a jerk," Ken rolled his eyes. "I call Ky sweet and beautiful all the fucking time and I'm still just as much of a man as I was before we started dating."

"You're gay," she raised her brow.

"Hey, I'm still a man. I got a dick, I'm a dude. No one can tell me otherwise," he said firmly.

"I guess," she mused. "I kinda wish he woulda been more like you...ya know? I loved him for his personality. He was a great person. He was just...too...I dunno."

"He thought that being a tough dude with a hot chick was better than being a wimp with the librarian sidekick."

"Right," she nodded.

Kenny chuckled, "Silly Ryan. He coulda had both."

"Not possible."

"Sure it is. Look at me and Ky," he smiled. "I play the tough, defensive, and arrogant boyfriend who still bends over backwards to make sure the kid is happy. Then, he's the incredibly attractive little nerd who keeps me in line. And we're doing pretty damn well if I do say so myself."

She looked at him for a long time before sighing. "Not fair," she mumbled. "That coulda been me."

He looked at her sympathetically. "Well...it doesn't always work. Relationships don't just happen, ya know? You need compromise from both ends."

"I always tried for him."

"But did he ever try for you?" he asked. "Candy, did he ever change his plans or dress up for you?"

"No...no, not really. But I know he cared about me...he just never said it."

"And there's the problem," he said softly. "I think you're stuck because you never heard him actually confess his feelings to you."

She sighed, "Well...not much I can do about it now," she said sadly.

Kenny paused for a moment and contemplated this before taking a deep breath and looking at her, "Well...there is one thing we could do. You'd have to be kinda imaginative, though," he said quietly.

She looked at him with a raised brow. "What?"

"Close your eyes," he stated softly. She looked at him uncertainly before doing as he asked. He sighed and walked up behind her, placing her hands on her shoulders and gently rubbing. "I love you," he said softly. She tensed slightly from her confusion before realizing his intent and melting into his touch. "You're beautiful," he said, planting a small kiss on her neck. "Smart," another kiss. "The sweetest damn girl I ever did meet," he whispered. He watched as her aura slowly changed and he smiled. "I love you, Candace."

"You too, Ryan," she whispered happily. Kenny gently grasped her chin and pulled her head over, meeting her lips softly. He didn't allow for their tongues to interact, but kept his facade passionate nonetheless. He continued to kiss her until she had faded away completely. He straightened up and wiped his mouth with his sleeve before a heavy sigh.

He loved the easy cases.

He took out his phone and shot Kyle a quick text. 'Candy's been taken care of.'

He only had to wait a few moments before a reply came, _'Really? Wow. Like, gone to Hell or did you just kick her out?'_

'To Hell.'

'_Not sure whether or not I should be this happy about it.'_

'Ha, you have every right.'

'_So what was her deal?'_

'Her boyfriend was a douchebag. He never told her that he loved her or was nice or anything.'

'_I see...how did you remedy this problem of hers?'_

Kenny froze a bit. Hm. '...'

'_...there better be more than dots to that statement.'_

'Promise you won't get mad?'

'_I dunno. Tell me and we'll see.'_

Kenny sighed heavily. Not good. 'I posed as Ryan. I said sweet nothings to her and kissed her. I swear nothing else happened'

There were a few moments of nothing and Kenny felt himself worrying before another text came back. _'Only a kiss?'_

'No tongue or nothing. And I'm going to go brush my teeth throughly.'

'_...okay.'_

'You're totally pissed.'

'_No, I'm not. I'm happy that she's out of your hair.'_

'And yours.'

'_Mostly yours. She hated me, so whatever. You didn't like....feel anything did you?'_

Kenny stared at the screen for a moment. Did he seriously just ask that? 'Ky...are you serious?'

'_Sorry. I'm not thinking straight, Gloria won't stop throwing boxes at me. I'll talk to you later. Have a good day.'_

'Love you.'

'_You, too.'_

Kenny sighed again and closed his phone, walking off to the bathroom and grabbing his toothbrush. He ran it under the sink before piling some paste onto it and scrubbing his mouth vigorously.

Nothing like kissing the dead to re-instill a gratefulness for dental hygiene.

He heard a knocking at the door and raised his brow. He kept scrubbing as he walked out towards it and opened it to reveal Stan looking back with a casual grin upon his face.

"Hey, Dude," he smiled.

"Hey," he mumbled through the paste. He stepped aside and let him in. "Ongge minutegg," he slurred through his full mouth as he rushed back to the bathroom. He spit out his cleanser and rinsed before strolling back out to greet him. "Sorry bout that."

"Heh, better than you never brushing at all," he smiled.

"True. You missed Ky, he's at the library."

"Perfect," he grinned.

"Uh...okay?..." Kenny looked at him suspiciously. "Please tell me you're not a newly un-closeted gay or something."

"You wish," he smirked. "Nah, I actually just wanted to see you, Dude."

"Oh. Something up?"

"No...not really," he shrugged.

"You need to talk about sex or something? I'm teaching your Super Best Friend everything I know so soon he can be your go-to guy for everything," he smirked.

"Well, given I already do that..." he laughed a bit, "Nah, I just wanted to hang with you."

"Okay...can I ask why?"

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "We've been friends for about seventeen years, yes?"

"Yeah," he nodded confusedly.

"Have you noticed that not once has it ever been just you and me hanging out? I mean, we always have either Ky or Cartman with us. I mean, even those two have hung out just the two of them. I figured maybe we should too," he shrugged.

"You're totally gay," he laughed.

"Okay, my mistake. Bad idea," he sighed.

"No, Dude, I think that's cool," he smiled brightly. "We'll have some manly time. I have no problems with that."

"You sure?"

"Hey, we're buds, right? We both love Ky but he doesn't always have to be there. What do ya wanna do?"

"Hm, I dunno," he shrugged. "Grab some grub and play some basketball or something?"

"Aw, are you taking me out on a date, Stanley?" he batted his lids.

"Fuck no, you're paying for your own damn food," he smirked.

"Ooh, I like 'em feisty," he winked. Stan just laughed and shook his head.

"Can we go?"

"One moment please," he requested.

"Need your mascara?"

"Well, I am going out with a quarterback...," he smiled sweetly. He walked over to the table and grabbed his notebook. He sat on his knees on the couch and wrote against the top of the back. Stan walked over and watched as he wrote.

_Candace Jones;....Born: July 28th, 1978;...Died: December 25th, 1995; Never received affection from love._

"Damn, I missed another one?" Stan asked as the paper glowed.

"By a few minutes," he smirked.

"Goddamn," he pouted.

He laughed a bit and patted his back. "Don't worry, Dude. I guarantee there'll be plenty of chances in the future." He closed the book and sighed. "We ready?" he asked with a smile.

"Sure, let's kick it," he grinned back. They hopped off the couch and shut the door behind them.

* * *

"You know, most people actually make it in the hoop when they play," Stan commented.

"Hey, shut up, Marsh," he stuck his tongue out and aimed again.

"Miss," he teased.

"Goddamn," he hissed.

"Guess dating the basketball captain doesn't really make a difference, does it?" he snickered.

"I never got the time to practice," he whined. "I was always dead in case you've forgotten."

"Oh, that's your excuse for everything," he waved dismissively. Ken passed him the ball and he dribbled it around a bit and sighed. "So."

"So."

"When are we taking that vacation?" he asked.

"ASAP," he said. "Seriously, me and Ky both desperately need it."

"Yeah...he kinda talked to me about the party..." he trailed off awkwardly. Kenny had to bite his tongue. He was kinda hoping this topic would be avoided.

"Um, yeah. So I heard." he said, a bitter bite to his words though he didn't mean to do so.

"I'm guessing you heard his end of the conversation?" he asked quietly.

"Well, duh," he rolled his eyes.

He stopped dribbling and looked at him guiltily. "Dude, can I speak in my defense?"

"Free country," he shrugged.

"I didn't mean to make it sound like I don't give a crap or something," he replied. "I was working through a hangover at the time...and Ky isn't exactly Mr. Tough Guy but he was talking about hunting down Craig and wringing his throat...and I don't blame him. I had to sober up a bit, but I started to see his side of things a little better. But still, I wouldn't want him standing up to Tucker like that, no matter who he was defending. The kids gotten hurt enough. He doesn't need to be raped again or something."

He nodded, "Yeah, I basically told him the same thing."

"I really didn't mean to do that, it wasn't supposed to come out like that."

"Dude, it's fine, I've had hangovers and I worry about his physical being as much as you do. I understand."

"It's really not fine," he frowned. "I'd be pissed out of my mind if we were switched."

"You have a shorter temper than me, too," he shrugged. "Look, I'm not exactly happy with what happened, but the only thing that actually mattered to me was Kyle forgiving me. And he did. So things are cool."

"No, Ken, things aren't cool. That jackass snuck fucking date rape drugs into your drink!"

Kenny froze. "What?!"

He nodded. "Clyde called me and told me that Craig had pills in his pocket, they fell out when he threw his pants in the bedroom."

"Unnecessary detail," he muttered. "So that fucker drugged me?"

"Yeah."

"Why would he do that?" he questioned.

"So he'd win easier?" he shrugged. "Tucker's a lightweight. Kyle's never drank and he could probably outdo him."

Kenny bit his cheek, trying to hold back his response that Kyle had indeed drank before, but that didn't seem to be an appropriate topic at the time. "Well...can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Did you know that he was like, with me?"

He shook his head. "No. You were out for awhile but I made sure that Tucker stayed put. Wends called me later though after you regained a bit of consciousness and she needed my help because she was sick. I told Cartman to watch after you, but apparently the fatass failed."

"I dunno...I mean...maybe he got Craig to stay in the house?" he shrugged. "I'd rather he get me when I can't remember anything than him go after Ky when he's still a bit edgy about things like that."

"Well, I hope so in a way. But still, he shouldn't have done that to you."

"No. No he shouldn't have," he sighed. "Oh well. It's done. Everyone's just fine. I didn't hurt or anything, so whatever," he shrugged.

"You are too much like Kyle," he rolled his eyes. "I think you should tell police."

"Yes. I'm going to run to the police and say, 'Hi! I'm Ken McCormick. I'm 18 and I was raped. How you ask? Well, a bunch of us seniors were at a party getting drunk off our asses. Before I was buzzed, someone challenged me to a whiskey-drinking contest. Apparently he slipped some drugs into mine though and thirteen shots in I passed out.'"

"Fourteen," Stan corrected.

"What the fuck ever. Point is I really don't want to go to jail myself for drinking."

He nodded, "Yeah...I guess I kinda see your point...want me to kick his ass for you?"

Ken smirked, "nah. I'm fine. So long as he keeps away from me and Ky, I think that just letting this pass me by is the best course of action."

"I guess...," he trailed off, shooting towards the hoop. It landed straight through the middle with a gentle swish.

"How do you keep doing that?" Ken pouted.

"Talent."

"Yeah, playing with balls requires quite a level of skill," he smirked.

"Would you have said that had Kyle been here?"

"Duh," he rolled his eyes. "I'm still the perverted idiot I was. I just happen to have a Jewboy sidekick with me now."

He snickered, "yeah, I'm sure that he appreciates your humor to no end."

"He's still a guy," he smiled softly. "He has appreciation for dirty talk just like the rest of us. He just gets embarrassed a little easier since he was so sheltered."

A little moment of silence passed over them, "Do you...do you really think his mom took his insulin away?" Stan asked softly.

Kenny took a deep contemplative breath and nodded, "it certainly wouldn't surprise me."

"No wonder he was so miserable," he mumbled.

"Yeah...but he's doing better."

"How's therapy going?"

"Fairly well, actually," he smiled a bit brighter. "He still doesn't like it but he's cooperating and that's all that matters. The nightmares are a little less frequent and he's only had a few freak outs over the last few weeks...I think he's finally starting to get just a little bit better."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear that, Dude."

"I think I've got a pretty good idea," he grinned back. He felt his pocket vibrate and heard a familiar tone starting. He reached into his pocket and looked at his phone. "Speak of the angel," he said softly before flipping it open. "Hey babe," he greeted.

_"Hey, Dude. You home?"_

"Me and Stan are hanging out."

_"Oh, okay. I was confused as hell when you didn't answer the house," _he laughed softly. _"What're you up to?"_

"Playing with balls," he smirked.

"Dude, grow up!" Stan complained. Both Kenny and Kyle snickered lightly.

_"Well, I'll let you go then. But I'm stopping by the store on the way home. Whaddya want for dinner?"_

Kenny looked up thoughtfully. "Hm. I dunno. What sounds good?"

_"Hmm...pizza maybe?"_

He smiled. "Good idea. I'll see you at home?"

_"Of course. I may leave my shift a little early. We're pretty damn slow over here."_

"Well you're in a library on a Monday during summer break...it's not gonna be the most exciting place of your life.

_"Nope, you're not here so it's pretty dull."_

"Aw, my sweet little Jew," he cooed.

He giggled lightly, _"Alrighty, have fun with Stan."_

"Oh tons," he smiled.

_"Love ya."_

"Love ya more."

_"Not possible," _Kenny could hear his smirk as the boy hung up. He did the same, his grin still prominent. He looked over and saw Stan staring at him in interest.

"What?"

"That's just weird," he shrugged.

"What is?"

"Your whole 'love ya' spiel and nicknames and all that."

"Don't you and Wendy do that?"

"Well yea...but Wends is a chick, I have to. It's like, some unwritten code or something."

"Well, me and Ky do that with each other. We love each other, so why not say it?"

"Just doesn't seem manly or something."

"Dude, we're gay," he chuckled. "We're not the most manly of men."

He snickered, "True." he looked at the basketball and tossed it lightly in his hands with a small smile on his face.

"What's up, Dude?"

"I dunno," he shrugged, looking up at him. "It's just been a...different past few months, ya know? So much has fucking been going on."

"Don't I know it," he smirked.

"I keep wondering about what Damien said," he stated softly.

"About what?"

"Myself being someone who keeps Ky alive...it just seems so weird, ya know?"

"How so? I see it. You're basically his other half," he laughed a bit.

"Nah, that's you now," he smiled. "I don't know. I feel like I cause him more trouble than anything."

"Why?"

"Well, think about it. I left him when he came out to me. I always left him behind for Wends. I constantly made fun of him for studying so much when I didn't even know that he didn't have a choice in the matter...," he looked away and sighed. "I beat the ever-living shit out of him..., I'm a pretty shitty best friend," he muttered.

"Ky doesn't think so," he said softly. "He thinks your a fucking god, Dude. He's just glad that you're still there after all these years."

"You're the one he worships," he raised his brow amusedly.

"Well, ask him to suck your balls and he'd probably do it," he shrugged.

"Dude, sick!"

"How? Wendy does it, doesn't she?" he asked innocently.

"Wendy isn't my best friend...or a guy!"

"Eh, still a mouth," he smirked.

"Dude, that's so wrong of you," he shuddered lightly.

"That's me for ya," he grinned sheepishly. Stan laughed and shook his head lightly.

"You're impossible."

"Ky tells me that all the time."

"Then it must be true."

"Heh, I bet." he smiled. "So what inspired this sudden want to hang with the likes of me?"

"Honest answer or the cheesy one?"

"Honesty is preferred if you don't mind."

He shrugged, "my parents were yelling at me so I decided I needed to get out of the house."

"What about?"

"My future, what else?" he sighed. "They don't like the idea of me going into sports for my profession," he shot the ball up and once again it sailed smoothly through the basket.

"Well, fuck em," he said. "It's what you wanna do. You're good at it so why not utilize your talents?"

"Doesn't matter to them," he sighed. "I'm wasting my resources apparently. Telling me that they spent all this money on textbooks and that me wanting to just 'play around' was a waste of everything they've given me."

"Harsh."

"Yeah. Tell me about it," he grumbled. "I mean, I totally see their point in a way, but if it were up to me, they wouldn't of had to pay for the damn books."

"Stupid government."

"Agreed."

"Well tell 'em if you make it big, you can pay em back with your first paycheck," he shrugged.

"Key word there is 'if', Ken."

"At least you have an aspiration," he shrugged, catching the ball as Stan tossed it towards him.

"Well, Ky told me you got that job at the psychiatry place, right?"

"He told ya that huh?"

"Oh god, he was so fucking proud," he laughed softly. "You impressed the living hell out of him."

"Yeah, he showed me that night," he smirked.

"Ew," he stuck his tongue out. "Point is you're finally finding something you're interested in."

"I guess. Gets more money in the house anyways," he shrugged. He shot the ball and they watched as he slid into the net.

"Bout damn time," Stan smirked.

"Shut up, I'm damn proud," he beamed, he turned back to Stan and smiled gently at him. "You wanna kick it at our place tonight since your parents are spazzing?"

He looked up thoughtfully for a moment and smiled back at him. "Sure, why not?"

"Cool," he grinned.

"Wanna call it quits?" he asked. "You kinda suck at this."

"I really suck at a few other things too. Just ask Ky," he smirked. Stan groaned and smacked him upside the head.

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

"If you wanna talk about assholes..."

"Stop!" he pled.

Kenny broke into laughter and slapped his back playfully. "Aw, come on, Marsh. Lighten up."

They began to walk off the court and Stan rolled his eyes. "Yeah. Lighten up. Why don't you grow up?"

"But that's no fun," he pouted.

"No, but it keeps me sane. Poor Ky's gonna be corrupted out of his mind."

"Too late," he smiled proudly. "I got him right at my level."

"Not possible," he chuckled.

"Well, he's a good student, nonetheless."

Stan laughed louder and Kenny joined him as they walked down the street. They looked at the sidewalk as they continued to move.

"Okay, can I ask you a question?" Stan asked.

"Of course. Doesn't mean I'll answer, though."

"Well, you've never really answered me before, so it's about damn time you did."

"Okay, what?"

He looked up and they met eyes. "Why Kyle?"

"Why does this bother you so much?"

"It doesn't bother me. I'm just...curious."

"I told you that he makes me feel a bunch and that I love him...what more do you want?"

"Well, there had to be more beforehand," he shrugged.

"Well, I always considered him my best friend," he shrugged back. "I mean, I told him everything. He was the only one who knew the nights my parents were going fucking insane and he always took me in."

"But what is it about him?" he insisted.

"I...I don't know, Dude. What is it about Wendy that you love?"

He smiled warmly. "Everything."

"Oh, that's such a pussy answer," he rolled his eyes.

"Well it's true!"

"You called her a bitch not too long ago! And you guys always break up!"

"Well...we have some...disagreements, but still. We're together. I love the way she talks...the way she has such passion about things she's involved in, just her in general." he said.

Kenny sighed and rolled his eyes. "What do I love about Ky?" he asked himself, looking up towards the sky. "I love how he's so...different. He's so smart and funny and cute...I dunno, he's just not like me," he shrugged.

"I dunno. You two act a lot like each other. You're both hopeless romantics. You both tend to find yourselves in great deals of trouble. And you're both way too fucking forgiving."

"Well, those are just basic traits," he replied. "He's just so unlike what I'm used to. He cares beyond what I ever thought possible, ya know? He makes me feel...happy. I mean, I've never been as cleaned up as I am now. He'd never try to hurt me...I don't know, Stan. He's just...mine," he smiled. "He belongs to me and I belong to him. And I'm happy like that."

"You think you own him?" he raised his brow.

"In all technical-ness, I do," he nodded before looking back at the ground. "After he died...when I got him back, part of the deal was that his life is dependent on the fact that I keep doing my job. He's mine. He told me that himself and he sealed the deal for both of us. I kinda wish it wasn't like that, but it is..."

"Well...what if you break up?"

"Let's not think like that, hm?"

"Trying to be Mr. Optimism, are we?"

"Trying. Am I succeeding?"

"Heh, sure." he laughed softly. "As long as you don't hurt him, I guess it doesn't matter what makes you two compatible. Though I must admit that I'm going to keep trying to see it."

"Good luck. I can't see it either."

"Well, there you go. You have a mission," he smirked.

"Nah, the mystery is nice. Where's the fun of a puzzle if you buy it put together?"

Stan blinked at him before laughing again. "You even talk like him now!"

"How so?"

"You're like, making analogies," he smiled at him.

"Huh. I didn't even notice," he laughed softly. "Well, it's not a bad thing to be more like Kyle, right?"

"Depends on what elements you focus on."

"Brainy, independent, cute, innocent...what's so bad about that? "

"Secretive, depressed, half-way down the road to the asylum," he shrugged. "there's a lot about him that I'm not too happy with."

He sighed heavily, "okay. So there's a few problems. But...he's been through a lot. More than either of us could ever imagine. We just...we just need to remember that."

"Can't forget," he sighed with him. "I see him and it's like, all of a sudden I'm hit with this guilt train. I know he doesn't blame me for anything, but I can't help feeling like I'm at fault for it, ya know?"

"I do," he nodded. "I mean, I hear him crying, Stan. It hurts like a bitch. I just want to be able to take it all away, but I can't. All we can do is remind him that we're always there for him," he shrugged.

"Still..."

"Dude, Ky hates it when we feel bad. We need to stop," he said softly.

He took a deep breath. "Yeah. It's hard though."

"It is. But he's making it. So we have to with him."

"We will," he smiled softly. "But you more than anyone has to. He trusts you and relies on you more than anyone else in his life."

"Yeah, I know," he grinned. "Gotta love it."

"It is nice, isn't it?" he looked up towards the sky thoughtfully.

"Oh you have no idea what it's like for someone like me."

"Whaddya mean?"

He laughed softly to himself. "This is something coming from someone who's spent their whole life being completely independent. I couldn't rely on my parents, my brother and sister didn't like me too much...I didn't have anyone, Dude...having Kyle so reliant on me...a lot of people would find it annoying, but I couldn't love it any more if I tried."

"Really?"

"Really," he nodded. "I like seeing that I can make him feel better. Makes me feel good," he shrugged.

"Well, good," he smiled wild. "I guess he kinda lucked out, didn't he? I wouldn't have been able to find any way to help him without having a freak out myself."

"Heh, I had one not too long ago. But he was right there to help me back onto my feet."

"Wow. Did he go with you?"

"You mean freak? Nah. He pulled me together and took me home and made sure I was okay. He didn't let himself get emotional. You know he doesn't do that."

"Well, to an extent. We never really had breakdowns around each other like that. Not to such huge measures at least. I mean, yeah, we had some tears fall and we always helped each other, but we haven't had a situation where one of us is literally falling down in tears and screaming in fear," he responded sadly.

"Well...maybe one day we'll get him past that, hm?" he smiled at him hopefully.

"Yeah. He's a tough kid, he'll be fine."

"Yeah, and I bet that this vacation of ours will make it all the better. He just needs out of South Park for awhile."

"I think everyone needs out of here every now and then," he chuckled.

"Damn straight," Ken snickered. He stretched towards the sky and yawned, "Ah well. Things are falling back into place finally. Toby's out of his hair, the kids aren't quite so hateful, Mitch is in jail, life goes on."

"Speaking of which, you guys talk to that Oliver guy any?"

"Eh, not really. He knows most of what happened from Damien and Kyle doesn't like talking about it. And I can't remember much, so ya know..."

He sighed, "Well, hopefully that'll go well."

"We can only hope," he smiled softly. "Enough about myself and my lovely Kosher boy. What's happenin' with you and Miss Testaburger?"

"Couldn't be better," he smiled. "Same as usual. I love you and all that jazz."

"Hm. You make it sound so...dull."

"Well, whaddya want me to say?"

"How's the sex?" he grinned perversely.

He smirked, "amazing thank you."

"Not as great as mine and Kyle's."

He rolled his eyes. "Well sorry. No offense, Ken, but you've had a bit more experience, you probably have a lot more ideas than myself and Wends."

"Not necessarily," he smiled. "I'm actually rather spontaneous lately. Ky just enjoys the ride...in more ways than one."

"AW DUDE!" he scrunched his face and pushed his shoulder. Kenny stumbled to the side laughing. He went ahead of Stan and walked backwards staring at him wildly.

"What's the matter, Stanny? Can't take a little sex lingo?"

"Not about my two best friends, no!"

Kenny smiled, his _two_ best friends. Nice ring to it. "Mmm, you know what they say, Marsh. Those who don't know shouldn't speak."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Oh. You can figure it out for yourself, Tough Guy," he smirked.

"Come here, McCormick!" he shouted, running towards him.

Ken laughed and turned, hurrying away from him and towards the apartment. As they sprinted down the sidewalk, Kenny couldn't help but feel a light feeling in his heart. He had more than one best friend.

Fucking awesome.

* * *

Stan and Kenny sat side by side on the couch, duking it out in Halo after a few hours had gone by.

"Dude, fucking cover me!" Stan yelled.

"Kinda busy!" he replied, fiddling wildly with the controls. They turned their heads as the door opened, watching as Kyle quickly slid into the room and shut the door behind him.

"Hey, dude," Stan greeted.

Kyle looked at the two of them and quickly walked over, throwing some bags behind the couch. "I'm not here," he said hurriedly before scurrying into the bedroom and slamming the door.

They blinked after him for a bit. "Okay...," Kenny said slowly.

"What the hell is he doing?"

"Maybe he has to jack off or something," Ken shrugged.

"Dude, stop," he complained.

"Sorry." they watched as the door flew open a second time, seeing Bebe come stumbling into the room.

"Where is he?" she demanded.

"Who?" Stan asked.

"Don't play dumb. Where's Kyle?!"

"Why?"

"I need him," she whined.

"But why?!" Kenny asked. "What the hell's wrong? Why are you so upset?"

She sniffed. "Me and Butters are having troubles."

"What does Kyle have to do with anything about that?"

"Well, he gave good advice to Wends and now I need some too!"

"Ky isn't a freaking hotline," Kenny protested.

"What kind of troubles?" Stan asked softly.

She threw up her hands in frustration. "He doesn't wanna share our relationship with anyone! I mean, it was one thing about the sex, but trying to shut off all communications in public?! What the fuck is up with that?!"

"Well...it's Butters," Ken shrugged. "He's sheltered."

"But I wanna let everyone know that he's mine," she said firmly. "Does he not wanna be with me or something?!"

"Of course he does," he said. "We were discussing it the other day. But he doesn't like attention and you know that."

"But other girls are flirting with him," she growled. "He's fucking MINE."

"We know," Stan defended. "Have you told Butters that?"

"Yes, and he just said 'oh hamburgers' and made some excuse to get away from me!"

Kenny sighed and massaged his forehead. "Dude, look. Butters respects you, you need to respect him."

"Coming from someone who fucked someone who's name isn't Kyle Broflovski," she said angrily. Kenny and Stan glared at her. "That's right, I heard all about your little fling, Kenny McCormick. How dare you cheat on Kyle!" she pointed her finger at him accusingly. "After all he's done for you? Is that any way to treat him?! You're lucky I don't go tell him about it myself!"

"He already knows," he growled through his teeth.

She blinked at him for a moment before her eyes narrowed. "Are you threatening him?"

"What? Why?!"

"Because Kyle wouldn't stay with a cheater, Kenny! Not unless he was being forced to! Just what are you doing to him?!"

He groaned, "I didn't cheat on him Bebe," he said.

"Then what do you call fucking Craig? Hm?"

"He fucked me!"

"Either way, it doesn't make the situation any-," she paused. "Wait. You let Craig top? You won't even let Kyle do that!"

He groaned again and shoved his head into his palms. "Bebe," Stan started. "Craig didn't give him a choice as to whether or not he was topping. He kinda slipped some roofies into Ken's drink."

"And I have let Kyle top, just so you know!" Ken rejoined the conversation with a snarl. Bebe blinked her eyes, and they started returning to their regular soft grey hue.

"You...he...he really did that?" she whispered. "Why? Why would Craig do that?"

"He's an asshole, that's why," Stan growled.

"And how did you know about that whole thing?" Kenny demanded.

"Well...a few people heard you at the party...and now everyone knows," she said softly.

"Aw fuck!" he groaned. "I didn't cheat on him!" he pleaded.

She nodded at him. "Okay, I believe you...but where is Kyle?"

"Not here."

"Bull," she narrowed her eyes again. "He came in here, I saw him! Can I please see him?"

"Look, he doesn't want to play relationship guru, alright?" Stan intervened.

"I don't need him for that! I need him because I need something else, alright? I bet he's in the bedroom," she muttered. "Kyle, get out here." They stared at the door, watching as nothing happened. Bebe growled and stomped off towards the entrance. She whipped it open and stormed inside as Ken and Stan just watched. She came trailing back out, dragging him behind her. He just looked dazed as she whipped her arm around and he went back into the floor.

"Um. Hi?" he blinked.

She glared at him. "Kyle Broflovski, you listen to me. You need to get your toned ass into a hospital RIGHT NOW!"

"Why? What happened?" Kenny asked, gazing over at Kyle. His eyes wandered towards the boy's arms, relieved when he didn't see any signs of markings. Kyle caught his glance and glared a bit at him and he shrugged sheepishly.

Bebe looked at the other blonde and sighed. "I found him leaning against a tree in the park. He stumbled around a bunch and blacked out for like, ten minutes! He won't go see a goddamn doctor though!"

Ken shot his head around and dove towards the boy. "Dude, are you okay?"

"I'm fine!"

"Fine people don't just randomly pass out, Kyle!" Bebe lectured.

"I'm tired! My blood sugar's probably just low! Goddammit, get off my back!"

"I'm worried about you," she frowned. "You're changing."

"No, I'm not! I'm...I'm...," he took a deep breath and stood himself up. "Look. I'm sorry, Bebe, okay? I'm just...really really stressed right now and I just haven't been in the greatest of health lately."

"Go to a doctor," she pled.

"No. I don't need one. I...I need sleep. I just need some sleep."

"Then get some," she said softly. She stepped towards him and embraced him. "I don't wanna lose you again, Kyle," her voice cracked. "I...I really can't..."

He sighed and held her back. "You're not. I'm just tired. Go home and talk to Butters, will ya? Work out your own problems."

"Do me a favor?" she sniffed.

"What?"

"Call me in the morning?" she asked. "I...I just need to know..."

"Alright, alright," he sighed. "You're worrying over nothing, I promise." Bebe sniffed again and pulled him closer.

"I can't lose you again," she repeated.

"You're not going to," he assured her. "I'm right here."

"But you're so sick!"

"I'm diabetic, Dude. This happens every now and then. I just need to keep a closer eye on my blood sugar, alright?"

"And I'll help him," Ken added softly. Bebe looked over at him and smiled softly. She pulled back and gazed up at the redhead.

"You sure you're okay?"

"I will be," he smiled. "I'm just worn out. I'll jump back up soon, I promise." She kissed his cheek and broke away from him.

"Call?"

"I will," he nodded.

She smiled at him sweetly. "Thank you. Bye, boys," she waved before walking out of the apartment and closing the door softly. The three of them looked at each other for a moment.

"You passed out again?" Stan asked.

"Yeah. I'm going to bed," he muttered, walking away from them. Ken stared after him and felt his heart breaking. He'd never been so despondent.

"He's lying," he said softly.

"Yeah. Go figure out what's wrong," Stan waved him away.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I got Halo," he smirked. "Go cheer him up."

Kenny smiled and got up to walk into the bedroom. He shut the door behind him and locked it before turning to see Kyle lying on the bed with his pillow slammed over his head. He frowned and walked over, sitting on his side. "Ky?" he asked.

"What?"

"What's wrong?"

"I don't feel well."

"No, you're upset about something," he gently pried away the pillow, leaving Kyle's face still glued to the sheets.

"I'm fine."

"You're lying again," he frowned. "Ky, come on. Tell me what's wrong," he urged softly. Kyle looked up at him with shining eyes.

"I...I...my parents...they were in the library today," he croaked.

"What happened?"

He sat up and wiped his eyes with a sniffle. "They...they didn't know that I worked there. And I didn't know it was them until they were in front of me to check out some stuff. I looked at the books...and they were law books, Ken," he cried. "He's....he's really gonna do it! He's gonna find a way to let him go free! I...I can't do this!"

"Yes, you can," he said firmly, grasping his wrists. "You are Kyle fucking Broflovski and nothing brings you down, got it? All you have to do is tell the truth and they're done for!"

"You've never seen my father in court," he whispered. "He's fucking ruthless! And...and just the subject matter...I can't tell that to my family, Kenny."

"Fuck them and their judgments," he spat. "You need to."

"It's just so hard, ya know?" Ken watched as some tears rolled down his cheeks and he gingerly wiped them away. "They...they looked so...disgusted with me," he cried. "My mom just walked out of the building and my dad demanded that someone else check him out...I just....I don't know what I did," he sobbed.

"Nothing. They're just douchebags. You're too good for them," he said softly, wiping at his cheek still.

"To you I am," he replied. "But to them...I've disgraced everything! I'm the black sheep of the Broflovskis!...I...I'm nothing more than an inconvenience to them!"

"Oh well," he said softly. "Maybe. You know what you are to me though?"

"Your boyfriend," he sniffed.

He shook his head and leaned in towards him, touching lips with him softly. "You're absolutely everything. You're the reason I want to wake up. You're the reason I love going to bed, because you're in my arms and in my dreams. You've made me such a better person. I love you, Kyle Broflovski. Your family doesn't know what you've done for the world, they haven't seen that world yet. Because you're _my_ world." Kyle stared at him for a moment before leaning up and meeting lips with him.

Kenny slowly pushed him backwards onto the bed and leaned atop him, running his fingers through his wild curls and inhaling his familiar scent. He broke away and nipped at his jawline, feeling Kyle slowly melting into his touch. His hand stroked downwards towards the boy's pant line, only to be halted by fragile fingers.

"No, not now," Kyle said softly.

Kenny looked at him and smiled gently. He pulled Kyle back up and briefly pressed lips with him again. "As you wish," he murmured. He sighed and looked into the heartbroken emerald orbs. "I love you, you know that, right?"

He smiled back a bit. "Of course I do. I'm just...upset."

"Don't be. It doesn't suit your pretty face," he stroked his cheek gently. He pulled him into his chest and listened as Kyle breathed deeply and nuzzled into him. "Now...," he pecked his head. "why'd you pass out?"

"I...I really don't know," he said. "I took my insulin this morning...maybe I'm just having a low sugar day. It happens every now and again."

"Well, let's take care of it," he smiled. "C'mon, we'll get you some soda and give ya a boost."

Kyle smiled meekly at him as he gradually led him off the bed and out the door.

"Done already?" Stan asked, still enthralled in his game. "Not much endurance, I see."

"Coming from the kid puke from a kiss," Kenny retorted.

"Not for years."

"Still happened," he smirked. He led Kyle over and sat him down beside Stan. "You chill out here, Ky."

"I have to make dinner," he protested.

"I'll order pizza," he argued. "Sit down and relax, I'll get your drink. He kissed his head before grabbing the drink." he kissed head before grabbing the bags from behind the couch and heading into the kitchen.

As he put their groceries away, Kenny's mind was racing. Kyle hadn't had episodes like this in the past, so what was going on? Was this trail hitting him so hard that he was physically feeling it?

His eyes wandered towards the medicine cabinet and he bit his lip. He walked over to it and opened it up, grabbing Kyle's insulin kit from it. He peeked out through the inlet, seeing Stan and Kyle chatting. He quickly hid from their sight and opened the kit up, taking out the bottle of medicine. He swished its contents around before grabbing a piece of paper and a pen from beside the fridge.

_June 22nd: 18 doses_

He shook his head at himself but quickly straightened up. This was for Kyle. It was necessary.

He quickly shut the case and placed it back into the cupboard. He grabbed Kyle's drink and shoved the note into his pocket before smoothing himself out and walking out to words Stan and his Jew nonchalantly.

* * *

_A/N: Next chapter is vacation time. Yeas._

_Kind of a lame-ass chapter, but whatever. Candy was easy to write off with the story line my friend gave me. Too easy. Next ghost may be a bit tougher, but we'll see =)_

_Thanks for R&Ring as always, loves. It makes my day =D_

_...or night. Or whatever time it happens to be..._

_Rambling's fun =)_

_(And yes, Stan and Cartman will finally see a ghost next time XD)_


	41. Never Have I Ever

_A/N: Ugh. College visitation. I got a few hours to kill in the car ride, so I may as well use it wisely =D_

_This is filler central. And you know my fillers, almost all dialogue. But they're fun to write and you all tend to enjoy them =)_

_Enjoy their trip to the land of the sun...or is that Florida?...I dunno. Whatever._

_Enjoy it nonetheless!_

_And on a sidenote, Possession got it's first fanart! ~sniff~ Thank you to _Kiminaru _for drawing this scene from last chapter: ramen-breath_. _deviant art__. com/art/You-Called-Us-a-WHAT-146648934_

_(Take out the spaces!)_

_Thanks again, Kiminaru and now on with 41!!!!!_

* * *

'_The Mid-West farmer's daughters really make you feel alright_

_And the Northern girls with the way they kiss_

_They keep their boyfriends warm at night_

_I wish they all could be California_

_I wish they all could be California_

_I wish they all could be California girls'_

"Cartman, shut the fuck up!" Kyle pled, smacking his head into the car window.

He scoffed, "You just have no appreciation for classical music, Kahl."

"It's fag music, that's what it is," Stan replied.

"Then Jewboy above all should appreciate it," he smirked. Kyle turned in his seat and flipped him off. Kenny snickered and leaned back in his seat.

"Are we there yet?" he asked Stan.

"Almost," he replied. "I can't find the damn condos on the map, though."

Kyle grabbed said map from Stan's lap and quickly scanned it. "Take a left up at the next light," he directed. "Then it looks like we go on for about a mile before we take a...right and then it's gonna be about another mile and then we'll hit the condominium."

"Sweet," Cartman grinned. "Dude, it's about damn time I got a vacation."

"Oh yes, you live such a strenuous life, Fatass," Kyle rolled his eyes, still eyeing the map.

"Ay, I have to take care of my house you know," he defended.

"So what?" Kyle said. "Your mom does most of the work for you. Me and Ken have our own house to upkeep, have to make our own food, and have jobs on the side!"

"Not to mention all the time we have to find to spend on sex!" Ken added, earning him a glare from Kyle. He just smiled merrily at him as the redhead shook his head with a small smirk.

"See?" Cartman said. "You have plenty of spare time if you're able to find time to fuck."

"Unless Ken isn't very long-lasting," Stan sniggered.

Cartman burst into laughter along with him, "Good point. I guess a quick two minutes isn't much to sacrifice for the two of them."

"Hey, fuck off," Kyle frowned.

"Oh, like I care," Ken waved dismissively. "They'll hear just how long I can last over this week," he smirked.

"I personally vote that they not be allowed to share a room," Cartman spoke. "Any followers? Say aye."

"Aye!" Stan voted quickly.

"All opposed?" Ken asked.

"Nay," he and Kyle responded together.

"See? This is why we need another person to hang with," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Easy solution," Ken grinned. He took his phone from out his pocket and shot a quick text.

"Who are you talking to?" Cartman raised his brow.

"An impartial voter," he smiled back. A few minutes passed until his phone vibrated again. He quickly scanned it and chuckled.

"Who did you ask?" Stan questioned.

"Bebe. Her and Wendy both vote me and Ky get our room. We just have to videotape anything naughty we do."

Kyle's face scrunched up. "What's wrong with those two?"

"Nothing. They think you're hot," Ken shrugged. He sent her a quick message back and closed his phone.

"What did you tell her?" Kyle asked.

He smiled. "Said that I'd find a way to make you consider it. I wouldn't mind a tape of us, would you?"

"I very much would mind it!"

"Why?"

"Ken! What a stupid thing to think about! What if you fucking lost it or something?!"

"Blackmail," Cartman grinned viciously.

"See?!" Kyle pled his case. "We're not fucking porn stars, Ken."

"But we could be. We could make a good deal of money, too," he leaned back and stroked his chin in thought. "A hot little redhead getting slammed by a hoodrat? Fucking sweet concept..." He looked back towards his flustered boyfriend and smiled. "C'mon, Ky. I think it'd be awesome."

"I don't care how 'awesome' you think it would be, I'm not about to risk what little of a good reputation I have on something like that."

"Please?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"YES."

He pouted. "Please?" he asked again.

Kyle groaned and rolled his eyes. "If I say I'll think about it, will you leave it be?"

"Perhaps. If you actually think about it," he grinned wildly.

"Whatever. Sure. I'll think on it," he gave up and turned back around in his seat with crossed arms.

"Yea!" Kenny smiled. "Footage of my beautiful little Jew all for myself!"

"Except for Bebe and Wends," Stan smirked. "They'll run over with popcorn then probably lock you in a room with a one-way mirror so they can watch you live on top of the tape."

"Dude, that's so wrong I don't even know where to begin," Kyle grimaced.

"I would totally do it," Ken leaned back further and grinned again.

"Of course you would," Cartman rolled his eyes. "Don't think that Mr. Sensitivity over there would be too happy with it though."

"Hey, we haven't just had sex in the bed, ya know," he frowned.

"Ken, don't." Kyle said firmly.

"Well, you haven't outside the house in front of people," Cartman shrugged.

"What? You watching us or something, Cartman?" Kyle asked.

"No, but I know you and your sheltered little Jew mind."

"We haven't just had sex in the house, Cartman," Ken replied. "And we did it in a rather public place once."

"Dude, we don't need to know about it," Stan interjected.

"But it was awesome," he smiled.

"Ken, please don't?" Kyle pled.

"No, no, no, I wanna hear this," Cartman interrupted. "Just where was this?"

Ken opened his mouth to respond but a hand slapped over his mouth. He followed the arm to find Kyle on the end of it, glaring at him. "Kenneth, I said don't," he warned. He gulped and nodded at his death-stare, watching as Kyle slowly retracted his arm and sat back around in his seat. He looked at Cartman and shrugged, turning back himself.

"God, you _are_ whipped," Cartman laughed at him.

"He's not whipped," Kyle rolled his eyes. "He's just behaving."

"Thank you, Master," Kenny said pathetically. Kyle looked back at him with a raised brow and he smiled and waved at him. The Jew chuckled a bit before turning back around. They watched as they pulled into the lot for the condominium and their mouths all formed into smiles.

"Holy fuck, Stan. I love your parents," Ken breathed as they looked at the size of the complex.

"Let's go find our room," Kyle suggested. They all nodded and clambered out of Cartman's mom's Grand Prix. Ken and Ky got out and stretched before Ken leaned down and kissed him sweetly. "What was that for?" Kyle asked.

"It's been hours since I kissed you," he shrugged with a grin.

He laughed softly and kissed his cheek back. "Mm, too long," he agreed.

"Alright, Fags, come get your shit," Cartman directed. They looked at each other and smirked before turning to gather their bags from the trunk. They hauled their loads up the stairs, looking for their place.

"Hm...45," Stan looked from a paper back up to the room in front of them. "This is it," he smiled, grabbing the key from his pocket and shoving it in the door. He pushed it open and they all stepped inside, their smiles still prominent.

"Holy shit, your grandparents must be loaded," Cartman looked around in disbelief at the size of the condo. They were standing in a large main room with a couch and two chairs in front of a TV hanging above a computer desk. The kitchen was separated from the room with a long bar, filled with small appliances, shined to a gleam.

"Yeah, basically," Stan snickered. "They've had this place for awhile. I just have to be really nice to them at Christmas for them letting us use it."

"Awesome," Kyle said. "Remind me to buy them something, too."

"I doubt they want yarmulkes, Kahl," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Fuck off, Fatboy!"

"Okay, moving on," Stan said firmly. "Who's taking what rooms?"

"Me and Ky call this one!" Kenny pointed towards the room with the single bed. Stan and Cartman looked at the other room, containing double beds and Stan sighed.

"Is there any way I can talk you out of fucking on there?"

"Probably not. You have no idea about Kenny's goddamn libido," Kyle shook his head.

"Oh admit it, you love it just as much as I do," Ken smiled.

"I'm not dignifying that with a response."

He chuckled and swung his arm around the boy, kissing his cheek quickly. "You don't have to, your eyes say it all."

"Can you tell what they're saying now?" he challenged, looking up at him.

"'Fuck off and shut up before I kill you?'" he guessed.

"Oh, Kenny, you do know me," he cooed jokingly.

"Alright," Stan looked at his watch. "I say we unpack, that'll take about a half hour...then I say we go grab some dinner. That work?"

"Whatever you say, Dude, you're the chauffeur," Ken shrugged. They all grabbed their bags and headed into their rooms. Ken and Kyle threw their bags onto the bed and started sorting through their clothes.

"Dude, take your insulin," Ken told him as the kit came out of his bag.

"I'm fine for a bit, Ken," he replied.

"Take the damn medicine, Kyle," he said. "I'm not gonna stop bugging you until you do so."

Kyle sighed and opened the kit, quickly removing his syringe and injecting the serum into his forearm. Kenny watched intently as the metal smoothly slid in and out of the boy's skin.

"Happy?" he asked.

"Very," he smiled as Kyle placed the needle into a disposal bag. He just rolled his eyes and continued work on his clothing. They threw their outfits into the dresser drawers similarly to the layout they had at home. They threw their suitcases down next to the bed and smiled at each other.

"You done over there?" Kyle shouted to Stan and Cartman.

"No, Fatass wants most of the damn drawers!"

"Well if the damn football pussy would stop crying about separate drawers for every fucking day, we wouldn't have this problem!" Cartman added.

The two lovers just laughed at their quarrel. "Can you imagine if we were like that?" Kyle chuckled.

Kenny smirked. "Not in a million years," he purred. He kneeled on the bed and yanked Kyle down and leaned atop him.

"Dude, we haven't been here for twenty minutes and you're already like this?" he raised his brow amusedly.

"Babe, I'm always like this," he grinned. "And you know it," he kissed his nose gently.

"Yeah, I'm well aware," he laughed softly.

"Well, I say we christen the bed, hm?"

Kyle pulled him down and met lips with him. "Later," he murmured saucily.

"So it's in consideration then?" Ken grinned.

"Dude, I'm not dumb, it's gonna happen," he chuckled. "Our control levels aren't exactly...strong."

"Well I think that's a good thing."

"As do I," he agreed with a nod. "Means we can't get enough of each other, right?"

"Precisely," he responded, stroking the boy's side lovingly. "So we can't play funtime...can we just make out instead?"

Kyle laughed softly. "Our making out tends to lead to 'funtime'."

"Well, let's just see how it goes, hmm?" he smiled, leaning down and making contact with his soft lips. He moved and straddled Kyle's body, pressing his wrists down on either side of his head, completely trapping him in. He gently nibbled on his lip a few times, meeting gazes with the boy. He felt his body reacting, but didn't try to hold himself back in anyway as he moved his head down to nibble on Kyle's collarbone. He suckled on the tender skin, feeling Kyle's pulse increase through his hold on his wrists. "Mmm...," he growled, pulling away slightly. "My nummy little Jew," he stated affectionately, licking the newly-made marking on his pale flesh. He pressed his hips down into Kyle's, thoroughly pleased that he was about as wound up as himself.

"Ken, don't go too far," he warned.

He cocked his head and looked at him mischievously. "Why not? You want this. I want this."

"Our door's open, Cartman and Stan will come out of their room soon," he continued.

"I'm about to come out of somewhere, too," he winked. "I happen to have a very beautiful little boy underneath me and I'm feeling a little hot."

"Then turn on the damn air conditioner," he spoke deadpan. "Look, I promise we will later, right now I'm not about to risk it, alright?"

"You promise?"

He nodded, "Yes."

"Will you let me do anything to you?"

Kyle raised his brow. "Just what the hell are you planning? I have some boundaries."

"I know," he smiled. "I just wanna know if you would."

"Probably," he shrugged.

"Excellent," he grinned wider, sitting up atop the boy's hips and playing with one of his curls.

"You guys ready?" Stan asked from inside their doorway.

"We've been ready, can't you tell?" Kenny smirked.

"Yeah, well stop molesting Kyle and let's go, will ya? I'm freaking hungry," he said.

Kenny climbed off the top of Kyle and pulled him up off the bed with him. They walked out and met the other two in the main room.

"Jesus, can't you two control your goddamn hormones?" Cartman rolled his eyes.

Ken smirked and wrapped his arms around Kyle. "You try being around this fine little thing and you tell me just how you deal with it."

"I have been around him. I just feel nauseous," he retorted.

"Not me," Ken chuckled. "Makes me hungry...," he bit on the boy's earlobe and prompted a small squeak to escape him.

"Stop that!" Kyle said, batting him away softly.

He laughed, "What? I can do that in the bedroom but not around others?"

"No, you can't!" he blushed.

"Okay, okay," Stan grasped Kyle's arm and started leading him out the door. "Come on, you guys, let's go get some food before Kyle goes psycho and kills everyone here."

"Don't think he'll have much luck with me," Kenny smirked.

"Okay. Before he beats the hell out of all of us," he corrected.

"Much better," he nodded. They stepped out into the sunlight and breathed in the air.

"God, you don't know how much cleaner air is until you're out of South Park," Cartman mused.

"Yeah really," Kyle nodded. "This place is a hell of a lot easier on just about every sense."

"Mhmm," Stan mused. He looked at the small map in his hands and studied it. "How about this grill place for dinner?" he asked. "Walkin' on Sunshine?"

"Whoa-oh-oh," Kenny smirked

"Wow, that's not lame at all," Kyle chuckled.

"It's California," Stan shrugged. "It's supposed to be super cheesy."

"Well, they certainly did a good job of that," he laughed.

"Boys? Boys, can I talk to you for a minute?" a man behind them shouted. They turned with raised brows as he came striding up to them. "Boys, I need to ask a favor of you."

"Uh, what?" Kyle blinked. "Are you hurt?"

"No, but society will be if you don't sign this petition!" he thrust a clipboard into Kyle's small hands. He glanced over it and raised his brow at the man again.

"What is it for?"

"Gay. Marriage," he said lowly.

"Okay, what about it?" Stan asked.

"They're considering legalizing it!"

"So?" Cartman blinked.

"So?...SO?! Don't you get it," he whispered harshly. "It's gonna bring about the end of this state! Of this country! Enemy countries laugh at us enough, just think if we let this go into the works!"

Kyle furrowed his brow and handed him the paper. "You can take this and shove it up your ass," he stated. The man looked at him confusedly.

"Why would you support something like this?"

Ken stepped up beside Kyle and yanked his chin up, slamming their lips together. Kyle was shocked at first, but soon relaxed into the spell of Kenny's mouth. They broke apart slowly and looked at the man, who seemed disgusted.

"What the...and now they've corrupted the youth," he rolled his eyes. "Wonderful. Just wonderful."

"Oh go fuck yourself," Ken flipped him off, grabbing Kyle's hand and walking away with Stan and Cartman surrounding them.

"You'll regret being like that!" the man shouted after them. "You'll see when we're nuked for your sick ways!" he soon turned from them and started harping on another victim.

"I hate people like that," Cartman growled.

"You hate homophobes?" Kyle raised his brow, a slight tinge of hope in his voice.

"Psh, fuck no," he scoffed. "I hate people who talk to you without any preemptive. Fucking annoying." Kyle's hopeful eyes turned dull and he sighed.

"Whatever. Fucking retard," he looked back towards the crazed man. "You think he gets paid for that?"

"Probably. People probably think that he's an insane homeless guy and they give him food," Stan smirked.

"Only in Cali," Ken laughed, the others joining him. They approached their restaurant and smiled at its quaintness.

"Seems...," Stan looked for the right word.

"Disestablished," Kyle finished.

He looked at him and chuckled. "I was thinking more outta place, but that works, too."

"Whatever, let's eat," Ken licked his lips. They walked in and were greeted by the host.

"Hello," he smiled. "Four?"

"Yup," Stan nodded.

"Room or patio?"

"Oh dude, patio," Cartman answered.

"Very well, follow me," he started leading them off outside. He gestured towards a table by the edge of the porch. "Right here," he stated. "Your server will be right with you, alright?"

"Thanks," they nodded at him before he walked off. Stan and Cartman grabbed their seats, but Ken pushed Kyle back slightly.

"What's wrong?" Kyle blinked.

"Nothin'," he smiled, pulling a chair out. "Sit," he directed.

Kyle raised his brow in amusement. "I didn't know you were so chauvinistic."

"Indeed. Surprise number three?"

He grinned wider and nodded, "surprise three." He took the seat and watched as Ken sat down next to him. Stan and Cartman just shook their heads and turned to their menus. Ken and Kyle soon followed suit.

"So...is a California roll here fresher or what?" Cartman asked.

"No, they just call it a call it a California roll because the design was started in Los Angeles," Kyle said, not removing his eyes from his reading.

"What design? What is it?" Stan asked, looking at the redhead.

"Sushi. But it's inside out," he answered.

"How?" Ken questioned.

Kyle sighed and looked at him. "It has avocado inside it. And instead of the nori being on the outside, it's on the inside because Americans tend to be grossed out if they see it."

"Oh, that makes sense," he nodded. A few moments passed and he continued, "what the fuck is nori?"

Kyle turned back to his menu, "seaweed."

"Ew," he scrunched his nose. "That's gross, Dude."

"Not really. I was gonna get it," Kyle shrugged.

"Go right ahead and eat your plant," Stan waved at him. "We'll have real food, thank you."

He smirked, "go ahead. I won't stop you."

"Hello," a voice called at them. "My name is Sherrie, and I'll be taking care of you," she smiled toothily. "Now, what can I get you to drink?"

They ordered a round of Pepsis and placed their food orders before she bounded away. They looked at the street beside them dreamily. "Can you believe it?" Stan asked. "No parents. This state is fucking ours, guys!"

"Yeah, no one to yell as we party and drink our asses off," Cartman agreed.

"Just where did you get the alcohol, Cartman?" Kyle raised his brow. Cartman looked at him and rolled his eyes.

"Told my mom that I wanted some alcohol and she got it for us. The end."

"Lucky you, I used to have to steal it from my dad," Ken grinned.

"Same," Stan nodded. Cartman looked at the young Jew and smiled.

"Seems that once again, you have nothing to relate with us on, Kahl."

"So?"

"Doesn't that just make you feel angry? Don't you just wanna slam down the alcohol to spite us and show us that you can do anything we can?"

He shrugged, "no, not particularly."

Cartman blinked at him for a moment and frowned. "Damn it. You're no fucking fun."

"Cry me a river. I'm not an over-zealous moron like a certain fatass I have the unfortunate pleasure of knowing," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, jeez Kahl. You jumped into sex to match up to the rest of us, why not drinking?"

Kyle's face went red, "I did not!"

"Did so," he smirked.

He growled and kicked out at him, missing and nailing Stan in the shin. "Ouch!"

"Sorry," he cringed.

Stan leaned down and rubbed his leg. "Jesus, you've got a hell of a kick. No wonder you're good at soccer," he laughed.

"I didn't mean to," he said sheepishly.

Stan just chuckled and waved him off, "it's fine, Dude. Just learn to aim better."

"Yeah, wear those damn glasses of yours," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Why? I don't need 'em," he frowned.

"Why did you ditch 'em?" Stan asked.

He just shrugged, "I only need them for reading. I'm not blind. I used to wear em all the time because I was always reading something, but now that I'm not, I put em away."

"How bad is your sight?" Ken asked.

"Pretty shitty if he's staying with you," Cartman smirked. Kenny just flipped him off cooly and kept his focus on the redhead.

"Not too bad. I have to try, but I can read this," he pointed to the menu on the back of his place mat.

Stan held his up and pointed to a line. "Read this."

Kyle squinted and stared at the line. "Um...something...something about...a panini?

"Pizza, dude," Kenny corrected.

"Well sorry I don't have twenty-twenty like the rest of you," he pouted. "I was fairly close."

"Maybe you should get contacts," Stan suggested.

"That's a good idea," Kenny grinned. "You should get some colored lenses!"

"Why?" Kyle asked. "I thought you like my eye color."

"I do," he nodded. "But this way we can hide when your eyes change color when you use your powers."

Kyle blinked at him for a moment. "That's...that's not a bad idea."

"Well, Poor-boy had an idea! Stop the presses," Cartman exclaimed.

Kenny frowned, "I make more money than you do, Tubs."

"You'll always be poor to me though, Kenneh," he snorted.

"Whatever," he rolled his eyes. "And you'll always be the blubbery idiot to me."

"I figured as much," he smirked.

"Here ya go, boys," Sherrie reappeared and set their food and drinks down in front of them. They thanked her and turned to their meals. Kenny watched in interest as Kyle ate his sushi with his complimentary chopsticks, skillfully maneuvering them in his slender fingers.

"What's wrong, Dude?" the Jew asked, swallowing a piece.

"Nothing. Just wondering how the fuck you work those things," he laughed.

"You wanna try?" he held them out to him. Kenny took them and stared, trying to work his fingers to look like Kyle's had.

"Uh...," he blinked.

Kyle smiled and scooted closer to him, grasping his fingers gently. "Put your thumb here, over them both...now put your middle finger in between and your index on the opposite side. The other two support the bottom," he directed. Kenny did as told and beamed as he got them working. He picked up one of Kyle's rolls and took a small bite, winking at the Jew. Kyle just laughed and shook his head. He held the rest of the roll up to Kyle's mouth and watched as he grabbed the offer, chewing with a sweet smile on his lips.

"Fags," Cartman muttered.

Stan just munched on a fry, watching them amusedly. "Yeah, but it could be worse. They could be making out."

"Don't tempt us," Ken smirked, handing the sticks back to Kyle and taking a sip of his Pepsi.

Kyle giggled softly as he returned to his food. They chatted for a while more as they continued to graze at their meals. As Kyle raised a final roll halfway to his mouth, he froze, his eyes widening. The others took notice of his state and raised their brows.

"Kyle?" Stan blinked.

He dropped the sticks and bolted away from the table, hopping the patio fence and running off.

"Fuck, he feels a spirit," Kenny hissed. "Cartman stay here," he handed him his wallet. "I expect a receipt," he growled as he and Stan followed Kyle away from the restaurant. Cartman just blinked after them before shrugging and turning to wait for the check.

Stan and Ken followed Kyle through the unfamiliar streets, avoiding crashing into civilians as they sprinted along.

"Why couldn't he do this by walking?" Stan whined.

"Well where would the fun be in that?" he smirked. They continued following him until he stopped at a small alleyway.

"Oh god, no," Kenny muttered. He and Stan walked up beside the redhead, looking around with him as they panted.

"They here, Ky?" Stan asked.

"Up there," he pointed. They followed his gesture and saw a green figure atop a fire escape on the side of a building.

"Oh wow," Stan murmured. "He's glowing..."

"Well, he's dead," Ken shrugged. He looked around, seeing people outside the alleyway. Not a good idea to start yelling at him. He saw the ladder pulled up and groaned. He stood under it and hopped, trying to get a grasp on it. "Goddammit," he hissed. "I can't fucking reach!" Stan joined him and they hopped together.

"Back up," Kyle directed.

"Ky, if we can't reach it, neither can you," Stan argued.

"Back up," he repeated. Ken and Stan shrugged at each other and did as asked. Kyle backed up to the opposite wall and started sprinting towards the side of the building with the escape. He jumped and slammed his foot against the wall, bouncing back and reaching his arms out, grabbing the ladder. He hung there for a moment before Kenny and Stan dove under him and boosted him further up the rungs. He smiled gratefully at them before climbing towards the figure moping atop the escape. They watched as he reached the spirit's level and kneeled in front of him, talking softly.

"What's he saying?" Stan asked.

"How would I know? Super hearing isn't my power," he shrugged. They continued to eye Kyle as the spirit stood and looked down at them confusedly, pointing and talking to the redhead. Kyle nodded and gestured down and they both started working their way down towards the other two. The spirit hopped down from the top of the escape and waved back up at Kyle, who looked at him unamused. He started slowly climbing back down as the ghost turned to look at Ken and Stan.

"Hey," he nodded.

"Well, how much did Ky tell you?" Kenny asked.

"You're here to help. That's about it," he smiled.

"Well, we're already halfway there," he grinned back, extending his hand. "Name's Ken. This is Stan," he motioned towards the ebon-haired comrade. The spirit returned the shake.

"I'm Seth," he replied. "So...can I ask what exactly I need help with?"

"You're stuck on Earth for some reason," Ken explained. "It's mine and Kyle's job to get you to the afterlife."

"Ah," he nodded. "What about you?" he asked Stan.

He shrugged, "I'm just a quiet observer."

"Fun," he smirked. Kyle hopped back onto the ground and dusted himself off, joining the group.

"Very nice, Ky," Ken smiled. "Never woulda thought of jumping like that," he kissed his head sweetly.

"That's because you tend to act before you think," he rolled his eyes in good humor.

"You two roll like that, huh?" Seth asked.

"Got a problem with it?" Kenny questioned.

He shook his head, "nah. Never really cared. My figure was always the more gays there are, the more chicks there are for me."

"Good logic," Stan chuckled.

"Okay," Ken started. "Are you willing to cooperate with us?"

"I don't see why not," he shrugged. "Not like I'm doing anything here."

"Good," Kyle smiled softly. "I say we grab the fatass and head back home, we can talk there."

"You live here? You seem a bit...pale," Seth pointed out.

Kenny snickered, "Nah, we're from Colorado. We're on vacation."

"You chose a good place to come," he nodded. "I've only been dead about a year, but I've spent most of my time here."

"We hope so," Stan nodded. "Shall we go collect Tubby?"

"Do we have to?" Kyle asked.

"Yeah," Ken nodded. "He has my wallet."

"Well, damn," he pouted. Ken laughed and gathered him under his arm, leading him out the alley with the other two by their side. They walked back through the town, taking in the new sights with smiles upon their faces. Just a little bit of change was doing a world of good. Who knew what else the future held in store?

* * *

The five boys sat around the coffee table at the condo, chatting and watching people from outside their window, making fun of tan lines and surfer accents.

"Ya know," Seth laughed softly, "you make fun of them, but you're the weird ones here. You look like you walked straight out of Dracula or something."

"Only Jew," Cartman gestured towards the smaller boy. "He's the only pale one here."

"Shut up, Fatboy," he scowled.

"Don't deny it, Kahl," he rolled his eyes.

"Well pale is a good look for him," Kenny defended, holding Kyle under his arm. "Compliments his hair and eyes beautifully," he kissed his now-reddened cheek.

"What about you, Seth?" Stan raised his brow. "I mean, if people could see you, you'd fit in well. Where the hell are you from?"

"Pennsylvania," he chuckled. He ran his fingers through his shaggy brown hair and took a deep breath. "It was boring as hell, so I decided to come out here, I always wanted to."

"What was it like at home?" Ken asked, leaning back with Kyle still secure in his grasp.

"Pretty good," he nodded. "Normal family. Good deal of friends, a girlfriend. I was just your typical dude," he shrugged.

"Any...regrets before you passed on?" Kyle asked.

Seth looked up and contemplated this. "Not really...I mean, the usual 'damn I wish I would have lived', but other than that, I'm not sure."

"How'd you die?" Cartman asked.

"Stupidity," he rolled his eyes. "I was on my way to one of my shows and my car slid off the side of a cliff and rolled into a tree."

"Ouch," Stan winced.

"Shows?" Kyle repeated.

He nodded with a small grin. "Yeah, I was in a band with my three best buds. It was pretty sweet, actually. We were just getting our feet off the ground before I took my spill."

"Aw, Dude, harsh," Ken commented.

"Heh, yeah," he nodded sadly and sighed. "I stayed at home for awhile after I died. I watched them and they tried to make it...but they just couldn't. They had the opportunities, but couldn't get enough people outside of home to buy our...their stuff. Kinda upsetting," he shrugged.

"What'd you play?" Stan asked.

"Guitar," he smiled.

"Ky plays guitar, too," Kenny beamed.

The Jew laughed sheepishly, "Not well. How many shows did you guys do?"

"Hm...," he thought. "I believe the one I was on my way to was our...twelfth?"

"That's not too bad," he smiled.

"No it's not," he agreed. "I wish we had gotten to do more, but sometimes you just can't help what happens."

"Well, I think your reason for being stuck is pretty cut and clear," Ken mused. "You wanna see your band succeed."

"Dude, they broke up like, months ago," he raised his brow. "They couldn't stay together. Not like I can do anything now."

"Well, not necessarily...," Kyle leaned back and contemplated this. "You ever put your stuff online?"

"A few things...why?"

"Cool," he stated, jumping up from the couch and switching on the computer. He wheeled around the chair, sitting cross-legged and looking back at the others as it loaded.

"What are we doing?" Stan blinked.

"Think your grandparents would mind if I used some blank CDs?" he asked.

"I dunno. I doubt it," he shrugged.

"Good," he smiled. He looked up at Seth and shrugged. "As far as I see it, the only way for your guys' music to be placed out there would be to actually get some of your songs circulating the general public. I say we get some CDs, find some people and hand em out. Then we put your stuff on some independent artist and underground sites and get it going around the internet."

Seth blinked at him. "You would do that?"

He shrugged, "It's our job. It's not like it's difficult or anything. You know your buddy's email addresses still?"

"Yeah..."

"Excellent. Then we email them, pose as some drooling fans with too much time on our hands, and re-instill some confidence. I obviously can't guarantee that it'll work, but it's better than nothing." Kenny broke into a grin and walked over, standing next to him and ruffled his curls.

"You're such a smart little boy," he complimented.

Kyle looked up at him and shook his head with a small laugh before turning back to the computer and hopping onto the internet. "Alright," he said. "What was your band's name?"

He laughed softly, "New Age Conspiracy."

They all raised their brows at him. "What kind of music were you?" Stan asked.

"Mostly alternative," he shrugged. Kyle typed it into his search engine and clicked on a link that caught his eye. He turned back and looked at him, a small grin playing his face.

"Interesting group shot," he mused. Ken looked over and laughed, seeing a band standing around looking utterly stoned.

"We were having a strange day," he chuckled in explanation. "We took this shot and decided to make it our icon."

Kyle clicked on a link for one of their songs and turned the speakers up. They all listened as the clear sound of guitars and drums filled the room. "You were just guitar?" Stan clarified.

"And backup," he nodded. "Jake sang and did keyboards, Mike was bass, and Landon was drums."

"Neat," Ken grinned.

He laughed again, "You picked a weird one. Jake was having a very angsty day when he wrote this."

"What's it about?" Cartman asked.

"You'll see. It's a bit short, but it gets the message across." he nodded.

_You and me,_

_Sitting in the cornfield..._

_Watching the butterflies_

_flying free..._

_I can't help but envy them,_

_Their wings spreading far..._

_Showing off their beauty_

_And their light, heaven-sent..._

_So grows my jealousy,_

_I can't contain myself..._

_I grab the nearest one_

_And rip off its silky wings..._

"Well...that's...different," Kyle blinked.

"Oh, you have no idea," he snickered.

_I watch it flay on the ground,_

_Trying to catch back up_

_To its buddies in the air,_

_I listen to its silent sound_

_And I take a deeper breath_

_Because I know you watch me..._

_You learn to watch your step_

_..._

_And I show you that I hold the cards,_

_That I'm the one in charge,_

_That I hold your heart..._

_in the palm of my hand..._

_You'll fall back onto me,_

_When you feel your wings cutting off _

_and I'm the only one to catch you_

_When your world comes apart._

_So you have to learn to trust me,_

_For I'm your only true love_

_You've got to learn this quickly_

_Because I can't have you giving up_

They listened as the instrumentals faded and they sat in silence for a few moments before Kenny broke the quiet, "I liked it," he nodded.

"Same, though I have to say the rhyming scheme's kinda suckish," Kyle laughed softly.

Seth chuckled, "well, that one, yes. But we have a few that work pretty well. This was really a demo for one of our band battles, so it wasn't too great."

"It was still good though," Stan smiled. Kyle started going through and downloading all the song links into a playlist.

"Alright. We'll make the CDs and hand some out."

"What about the emails?" Kenny asked. Kyle nodded and hopped onto his server. "Okay, we'll use the library's email since ours are all pretty boyish," he stated. He logged in and opened a new email file. He moved aside and let Seth type in the addresses before looking around at the other four. "Who thinks they can play a swooning fangirl the best?"

They all looked at each other before looking back at him and smiling. His expression fell, "I hate every single one of you."

"Even me?" Kenny pouted.

"Yes. Right now I do," he frowned before he turned back to the computer and sighing. "Okay...how do I start this?" he blinked.

"Pretend you're Candy," Ken smirked.

Kyle looked up at him unamused. "So I should talk about taking their boyfriends?"

"They're not gay," Seth debated.

"Whatever," he rolled his eyes and started typing. His fingers flew across the keyboard and the other four gathered around him, giving editorial comments as he went.

"Use the text spellings for 'you' and stuff," Stan suggested. Kyle nodded and did so, though Kenny could see it took a hit on his need for normal English grammar. He finished and they all scanned it, nodding in approval.

"See?" Cartman started. "You're the girl of the group."

"Fuck off!"

Kenny laughed and stole the mouse, clicking the send button and sighing. "Alright," he popped a CD into the drive and began burning the songs onto it. He opened up a few websites and started the downloading for them as well. "I just hope this all works," he said softly.

"We can only hope so," Stan nodded, watching the screen as the downloader bars flowed. The first disc soon finished and Kyle took it out of the drive, holding it up and smiling.

"Well, there's only one way to find out."

* * *

"Okay, Cartman," Kenny said. "You're on."

The large boy cleared his throat and looked around for a victim. "Excuse me, young lady," he went up to a girl looking about their age.

"Yes?" she blinked with her friends.

"What is your favorite band?"

"The...The Jonas Brothers?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry," he looked at her sympathetically. "Well, we can fix that problem with this band," he waved around a CD case. She took it into her hands and raised her brow.

"New Age Conspiracy? Sounds screamo," one of her friends commented.

"Quite the opposite, Ma'am," Stan came up and interjected. "Soft rock is their game."

"And just who are they?" the girl asked.

"A new upcoming band with a lot of talent," he answered. "They just need to get off the ground and it's people like you who can help them."

"How?"

"Just listen," he nodded to Kenny and he switched on a small boom box they had taken from the condo, starting to play the music. The girls listened and nodded their heads with each other.

"It's not too bad...," she mused, looking from the boom box and letting her gaze fall on the redhead sitting on the fence. She smiled and walked up to him. "Do you listen to them, Cutie?" she batted her lashes. Kenny raised his brow at her, but didn't jump in as he wanted to.

"Um, y-yea! They're my favorite band!" he smiled at her. She grabbed his collar and pulled his eyes down to her level.

"Wanna pop some of it in and have a little fun?"

"N-no thanks," he smiled meekly.

"You sure? I can get tons of people into this stuff," she grinned devilishly.

"Can't you do it w-without me in the picture?"

"No...no I don't think so," she shook her head with a feigned pout. "C'mon. One kiss? I'll buy em and spread em around like no tomorrow, I promise."

Kyle glanced over at Kenny, who just shrugged at him. He kissed Candy, why should he freak out over this chick?

Kyle looked back at the girl and gulped. "J-just a kiss?"

"If you like it, you can have some more, too, Sweet stuff," she winked. "Now get off the fence and give me a kiss and we'll go from there."

"You'll buy the CDs?"

"For two bucks a pop, I'll buy one for every smooch you give me."

"Uh...how many do we want bought?" Kyle blinked at the other boys.

"We have ten," Ken shrugged.

"One long kiss and I'll buy em all," she smiled sweetly. "But you gotta kiss me like you mean it."

"Why?"

"You're cute," she giggled. She yanked him down off the fence and stared up into his green gaze. "You've obviously never walked around this part of town. Girls like me love boys like you."

"Like me?" he squeaked.

She nodded. "Cute and nervous. We eat. Them. Up," she murmured, laughing lowly. She pulled twenty dollars from out her pocket and threw it back at Kenny. "Now then...please?"

He sighed and nodded softly. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his scrawny frame, and returned the gesture hesitantly. She pressed their lips together and they pushed back into each other. The girls all cooed as the boys shook their head, aside from Kenny, who watched his boyfriend closely and licked his lips. The girl pried apart his lips and dove her tongue into him, and they watched as Kyle's nose scrunched up uncomfortably, but he allowed their muscles to meet, nonetheless. After awhile, they finally broke apart and stared at each other.

She broke into a wider grin. "You're a good kisser," she complimented. "Where'd you learn how to go at it like that?"

He smirked and pointed back towards his blonde lover. She blinked between the two of them and smiled even bigger. "You two are?...Oh my god!" she squealed. "That's so cute!" She pushed Kyle back into Kenny and stared at them thoughtfully. "You look really good together, too! Oh wow!" Her friends gathered around her and agreed.

She looked between them some more and put her chin into her palm in contemplation. "I have a small little club that I own in this town, ya know. Just a bunch of kids hanging out and such. I'd love to play this CD if you do me just a teensy favor?"

"What?" Ken asked. "Anything to get them help," he nodded at the CDs.

"Two minutes."

"Of?" Kyle raised his brow.

"Make out. Right here. Right. Now," she grinned maliciously, the giggles of her friends escalating around her.

"What is it with you girls and gay guys?" Stan blinked.

"It's hot," she shrugged, especially with people like these two," she gestured towards them. "Come on! Tall and well built with a small and delicate looking counterpart? Talk about hot! Now please? This band, no matter how bad, will be on repeat all night."

Kenny and Kyle looked at each other and shrugged. Kenny grasped his chin and the back of his curls and yanked him up, looking at him hungrily.

"I probably still taste like her you know," Kyle motioned a bit over to the girl.

"Well we'll have to fix that, won't we?" he grinned. "I got two minutes, I think I can help you," he purred before locking lips forcefully with him. Kyle worked his arms to the back of his head slowly and pulled him in closer as their tongues and teeth collided over the sound of the squealing girls not a few feet away from them. They glanced over at Stan, Seth, and Cartman, who were looking away, trying desperately not to stare at their show. They chuckled before closing their eyes and focusing on the caress of each other's lips. Their breath synchronized and they let out little moans from their throats, pressing their bodies together and relishing in the other's warmth.

"Ya know...," Ken murmured. "You're hot looking when you kiss."

"Mm, you're hot all the time," he responded softly.

He chuckled, "well. You know...they said making out...have our make outs only been just lips?" He didn't wait for a response as he grasped him around the waist and yanked him closer, pulling his head back with the other arm and attacking his throat. Kyle let out soft moans and a few yelps as his teeth pinched the delicate skin.

"Guys, stop trying to fuck each other out here!" Stan protested.

"Shut up and let them go!" a girl retorted. They laughed softly with each other as Kenny finished his mark and licked the skin, blowing on it gently and watching as Kyle shuddered a bit. He pulled back and licked his lips, releasing his grasp on the boy's head and letting him look back up into his eyes lovingly.

They heard clapping and turned to see the girl smiling widely. "I am very very very happy right now," she nodded. She pulled out a pen and paper from her purse and jotted some notes down. "The name's Lily," she winked. "I'll hand out some of the CDs tonight. You can check out this site, it has live video feed of my club. I'd rather you come down personally, but if you can't, you can look on here and see if we're playing your music, okay? And if we're not, call the number at the bottom and ask to speak with me. Got it?"

"Got it," Kenny nodded. She smiled and handed Kyle the note.

"Catch you around, Cutie," she winked at him, turning and bounding away with her friends, CDs all held in their hands.

"I do believe that this has been my favorite case so far," Ken smiled at the Jew.

"Aw, you didn't like being warned of the Commies nonstop?"

He snickered, "close call."

"Guys, I can't thank you enough for this," Seth smiled at them.

"Not like we had to sacrifice much," Kyle smirked back.

"Seriously," he shook his head. "This...this is just so great. I...I don't know if they'll make it, but they have a chance to be heard," he grinned wider and slowly started changing pink. The other four smiled back.

"We're happy to help," Kyle replied softly.

"Yeah, anytime, Dude," Ken nodded, holding his hand out to shake. Seth returned the gesture and went down the line.

"Thanks to all of you. I really do appreciate it, especially since it's not your twos' job," he nodded at Stan and Cartman.

"No problem," Stan waved dismissively.

"I'll make the Jew pay me back for it later."

"Fuck off!"

He snickered, "alright. I guess I gotta go. Thanks again!"

They all waved him off as he faded away and they sighed contentedly. "I thought I'd be more upset about that happening," Stan said softly.

"His case wasn't too heart wrenching," Kyle responded. "Sometimes it's harder than others."

"Yeah, my first one really sucked," Ken nodded softly as they gathered up their stuff to head back to the condo.

"What was it?"

He sighed. "She was nine and her mom killed her. I...it was depressing to say the least..."

"What about you, Ky?"

"Hm?"

"What case was your first?"

"Oh. Um...her name was Morgan...and...she um..."

"What?" Cartman persisted. "She what?"

"The guy she liked never said his feelings," he replied quickly. Kenny pulled him closer and kissed his head. Stan looked over and raised his brow.

"There's more than that," he said lowly.

"Not really," Ken stated softly.

"Ky's lying," he replied. "I can tell. What else is there to this story?"

There was a moment of silence before Kyle sighed defeatedly. "The guy she liked...it was Barney."

Stan and Cartman looked over at him, shocked. "Kyle," Stan started, "Ken...what...how many times did you have to go against him?"

"Three times before the...incident," Kenny grumbled.

"Three?!" Cartman repeated.

Kyle nodded. "First time was when I felt Morgan and we ran out to find her. Second was the restaurant when you were there. Third was when me and Ken had to go back to talk to him so Morgan could be free."

"So...you willingly went back?" Stan narrowed his eyes.

"Not willingly, no," Ken replied. "We didn't want to. But we have a job."

"But...did he try anything that time, too?"

"What do you think?" Kyle muttered.

"How...how far did he get?" Cartman asked gently.

"I was handcuffed to the door and he had Kyle tied up on the floor," Ken sighed. "Look, can we please leave the topic now?"

"Y-yeah...sorry," Stan muttered.

Kenny pulled Kyle in closer and they walked melded together in-between their friends in silence. That topic was one not meant for now. They had left South Park for a reason, to escape the harsh realities just a matter of time away. There was no reason to be revisiting the truth anytime soon.

* * *

"Okay, I'm fucking bored," Stan groaned lounging on the couch.

"Well, think of something to do," Kyle rolled his eyes, flipping through his book distantly as Kenny played with his curls, watching his notebook glowing.

_Seth Ellsworth;...Born August 14th, 1989;...Died November 21st, 2008;...Wanted success to find friends_

"I say we drink," Cartman voted.

"I agree," Stan nodded. "It's about time we get Kyle up to par with the rest of us," he winked. Kenny's hands froze for a moment, but Kyle squeezed his knee and he resumed his normalcy.

"Works for me," the blonde grinned.

"Ky, are you okay with it?" Stan asked seriously.

He looked at him with a raised brow. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you're a straight-laced ginger snob," Cartman retorted.

"Shut up, Fatass," he growled, putting his book down. Cartman just grabbed the drinks from out the fridge and walked back over to them.

"I propose a game," he announced as he handed them each a beer.

"Like?" Kenny questioned.

"Never Have I Ever," he smirked.

"What's that?" Kyle blinked.

Stan looked at him and smiled. "Basically you say something you've never done. But if the other people playing have done it, they take a drink."

"Oh, okay," he nodded slowly as they popped the top off their drinks.

"I'll start," Cartman grinned. "Never have I ever fucked a guy."

Kenny and Kyle both took small swigs as the other two watched the Jew intently. He just looked at them innocently and waited for Stan to continue.

"Stan, go," he urged.

"Huh? Oh right," he snapped out of his trance. "Never have I ever...given a blowjob." Once again went Kyle and Kenny.

"I think Cartman should have to go for that one," Kyle vouched. "He sucked off Butters once."

"I concur," Kenny grinned.

Cartman's face glowed, "I did not!"

"Lies," Kyle rolled his eyes. "Drink." He growled and took a swig.

"Okay, Ky," Stan smiled at him.

"Never have I ever failed a test." All three of the others took a drink, hints of pride tinging their faces as Kyle chuckled softly.

"Never have I ever kicked someone in the balls when they had a boner." Only Kyle took a drink that time and they raised their brows at him. "Who?" Ken asked.

"Craig," he shrugged. "He was halfway there when we were at Shakeys. Go Cartman."

"Uh, right. Never have I ever given up my virginity within three days of me dating someone." Kyle scowled at him but took his drink.

"At this rate, Ky's gonna need another one," Stan laughed. "Okay, never have I ever fucked in...the park."

Kenny and Kyle looked at each other and smirked before taking their drinks. Stan's mouth dropped. "No. Way," he breathed.

Ken shrugged, "Yes way. Go, Ky."

"Um...never have I ever...had a threesome?"

Only Kenny took a drink and beamed proudly. "Wends won't agree to it," Stan laughed.

"Neither will Ky, but I'm working on him," he winked, earning him an amused raised brow from the Jew before he continued. "Hm. Never have I ever...told more than one person that I truly love them and meant it."

Stan and Cartman took their drinks before Cartman picked up, "Never have I ever died."

Kenny and Kyle took their drinks. "Never have I ever done doggy style," Stan grinned. Kyle and Kenny looked at each other.

"Have we ever?" Kenny asked.

"I...I can't remember," he looked up thoughtfully. "What about that time with Madison and Madelynn?"

"Well...not really...I held you up...," he stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I don't believe so. And I never did before hand, really...so moving on," he shrugged.

"Okay," Kyle nodded. "Never have I ever...smoked."

Stan and Kenny both took swigs and sighed simultaneously. "Never have I ever danced with someone," Kenny said.

Stan and Cartman took their drinks and Kyle just stared at him. "Hmm...," Cartman stroked his chin. "Never have I ever...tried to kill myself twice," he said.

There was a brief pause and the room stood still. Kenny's eyes went to Kyle, who sighed softly before raising the bottle to his lips. Stan stared at him, slack-jawed.

"Really?!" he squeaked.

"Really. Go," Kyle muttered.

"Never have I ever tried to kill myself three times," he bit his lip. Kyle sighed and once again took a drink.

"Go, Ky," Ken said softly.

"Never have I ever shaved," he shrugged.

The other three took sips before it fell onto Kenny. He looked at Kyle sadly. "Never have I ever tried to kill myself four times," he stated.

Kyle took another drink, looking back at him with heavy eyes. Cartman stuttered, "f-five times?" This time, no one drank.

"Kyle...," Stan said softly. "Four times? Why...why didn't you go for help?"

"I wasn't allowed," he growled. "I...my parents told me to just suck it up. So I did. I just moved on with my life. Once a year for four years I tried."

"How...how hurt were you?" Cartman asked.

"Fell into comas twice, once I just went unconscious and needed a stomach pump. The last time you're well aware of what happened," he took a long swig of his beer and sighed.

"How?" Stan asked.

"Stopped taking his insulin once," Ken answered. "Once he overdosed, and once he drank himself half-to-death."

"So...you're not new to the whole alcohol thing, huh Jew?"

"Nope. Betcha feel pretty retarded right now, huh?" He smirked back, taking another drink along with Stan and Ken.

"Why didn't you tell us? Or at least me?" Stan questioned.

Kyle looked at him sadly. "Stan, you know me. You know me better than...well, better than most people," he glanced over at Kenny. "You know that I wouldn't tell you something like that. I had enough trouble telling you that I went to psychiatry when I was younger...and that I'm gay...Stan, you know I wouldn't do something that might be detrimental to our friendship. Besides, my parents threatened my life. Word couldn't get out about it," he shrugged.

"Why?" Cartman asked.

"I'm a Broflovski," he said simply. "I'm supposed to be...well...perfect. Mental illness wouldn't bode well within my household. God forbid the Rabbi hear about it and tell the Synagogue. We'd be the laughingstock of the Jewish community," he said in a mocking tone.

"Reputation meant more than your life?" Stan asked sadly.

He nodded. "Yeah. I got used to it though," he smiled sadly. "I mean...Ike kinda got the same treatment...just to a lesser extent."

"Why was he so special?" Kenny demanded.

"He's not my flesh and blood. He's my brother, but we're not related in the least. I was the only pure-bred Broflovski boy...," he chuckled. "Bet my mom really regrets having those tubes tied now," he snickered as he chugged down some more beer.

"I just...I can't believe that...," Stan shook his head.

"How come?" he asked. "You know my parents. They're insane. This trial thingy that we're going through is just further evidence of that," he slammed his bottle down onto the table in front of him. "They don't think I'm related to them just because I'm gay or suicidal? Fine. They'll see just how close I am to them when they see I can argue anyone off of their pedestal like my father and I can bitch anybody out like my mother."

Kenny stared at the empty bottle on the table and the one in his hand, his brow raised quizzically. He looked at the determination in Kyle's eyes and sighed, placing his bottle down next to his. "I move for bedtime," he said softly.

"Agreed," Stan nodded. "We gotta get up early for sight-seeing tomorrow, so we may as well move it."

Cartman and the two of them stood, watching Kyle as he stared intently at his bottle on the table. "Ky?" Kenny asked. "Bed?" He blinked and looked up at him before nodding.

"Okay," he responded quietly, standing next to him. They went to their separate rooms after bidding the others goodnight and shutting their doors.

Kyle sat on the edge of their bed and Kenny looked at him worriedly. "You okay?"

He looked at him and smiled. "Yeah, I'm good," he nodded. "And I do mean it, by the way. I...," he sighed. "I dunno. I'm upset, but at the same time, thinking about it like I just told Stan and Cartman out there...it just makes the fact that I'm apart from them seem better and better. That and just the mere fact that I get to be with you all the time," he smiled sweeter. Kenny grinned and walked over to him, bringing his head up and kissing him lightly.

"Remember that promise of yours?" he murmured.

"Somehow I knew that was coming," he smirked.

"I know something else that will be too," he growled, pulling him off the bed. "Can we have some fun?" he smiled.

Kyle looked towards the door and then back at him and nodded. "As you wish."

"Awesome." He sat on the bed and stared at him. "Strip," he said firmly. Kyle blinked at him before starting to peel his clothes off. "Slower..." Kenny licked his lips as he quickly tore off his own clothes and continued to watch him. Kyle gradually lifted his shirt, giving Kenny a great view of his torso and gave him a strong hunger in his gullet. He unbuttoned his pants and slid them down his slender, pale legs, kicking them off towards the dresser and smiling saucily back at the blonde as he was down to his boxers. Kenny looked down at himself and saw that he was rather enjoying this little show of Kyle's. "Give me a turn," he smiled. Kyle chuckled before doing as told, gracefully twisting on his toes.

"Stop there," Kenny halted him as his backside was facing him. He stood and walked over to the Jew, grasping his arms and breathing hotly onto his neck. "Gonna be good?"

"Of course," he replied, a slight tremor to his voice.

"Good." he released his arms. "Take the underwear off," he growled. "But no looking at me." His fingers grasped his own member and he started stroking himself, licking his lips as Kyle continued to strip in front of him, revealing his firm ass. "Kneel."

Kyle dropped to his knees, looking at the wall with his hands crossed over his lap, Kenny could see his cock twitching in anticipation and grew all the more famished. "Want some familiarity?" he asked.

"Um...you're in charge?" he stated.

"Oh, excellent response," he commented, patting his head. He grasped his belt from off the floor and fastened it around his neck. He couldn't help but do it again, something about Kyle looking like this just did so much for him.

He attached the other end to a large shelving unit above them and smirked. "You have to be a good little dog," he warned. "Move too much and that shelf's gonna come crashing down and our neighbors may be a bit upset."

"I'll be good."

"Good," he smiled again, running his fingers fluidly up Kyle's back. He continued to stroke himself, readying for his next move. "Alright," he stated as he was hard enough. "Hands and knees."

Kyle did so, careful not to jostle too much and bring the shelf down. His head had to held straight up in order to slacken the belt enough to keep them out of trouble's way and this just made it all the more delicious. "What an attentive little puppy," Kenny cooed, stroking his back still. "Can you bark for me?"

There was a moment of silence. "You can't be serious," Kyle stated in a monotonous way.

"I do believe I am," Kenny frowned. "Don't make me punish the bad puppy." Kyle sighed and his shoulders slumped slightly.

"Woof. Woof."

Kenny laughed softly. "Come on, I know you. You're bark is much worse than your bite. Now come on. Bark like a pretty poochy."

"Woof, woof," he tried, a bit more enthusiastically.

"One more time? A bit louder, my dear."

"WOOF WOOF!" he practically shouted, trying to contain himself enough so that Stan and Cartman wouldn't hear his humiliation. Kenny snickered and scratched his back a few times.

"Good doggy. Want your treat?"

"Woof!"

"Wag your tail," he grinned. He watched as Kyle shook his ass back and forth for him vigorously a few times, feeling himself grow even harder. "Oh, what a well trained little pup I seem to have found. You need your treat!" he smiled. He positioned himself behind him and teasingly rubbed his length in-between the cheeks of the boy's ass. Kyle let out a little frustrated moan and Kenny laughed softly.

"Patience, my dear puppy, patience...," he reached his fingers in-between Kyle's legs and teased his swollen balls a bit, listening to his passion-infused moans and feeling the heat around them growing. He removed his finger and placed his hands on the globes of flesh, prying Kyle's cheeks apart. He drove into him and watched as Kyle reared up a bit in shock. "Bad, stay on your hands," he lectured, refusing to move any farther until he was obeyed. Kyle lowered himself back down and Kenny began moving in and out of him slowly, watching as Kyle's front end shook, desperate to move his head in some way. He smiled and hit into him harder.

"Bark some more."

"W-woof....woof-f...", he panted, swallowing some gasps as Kenny continued to move. "Woof!" he yelped as Kenny hit his prostate. He let out a long whine as Kenny kept thrusting, his fingers affectionately stroking his back.

"I didn't say to stop barking," he said smoothly, despite the sweat pouring down his face and the hungry feeling in his stomach as he watched Kyle's body move with his own.

"W-w-woof! Woof, woof, woof!" he kept going, still facing the wall, completely bound to Kenny's will. Kenny rewarded his cooperation with more well-angled thrusts and some tugging on the boy's hardened cock. Kyle continued to bark as Kenny moved in and out of him vigorously, licking his lips and petting his back.

"C'mon, Puppy," he moaned. "Red rocket for me," he grinned devilishly. Kyle panted heavily a few more times and gave a final woof before doing as told and exploding all over the floor. Kenny followed suit, releasing deep into Kyle's ass and shuddering. He pulled out of the boy and released the belt from the shelf, holding it up as Kyle began to fall forward. He smiled, leaning down and picking the boy up, laying him on the bed as he panted. He undid the belt and threw it to the other side of the room, lovingly stroking his curls.

"Good boy," he murmured, planting a kiss on his lips.

"God...that...that hurt," Kyle laughed.

Kenny froze. "Oh God, I'm sorry!"

Kyle looked at him and laughed. "No, no, no, Dude. You're fine. Aftermath hurt more than anything. It's hard keeping your neck like that, even in just a normal situation. Try it with something controlling your body. It's not easy."

"But you're a tough little cookie," he smirked.

"Anything for you," he smiled sweetly. Kenny returned the expression and laid down next to him, nuzzling into his warm form.

"Mmm, I love our funtimes," he sighed happily.

"They are rather nice, aren't they?" he smiled, pecking his cheek.

"God, yes," he moaned. "Never knew sex could be so amazing..."

Kyle chuckled and turned, clasping him back and yawning. "So happy to have pleased you."

"Oh like you wouldn't believe," he smirked. He kissed his forehead and sighed again. "Love ya, Ky."

"Love you, too Dude. You too...,"

-----------

-----------

"Good morning!" Stan greeted from the kitchen bar as Kenny and Kyle walked out of their room.

"Hey, Stan," Kyle smiled at him.

"Hey, Fatass," Ken nodded towards the bored youth munching on cereal. Cartman just flipped him off and continued eating, reading the back of the box in front of him.

Kyle walked over and poured them both glasses of juice as Stan asked, "you two sleep well?"

Kenny nodded, "Yeah. That bed's hella comfortable. Even better since I get a warm little Jew along with it," he smiled at the redhead who grinned back and handed him his glass and stood next to him.

"You two are so inappropriate," Cartman rolled his eyes.

Kenny smirked at him. "Speaking of which...Stan, remember the game we were playing last night?"

"Huh? Never have I ever?"

He nodded. "What was that one sex thing you asked again?"

Stan blinked. "Uh...blowjob?"

"No...no...I don't think that was it," he looked up thoughtfully.

"In the park?"

"No...something...something else...I just can't quite think of it. It was like...a position or something...," he bit his lip in thought.

"Doggy style?" he blinked.

"Ah! That's it!" he and Kyle smirked at each other before they both took long gulps of their juice and looked at the other two. Cartman and Stan stared at them for a moment before Stan shrieked and jumped to his feet.

"Dude! This is my grandparent's place! Now I have to clean up your spooge?! Oh my god, could you two be any more inappropriate?! I mean really, you're fucking teens but you can hold in your goddamn hormones. I mean, come on!!!..." he faded off as he went to their room with a mop in hand. Kyle and Kenny fell into each other laughing. It was gonna be a fun week.

* * *

_A/N: I had so much fun with this chapter and I really think it shows =D_

_Smex was fun. The fangirl was fun. Seth in general was fun. Never have I ever was fun. Every part I enjoyed...cept writing the damn song. That was difficult. But kinda fun, too XD...I had the music in my head, but it only sounds good set to the music. Otherwise it looks like a bunch of random lines...and for some reason, Nickleback's voice kept coming up in my head...it was weird. _

_Anyways._

_I'm thinking next chapter starts on the trial. Or the preemptive to the trial. Not sure yet. I'll have to see._

_Or maybe another vacation chapter? Hm. How about __**you**__ decide? Leave a review and tell me if I should do another Cali chapter with some beach smex or get em home and start the trial. Lemme know! Your opinions make this story!_

_Thanks for everything =D_


	42. Our Rhythm

_A/N: Well, it's official. We're doing another vacation chapter. I know some of you are aching for the trial, but come on. I update frequently enough that I'm betting we'll hit it before Christmas XD...okay, maybe not, but we'll be getting close._

_God, I'm excited about doing that thing though! The whole thing will probably take two or so chaps, I'm not positive. But still. Anyways, I've been playing scenarios in my head and I think I've got one set in stone for it!...Now I just have to actually type it..._

_Damn it. That takes effort._

_Ah well. Finals week can kiss my ass, I have slash to write._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

"Ay! Jewboy! Heads up!"

They watched as their colored beach ball sailed swiftly through the air, smacking the young Jew in the face. He looked up from his book towards the larger boy in the water and scowled.

"Toss it back, Dude!" Stan shouted.

Kyle leaned over, picking up the ball and walking towards the water's edge. He threw it in the air and smacked it back towards the other three.

"Come out with us, Ky!" Ken suggested.

"No thanks, I'll burn like you're cooking me," he smirked.

Kenny stuck out his tongue and sighed. "Alright. I guess I'll just have to make you wet and slimy some other way," he shrugged.

"Shut up, Ken," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Make me."

"Don't tempt me," he warned. "I'm still pissed at you two," he glanced over at the redhead who'd returned to his book.

"You're pissed because we had sex?" he raised his brow.

"In someone else's house," he finished.

Kenny chuckled, "Sorry. But Ky has his kinks and I need to utilize them."

Cartman blinked, "excuse me?"

"Ky. You know him, he's sitting over there," he pointed back towards the Jew.

"Not what he meant," Stan stated dryly.

"Oh," he grinned. "You meant his kinks. I can totally get him off on nervousness."

"Whaddya mean?"

He sighed impatiently. "Jesus you two are clueless. He gets all excitable with other people nearby. The thrill of being caught and all that when we do the deed."

Stan blinked a few times. "You can't be serious."

"Oh, but I am," he smirked as they began once again tossing the ball between each other. "My little ginger's all kinds of kinky."

"Too much information, thanks," Cartman frowned.

"Aw," he pouted. "I didn't even get to tell you a sex story yet."

"We don't wanna hear it," he rolled his eyes.

"Tell me one of yours," his blue eyes glittered perversely.

"Why?" Stan asked.

He shrugged, "Curiosity. I wanna know if only me and Ky are doing the good stuff."

The black-haired boy frowned, "my sex life is just fine, thank you."

"What's the kinkiest thing you and Wends have done?"

"I'm not telling you that!"

"She would. And she's a mere text away. So I suggest you say something before I contact her and she makes you out to be a total pussy."

He groaned and rolled his eyes. "Handcuffs and some ice. Happy?"

He smirked, "not too bad. That was my birthday present."

"What? He let you watch?" Cartman sniggered.

"Heh, I wish," he winked at Stan. "How about you, Cartman?"

He shrugged, "Me and Red didn't have too much time before she moved. Unless you consider quickies in the school stalls kinky, we haven't breached too much."

He nodded, "I find that hot. But that may just be me."

Stan shook his head and chuckled. "we are so screwed up."

"Nah, we're dudes," Kenny smirked. "Wanna hear mine and Kyle's best?"

"Not really," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Aw, come on! You told yours!"

"You asked! And I don't need the mental images, thank you!"

"You know you want to," he taunted.

"Shut up, Poor boy!"

"Lemme tell!"

"Ugh, fine," Stan pinched his nose in frustration. Kenny grinned triumphantly and stroked his chin in contemplation.

"Well?" Cartman demanded.

"I'm considering my possibilities," he waved at them dismissively. "Okay, okay, I got my personal favorite," he grinned. "This was when we came home from the hospital after graduation," he started excitedly. "So, I took this belt and got Ky onto his knees. I tied the belt around his neck, you see. Then I took this curling iron and -"

"Okay, that's enough for me," Cartman interrupted.

"I'm not done yet!"

"Yes. You are," an angry voice growled from behind him. He gulped and slowly turned, finding Kyle behind him with crossed arms and slight tints of red glazing his stare.

"H-hi," he waved nervously. "Decide to join us?" he smiled as best he could.

"Kenneth, beach. Now," he ordered, turning on his heel and sloshing his way back towards the sand.

"You're dead," Cartman snorted.

Stan clapped him on the back, "Nice knowin' ya." Kenny looked back at them desperately before turning and sheepishly following his lover back onto the beach, his hands shoved into the pockets of his trunks. He looked up as he hit the sand to see Kyle glaring at him angrily still.

"Um...I'm sorry?" he winced.

"Kenneth, do you ever fucking listen to me?"

"All the time."

"Then why do you insist on telling them everything?! Damn it, Ken, some things are for us to know and us alone!"

"But...but..."

"Don't you 'but' me, Buddy," he scolded, placing his hands on his hips. "I'm so fucking sick of having this talk with you!"

"Well...you were with me when we admitted having sex the first night we were here!"

"We didn't go into excruciating detail!" he argued. "I don't want them to know who's on top. I don't want them to know what we use, how long we last, or anything like that! Goddamn it, is it too much to ask you to keep a few aspects of our relationship behind closed doors?!"

"Well...no..."

"Then why are we having this conversation for the fiftieth time, Ken? When are you gonna stop insisting on sharing every intimate detail about us?!"

"When I stop loving you, that's when!" he shouted. "I'm fucking proud that I have you! I want the whole goddamn world to know that you're mine and that I'm yours! I want them to be jealous of what we have, Kyle!" They stared at each other for a moment as Stan and Cartman came walking up to them and stood on either side of Kenny. The two of them ignored their visitors, though, still locked in each other's eyes.

"They," Kyle nodded towards Stan and Cartman, "aren't going to be jealous of something like our sex life, Ken."

"I didn't mean the goddamn sex," he said through gritted teeth. "Do you not understand how I feel when we're together like that? Are you just in it for the goddamn pleasure or something?!"

Kyle's face glowed red. "WHAT?! Of all people, **you** ask **me** that?! You have to be fucking kidding me! I don't do shit like that and you fucking know it!"

"Exactly!" Kenny shouted. "You're with me like that because we feel something other than just the sex, Broflovski!"

"Well, McCormick," he spat, "that should be visible enough! We don't need to share fucking everything! I don't walk around shouting to the sky what turns you on, do I?"

"Well, no. You'd look really stupid walking around shouting your own damn name."

They paused for a moment and their angry faces faded a bit. Kyle sighed angrily and massaged his temples. "Ken...you fucking know me better than anybody else."

"Right."

"Then why are you doing what you know pisses me right the fuck off?" he looked back at him angrily. "I don't like having everything about me out in the open, Kenny and you fucking know that! So why do you keep doing this?!"

Kenny stared at him for a moment. "Because," he started softly. "I'm tired of you hiding."

"What?"

"You heard me. All you've done for years has been being a walking pile of secrets, Kyle. I want the world to finally know who you are, because otherwise you're going to go right back to where you were. You'll fall into this large pit of lying to everyone else and yourself until you have to make yourself fit into the mold that you've shaped. I don't want the quiet, secretive, sad little lover. I want the smart, strong, and fun boyfriend that I know you are and you just refuse to let anyone know about it!" he placed his hands on his hips to mirror Kyle's stance, which was fading just slightly.

"Find another way to break the mold," Kyle growled.

"Why? Kyle, give me one good reason why we shouldn't discuss what we do."

"It's private! We don't fuck in front of them, why should we fill them in?!"

"We're guys, it's what we do."

"It's different than that, Ken!" he retorted almost desperately. "It's one thing for say Stan to talk about him and Wendy when she's not around, but I'm right fucking here, Dude!"

"You're too easily flustered," Kenny shook his head. "I personally think that sex talk between people is nothing but healthy."

"It's embarrassing!"

"Why? Are you 'embarrassed' that you're sleeping with someone like me?!" he demanded.

He sighed, "no, you idiot!"

"Then what, Kyle? Why does this bother you so much?!"

Kyle's eyes narrowed slightly and he reached forward, grabbing Kenny's arm and pulling him away from sight of their friends. He shoved him behind a palm tree and placed his hands on the taller boy's shoulders and sighed. "Look," he started firmly. "I love you. You know that. I just...I'm not comfortable with what we do being so...public, okay?"

"But why?" he asked softly.

"I don't know, Dude. I'm just not. You know my personality."

"Yeah. It's completely opposite of this," he raised his brow. "I mean, you've proven that you have confidence in yourself and you're okay with what you are. You told a whole auditorium of people that. You wanted to be different than what you made yourself out to be because you knew that that wasn't who you were. But I know exactly who you are because I've gotten the privilege of seeing you for yourself. Kyle, stop being so easily embarrassed by the truth."

Kyle stared at him and shook his head slowly. "Ken, I don't like you telling people our sex life. I really don't."

He sighed. "We're getting no where here."

"Why do you have to keep telling them?" he pleaded. "Why...why can't you be a bit more subtle about it at least? I don't want them to know...I..." he looked away, looking for his words.

"Oh, I get it," Kenny smirked. Kyle looked back at him slowly. "You think that they'll just think you're weird because of this, don't you?"

"I'd prefer if only you knew of how licentious I am," he mumbled, looking at his feet.

"Only you would replace kinky with a word like licorice."

"Licentious, you moron," he rolled his eyes.

He gave a short laugh. "Whatever. Come here," he gathered the boy in his arms and kissed his forehead. "I tell them that because I love you, Dude. I really do. I'm happy I get to see the real you and I wish that they could too. You said you don't want your entire existence based around the terrible things that have happened to you. So I'm trying to help you with that. Yeah, we have freaky-ass powers and we can't die," he shrugged, "but we're still human in a sense. I mean, I'm just making sure that they know the qualities that solidify that idea, okay? I'm not doing it just to brag that I have a submissive boyfriend, I'm doing it because I'm trying to help you."

Kyle leaned into him and sighed. "I just...I dunno. I don't want their entire perceptions of me changed."

He squeezed him lightly. "I hate to say this, but I think you're too late for that. Kyle, when you died, everything changed. None of us knew what happened behind the closed doors at your house with your parents and the truth scares the living hell out of us. Maybe if we work on un-sheltering you a little, we won't have a situation where the secrets build until the dam breaks again."

"But you're with me, I don't have secrets."

"Or maybe you do," he raised his brow. "Ky, I can't read your mind. Sometimes I really wish I could, but I can't. I'm not stupid, you're still hiding things from me."

"How do you know?" he asked softly.

"Let's talk about a few certain hours where I was unconscious and tied to a chair and we'll see how far we get without you changing the subject."

Kyle looked up at him and his eyes glistened slightly. "I...I can't tell you everything," his voice cracked.

"Yes you can." he assured him. "I'm not just here for me, Dude. I'm here for you, too."

"But I...I'm just so..." he sighed. "I like my privacy. Some things are just not meant for others to know."

"I'm not just an other, am I?"

"Of course you're not," he sighed again. "In fact...I hate that I can't tell you some things, but I just can't."

"Yes you can," he repeated. "You know that no matter what I won't judge you."

"Ken...please don't," he nuzzled further into him. "I really just can't deal with it. One day I'll tell you...but I just can't right now."

Kenny pecked his head and pulled him in closer. "I understand, Ky. However, this distracts from our original conversation. I am rather fond of telling stories of you, my fine assed love," he smiled.

Kyle looked up at him, pouting slightly. "You really won't stop, will you?"

"To be honest, probably not," he shrugged. "I mean, you're dating the king of perversion and I happen to have a beautiful queen beside me. Fuck no am I not going to brag."

Kyle shook his head, "I don't know what I'm going to do with you."

"Join me in my lewdness. We shall spread our perverted cheer across the land as king and queen," he winked. "Our kingdom shall be the world, our castle built with towers shaped like dildos."

Kyle giggled softly and looked back up at him. "Look, can you please just...at least not if I'm around? Please?" he looked up at him pleadingly.

Kenny smiled softly and stroked his curls. "Who could say no to a face like that?" They leaned in and their lips contacted, sending those familiar sparks flying through Kenny's veins.

"Looks like they're fine," Cartman yelled from beside them. They looked at him but refused to break apart.

"Alright, break it up," Stan interjected. He grabbed Kyle around the waist and yanked him away from the blonde.

"Hey!" he protested. "I don't do that to you when you're making out with Wendy!"

"That's because you're not strong enough to pull me," he smirked. "Now come on, let's go get changed and we'll go looking around the town."

"Sweet," Kenny smiled, taking Kyle from him and placing him back under his arm. Cartman came back up to them with their beach supplies in his arms and they started heading back up the sand towards the condo. They climbed up the stairs and walked into their room, throwing their stuff on the ground.

Kenny took his arm off from Kyle and stretched towards the ceiling, feeling his back pop. "So, what do we plan on doing?"

"Maybe make some lunch and then we'll walk around, maybe hit some of the shops or something," Stan shrugged.

"Oh goody, shopping," Kenny grinned. "A gay man's best friend."

Kyle snickered softly and shook his head. "Only you, Ken." Kenny pulled one of his curls teasingly and pecked his cheek.

"So what do we want for lunch?" Cartman asked in a bored tone.

"What do we have?" Ken asked.

Stan rummaged through the cabinets and scratched his head. "Not much. We have some chicken....and...some rice...but not much else."

"Stir fry it is," Kyle smiled.

"How do you make that?" he asked.

He chuckled, "I'll do it. Ken, can you grab me a shirt?"

"Of course," he smiled, turning to walk into their room. He rummaged through their clothes and grabbed a shirt for himself and threw it on. He grabbed another for Kyle and walked back out, finding him alone in the kitchen.

"Where'd they go?" he asked, tossing the shirt at Kyle.

"Seagulls outside, they wanted to feed them," he shrugged. He looked at the shirt in his hand and smirked. "Couldn't find my clothes?" he raised his brow. Kenny looked at the clothing and laughed as he saw his own cloth in his hands.

"Sorry."

"Whatever," he smiled, pulling the fabric over his head. He sighed, looking around the kitchen and back towards Kenny. "Wanna help?"

"You trust me?"

"To an extent, yes," he smirked. "Come on, wash up." Kenny obliged, walking over and starting up the sink, humming softly to himself as he watched Kyle grabbing supplies from the cabinets. He pulled from the sink and dried his hands as Kyle tried to reach something on the top shelf of the cupboard above the stove. "Goddammit, come on," he hissed, outstretching his fingers and perching on his toes. Kenny laughed and threw the towel down, strolling over towards him.

"Need help, Love?"

He sighed, "I wish I could say no."

"You just don't know how to quit me," he smirked. He reached up over the boy and grabbed the bottle he was aiming for. He wrapped his other arm around his small waist as he lowered himself and kissed his cheek sweetly.

He giggled, "I suppose not." he returned the peck before grabbing the bottle from Kenny's hands and studying the label.

Kenny blinked at it. "What the fuck is worchest...wor...

"Worcestershire," Kyle smirked.

"Yeah. What is that sauce?"

He laughed lightly. "A little bit of everything. Now come on. Let's get it going. I've already got the rice on the stove, so I'll cook up the chicken if you'll cut some veggies for me."

"Anything for you." he squeezed him softly. He grabbed the vegetables Kyle had laid out and grabbed a knife from the holder. He saw Kyle observing him and smiled. "French knife," he recalled, brandishing it to his view. Kyle smiled and turned to his chicken, dumping it into his skillet and starting to let it sizzle, pushing it around a with with a wooden spoon. He turned towards the food items in front of him and started cutting into them briskly. He started slicing into a red pepper and a small smile spread over his face. Cooking in a kitchen with his boyfriend. What could make this moment better?

"Ouch," he hissed. Never wonder for the better.

He held up his now bleeding finger, watching the crimson seeping down his hand.

"Oh God, Ken," Kyle said worriedly, turning his chicken down and rushing to his side. He grasped his hand and examined the wound carefully. "Are you okay?"

"I'm alright," he shrugged. "Just a flesh wound."

"Let's clean it up," he said. "Hold it over the sink." Kenny nodded and did as told, watching his boyfriend as he ran in and out of the bathroom with a first aid kit. He threw it on the counter beside Kenny and opened it, rummaging around and grabbing some gauze. He turned on the faucet and ran Kenny's finger under the water, gently stroking the blood away. He dabbed at it with a towel before wrapping it in the bandage tightly.

"Thanks, Nurse," Kenny smirked, taking his finger back and wriggling it a bit. "Kiss it and make it feel better?" he pouted at him. Kyle laughed softly before taking his hand and gently pressing his lips to the gauze.

"Better?" he asked.

"Almost...," he purred, lifting Kyle up and sitting him on the counter.

"Dude, food!" Kyle protested. Kenny pulled back and pouted a bit, prompting the redhead to smile apologetically. He reached to his side and grabbed Kenny's vegetables and his prepared sauce and dumped them into the skillet and turning back to Ken. "Kay," he smiled.

Kenny grinned back and pulled his body forward, locking their lips. Kyle placed his arms over the blonde's shoulders, pulling him in closer. Kenny leaned in-between his knees, pressing his head back against the cabinet and running his good hand through his scarlet curls. He brought up his other hand and stroked the boy's cheek with his thumb. Kyle broke away from his mouth slightly, nipping gentle at the skin on his caressing hand. The blonde started pecking at his jawline, both of them moaning softly. Kyle removed his arm from Kenny's shoulder, grabbing his spoon and softly stirring their meal.

Kenny laughed softly into his jawbone, "You're too talented."

"Mmm, same to you." he chuckled, his head falling back slightly as a tongue traveled down and back up his jugular. He dropped the spoon and grasped him again, shuddering softly as the muscle explored the crevices of his throat.

"We should cook more often," Kenny murmured.

"Fuck the cooking, we should just do this," he purred back.

He chuckled warmly against his neck. "Sounds like a plan." Their lips met again, their tongues engaged in a warm ballet, their breathing heavy and deep, in time with their rapidly beating hearts.

"Guys, come on!"

They broke apart, finding Stan and Cartman both slamming their foreheads into their palms.

"Jesus Christ," Stan muttered. "That's it. We're not leaving you two alone anymore."

"We're just cooking," Kyle said innocently, pointing to the simmering sauce on the stove.

"I have a feeling Ken was ready to bend you over the damn counter, Kyle," he growled.

"I'm always ready," Ken smirked. "Now if you don't mind, Kyle's teaching me some cooking techniques and I'm trying to pay attention."

"Uh huh," Cartman raised his brow. "Like what?"

"Well, my heart's beating, our saliva's busy blending, and I'm feeling a little whipped," he purred as he leaned up and met foreheads with his smiling Jew.

"Oh god," Stan shook his head. "Can you please just make the damn food?"

"I'm not your wife, Stan," Kyle frowned.

"Yeah, he's Kenneh's."

"And he's a very beautiful one at that," Kenny pecked his nose before pulling back a bit. Stan just rolled his eyes and walked over to the food, stirring it around and sniffing it a bit.

"What's in this?"

"World War sauce," Kenny replied. Stan gave him a raised brow and Kyle giggled a bit.

"_Worcestershire_ sauce, some pepper, some garlic, a bit of cornstarch, some brown sugar, and some chicken broth...it's a lot better tasting than it sounds and we couldn't do much else with what we had. We'll have to make a grocery run sometime soon."

He nodded, "okay. We'll do that tonight I guess." he placed the spoon down on the counter, staring at the two of them. "Mind if I ask you a question?"

"Depends on the question," Kyle raised his brow.

"Can I ask why it is you two are always seconds away from fucking when you're alone?"

"Oh God, here we go," Kyle rolled his eyes. "So we make out a little, what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing really, it's just...really weird to me, okay?"

"How so?" Ken inquired.

"I've never seen someone jump into making out so fast and making it last more than two weeks, ya know?"

The redhead raised his brow, "Stan...we have a relationship 17 years in the making. It's just...escalated a bit in the past few months."

"Yeah, really. I mean, we were always hanging on each other and whatnot as kids," Ken shrugged.

"Yeah, but now you're sticking dicks up each other's asses," Cartman commented.

"As I said," Kyle growled a bit, "we've escalated how far our relationship spans. I don't really see the problem here."

"There is no problem, Ky," Stan defended. "It's just...," he bit his lip and sighed. "I don't know. I don't want you hurt."

"How would he be hurt?" Ken asked lowly.

"Well, okay. I know you two love each other, you've told each other that often enough and just the way that you two are is enough to prove that to me...however, we all know that not all relationships last, right? You two, after not even dating a day, decide to spend eternity with each other. I mean...just seems..."

"We see your point," Kyle interrupted. "But..."

"You don't get it," Kenny continued. "Look, we've made it clear to each other that we know that not everything will go perfect. We fight. It happens. But we also see our responsibilities. We see we care about each other. We're going to stave this out. Whether or not you support us doesn't matter. We've got to try," he reached over and shut the stove off.

Stan and Cartman looked at them before nodding slowly. "Okay, sorry I brought it up," Stan said softly.

Kenny backed up and helped Kyle off the counter. Kyle looked at his best friend and sighed. "You shouldn't be sorry for thinking," he replied, pulling dishes from the cabinet and starting to spoon rice onto each. "I mean, I understand your point to some extent. Me and Ken are different. We...we had a bit of a rocky start. But things are settling down. We work through our problems, other worldly or not," he shrugged, spooning out some of his sauce over it. "I think it's best that we not question our relationships, hm? You would hate me if I questioned yours and Wendy's."

"Why would you question us?" Stan asked, taking the plate that Kyle handed him and grabbing forks for them all and handing them out.

"How many drunken phone calls have I gotten at 4 in the morning after you broke up with her?" he raised his brow.

"Sorry," he winced sheepishly.

"Stan, I'm not mad. I'm your best friend, I'm supposed to do that," he smiled softly. "My point is though, if I just looked at the surface, I'd say you're not right for each other, she's a bitch, you deserve better, etcetera etcetera," he took a bite of his food and chewed before continuing, "however, being who I am and looking past the stupid fights you two have, I can honestly say that you don't deserve better."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Stan blinked.

He rolled his eyes and swallowed. "I mean that you don't deserve better because they don't come much better for you than Wendy. You two seem different, but you're really quite similar. I think you two sync well with each other and I'm sure that you two will go off and get married someday living off of a NFL paycheck. But had I been someone like say...Cartman," he gestured towards the larger boy, "I wouldn't be able to see that because I'd be too damn dense to notice the little things that make you and Wendy who you are."

Stan swallowed some food and stared at the boy for a moment before breaking their eyes apart and staring at his plate. "Huh. Yeah...yeah I guess you're right," he nodded. "I mean, just being me, I still think it's weird as hell. And I may always believe that," he shrugged. "But you two are pretty alike, I think you'll be okay."

"Just okay, huh?" Kenny asked.

"My opinion doesn't matter too much," he smiled sheepishly. "I'm human. I still have reasonable doubt lingering around, ya know?"

"No one knows more about doubt than me," Kyle chuckled. "This is a situation where logic gets in the way, though," he said sadly. "I can't keep thinking like I normally do or I'm going to mess everything up."

"Not possible," Ken replied, leaning his head on the smaller boy's shoulder.

"I don't know," he sighed, "I've come awfully close a few times."

"Nah," he disagreed, kissing his ear. "We're gonna be fine. I promise."

"How can you promise me something like that?" he asked.

Ken smiled reassuringly at him. "Kenny McCormick doesn't break his promises." Kyle grinned back softly, leaning into him as they continued to munch on their food. As Kenny chewed, he leaned back against the counter and breathed deeply, a content feeling lingering in his chest.

* * *

He watched as he carefully sniffed the glass in his hand, his nose scrunching in obvious distaste.

"Don't smell it, Kyle," Kenny advised. "Trust me, that takes away from the purpose."

"What purpose? Why are we doing this?" he blinked.

Cartman rolled his eyes and sighed impatiently. "Because, Dickhead, we want to get drunk. Only way to do that is through this wonderful invention called alcohol."

Kyle frowned at him, "But why do we need to be drunk?"

"We don't need to be," Stan explained, his tone slurring a bit. "It'd just be nice to do, ya know?"

"No, Stan, I don't know. The only time I've been drunk, I only lasted a bit before I went unconscious."

"Hence the reason I'm controlling your alcohol flow," Kenny smiled, taking a shot like a pro. Kyle watched him in interest before looking back at his own shot glass, swirling the contents around a bit.

"What is this?"

"Whiskey, Stupid," Cartman answered, taking another shot himself.

"Oh," he responded quietly.

"Kyle, just slam it down, Dude," Stan rolled his eyes.

"I...I um..."

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to," Ken interjected. "No one will judge you for that."

"I will," Cartman raised his hand.

"Cartman will," he shrugged.

Kyle looked between them all and then back towards the liquid in his hand. He took a deep breath and raised it to his lips. He quickly swallowed down the glass, choking a bit as it slid down his throat. He covered his mouth with the back of his hand and coughed. "What the fuck?! Why do people drink this stuff?!"

"It's a required taste," Stan shrugged.

"Acquired," he rolled his eyes. He placed the glass back on the coffee table and leaned back into the couch. "I think I'm done," he said softly.

"Pussy," Cartman muttered.

"Fuck off, Cartman," Kenny growled. "He doesn't have to do anything," he slammed down another of his own.

"No, he doesn't," he agreed. "He's still a fag pussy, though."

"Shut up, Cartman," Kyle muttered, crossing his arms and pouting slightly. Kenny worked his arm around the Jew and squeezed him lightly.

"It's okay, Kyle. Almost no one likes it the first time around," he assured him.

"Not me," Stan laughed softly. "I loved it," he winked. Kyle and Kenny smirked at him. Stan didn't have to have much to knock him into drunken stupidity.

"Same," Cartman nodded.

"What about you, Ken?" Kyle blinked.

"Uh, I was okay with it," he shrugged. "Wasn't too amazing or anything..."

"But you continue to drink." Kyle stated.

He winced, "You want me to stop?"

"God, Ken, I'm not a prude. You drink, so what? I told you just make sure I'm around and we'll be okay. Go ahead and drink, see if I care."

"Aw, he gives you so much freedom," Cartman slurred. Kenny had to shake his head. Cartman and Stan both acted tough, but were total lightweights when it came down to it. Three shots in and they were already losing it. Cartman took his fourth and stared at the blonde. "You're losing this, McCormick. He's gonna take everything your poor ass has, you know that?"

"What?" he blinked.

"He's taking your drinkin' privileges."

He narrowed his eyes slightly, "Dude, I'm fine with that. I don't need to drink much anyways."

"Don't see why when you're living with such a naggy housewife," he rolled his eyes.

"I am not naggy!" Kyle scowled.

"Lies, all lies," he replied, taking yet another shot.

"Alright, calm down," Stan intervened. "Why don't we watch a movie or something to pass the time?"

"Getting wasted isn't enough for you?" Kyle asked.

"Moving pictures are funner with alcohol in the system," Ken grinned. "Whatcha got?" he asked Stan.

He got up off the couch and slightly staggered towards a small cabinet under the television and started shuffling through it. "What sounds good?" he asked.

"Something bouncy," Kenny smirked.

"Hm...Rocky Horror?"

"What the hell's that?" Kyle asked.

Cartman burst out laughing, "are you serious?! You don't know the Rocky Horror Picture Show?"

"Um...n-no?"

"Really?" Stan raised his brow. "Jesus Christ, you did live under a rock."

"Well...sorry," he said softly.

"Don't be sorry, just watch," he smirked, popping the DVD in and retreating towards the kitchen. Kyle cuddled into Kenny and the blonde watched him carefully. He looked upset about something, but he couldn't tell just what. Only one way to find out.

He leaned in to his ear and whispered, "you okay?"

Kyle looked up at him with saddened eyes. "I dunno," he shrugged. "I feel kinda stupid."

"Because you didn't know perhaps the dumbest movie known to mankind?" he raised his brow. Kyle just nodded. Ken sighed and pulled him in closer. "Dude, no. Don't feel like that, okay? It's just a movie." Kyle nodded again and nuzzled into his side, breathing deeply as he pulled his legs up beside him on the couch and curled up. Kenny laid his head atop his and they listened to their heartbeats coinciding.

"Here, Ky," Stan said, handing him a beer. "If you can't handle whiskey, at least get a little buzz," he smiled his patented Super Best Friend grin and took a seat next to him. Kyle smiled back softly and accepted his offer, popping the cap off and taking a long sip. Kenny watched as he drank, enticed by the bobbing of his adams apple and the gentle glowing of his skin from the setting sun shining through the window. He caught Stan staring at him, too and raised his brow. Stan looked back at him and shrugged, turning to watch the movie playing across the screen.

Kenny followed his gaze, though his interest quickly fell as he had seen this movie several times. He laughed a bit as Stan and Cartman drunkenly sang along with 'Dammit Janet', watching as Kyle tried his best to follow the story line.

Good luck with that.

He caught a glance of his notebook thrown on the table in front of them and couldn't help but sigh. It wasn't like he hated what he did, really. He got to save people, and that's rewarding in a sense. But it was stressful. He and Kyle were the only people qualified to do anything about it, really. Stan and Cartman had access to actually see and communicate with the spirits as they could, so where did that put them? Was it their job now, too? Did their duties merely lie in keeping their mouths shut about it?

If so, lucky them.

He looked over at Cartman, who's eyes were glazed over from the effects of the whiskey. "You alive, Fatass?"

He shrugged, "I dunno. More alive than your bank account."

He was fine. His eyes fell over to Stan, who was looking a bit woozy.

"What about you, Stan? You look kinda tipsy."

"I'm fine," he muttered, "just not used to whiskey shots I guess."

"Well seven in a row probably wasn't the smartest thing you've ever done, Stan," Kyle lectured, his eyes still on the television.

"Just because he isn't some pure little freak like you it doesn't mean he's an idiot, Jew."

"I didn't call him an idiot, Cartman. I merely said it wasn't the smartest move of his life."

"Which is a fancy way of saying 'idiot'," he rolled his reddened eyes.

"Fuck you," he muttered, taking another large swig of his beer. Kenny looked from him to the shot glass in his hand and sighed. He felt it working, his head was a lot lighter and his mood was elevated, but he decided to call it quits. He had to laugh silently at himself. Living with his Jew had certainly changed him. Never before had he passed up free alcohol. His motto had always been to finish the booze, break the bottle, and lick the remains. But that was the past, and especially after the Craig incident, he had no intention of getting too hammered again. As the movie played on, Kenny did nothing more than steal some sips from Kyle's beer, but still felt some effects going from his shots. His face felt heated and the warmth emitting from the boy leaning against him was almost unbearably hot.

Almost.

"Stan, what the fuck?!" Kyle squeaked, yanking back slightly into the blonde. Kenny looked down at the ebon-haired lad, seeing his hand upon Kyle's leg.

"What are you doing?" Kenny blinked. He retracted his hand and leaned against the opposite end of the couch, sitting indian-style and grinning stupidly.

"I think you're right, Ken."

"About what?"

"If I was gay, I'd totally bang Kyle," he laughed, taking another drink.

"Okay, that's enough for you," Kenny stated, taking the bottle from off the table and standing, going to put it back in the fridge.

"Stan! Get off!" Kyle cried out from the room. Kenny quickly walked out of the kitchen, seeing Stan hovering above his boyfriend. His eyes narrowed and he walked over to them.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" he growled.

He shrugged. "I dunno. Kyle looks kinda hot right now. And Wends isn't around."

Kenny's eyes flashed to Cartman, who was looking half-dead from boredom, his eyes lazily watching the flickering screen. He looked down at his redhead, who was staring at Stan with wide and fear-glazed eyes.

"Stan, get off of him," Kenny demanded. "You're drunk."

"He's sexy," he smirked. Kyle yelped slightly as Stan pushed him down and leaned over top of him, though careful not to hurt him. "Come on, you said you wanted a threesome," he shrugged. "Why not?"

"With Kyle's permission, you asshole," he growled. "He obviously doesn't fucking want that, so get off of him!"

"I think it'd be killer, though," Stan smiled. Ken's eyes went back down to Kyle, who was trembling, facing the side of the couch and trying not to touch Stan.

"Get off of him before I fucking take you off of him, Marsh!"

Stan pouted and lowered his hips, sitting atop Kyle's. "But...it'd be fun."

"No! You're fucking drunk, you idiot! Now get off of him!"

He smiled devilishly and ground his hips down into Kyle's, prompting a long cry to escape his lips. "Get off, Stan!" he pled, trying to push him off.

Stan grabbed his wrists and smirked at him. "Come on, Dude. Don't tell me you don't want this."

"I don't!"

"Where's your sense of fun, you damn hermit?"

"Get off!" he repeated, trying to pull away. Kenny grabbed Stan and tried to yank him away. Stan kept his hips pressed down tightly. "Stan, please!" Kyle cried, thrashing a bit.

Kenny growled and forcefully yanked Stan up, bringing Kyle with him. They all fell to the floor and groaned softly. Kenny pushed Stan away from his boyfriend and pulled the young boy up and away from the drunken one. "Come on," he muttered, leading him towards the door. Kyle just trembled in his arms, looking back at his best friend, who was sitting on the floor staring after them. They quickly walked out of the room and into the warm sunlight, heading down towards the beach.

They began walking the water's edge, with Kyle still protectively embraced in Kenny's arms. "W...Why did he do that?" Kyle's voice cracked.

Kenny sighed and squeezed him tighter. "Stan's an idiot when he drinks. He had way too much for his tolerance level. Don't worry, he'll be back to normal soon enough."

"Well that's great for him!" he sniffed. "God...he was...he was just like...oh God, Kenny...he was just like them!" he cried and dove his face into Kenny's side. Kenny pulled him in and bit his lip angrily. Kyle had been doing so much better and now Stan had to fuck it all up.

Stan was going to wish he was immortal, too if Kenny acted on his feelings.

"It's okay," he assured him, gently rubbing his back. "You're okay, I promise."

"But my best friend just fucking...Jesus Christ, Kenny," he shook his head into his palms.

"I know, I plan on killing him later," he kissed his temple. "I won't let anyone hurt you like that again, I promised you."

"I know you did...but this was Stan!"

"I know."

He sighed and cuddled into him farther, "I can't believe him...I don't care if he's drunk, that's no excuse for that!" he growled angrily. "I never fucking imagined him being like that!"

"Well, I told you he's fucking retarded when he's drunk. He's called you but he's never really hung out with you, has he?"

"N-no..."

"I've been to many a party with him and let me tell you that he's completely different. I mean, I've seen him making out with a dude before," he chuckled.

Kyle blinked at him, "you...you're serious?"

He nodded, "yeah. Don't know who he was, but Stan was playing tongue hockey with him. Stan unleashes his inner homo when he drinks. I find it quite amusing usually, but right now I'm fucking pissed off."

"Well, I'm proud of you," Kyle smirked softly.

"Why?"

He laughed gently, "Stan offered a threesome and you refused."

"Well, as I said, that day will come when you're ready," he smirked back. "I would never do that to you, Dude. And you know that sober Stan never would either."

He nodded, "I know. Still scared the living shit out of me...I've never seen his eyes like that before," he said softly.

"Like what?"

"He looked so...I dunno..."

"Lust filled?"

"I guess," he nodded. "And determined. I dunno. It scared me nonetheless."

"Well, he'll sober up and you two will be back to hanging out like nothing happened in no time," he shrugged.

"I know," he said softly. He sighed and looked out towards the water, smiling softly. "Wish South Park looked like this," he mused.

Kenny nodded in agreement. "Yeah, the view's pretty sweet."

"Not as sweet as you," he smiled.

"You're gay," he smirked.

"Ditto," he stuck his tongue out. Kenny laughed and pecked his lips.

"Yeah, but I couldn't be happier that I am," he smiled at him. Kyle returned the expression and they continued walking down the beach when something caught Kenny's eye. "Oh dude, a crab!"

Kyle chuckled, "yeah, they're common."

"Let's catch it and keep it as a pet!"

"Ken, no," he frowned.

"C'mon! We'll name it Carl," he grinned goofily.

He blinked. "Carl. You want to name a crab...Carl."

"Well, yeah," he shrugged. "Come on, let's get him!" he broke off of Kyle's hand and ran towards the crustacean. Kyle laughed and followed him, breaking out more towards the water. Their feet splashed in the shallow ocean, spraying up around their feet and splattering onto their shorts. The crab scurried further into the water and Kenny pursued it, Kyle taking after him. Kenny dove down into the water to grab for the animal, but it slipped away too quickly. He stayed submerged for a bit, watching Kyle's legs as they approached him. He broke the surface and looked at him with a goofy smile. "Missed him."

He chuckled, "Obviously."

"I know something else that I can catch, though," he smiled, standing up and shaking his head a bit.

"What? Pneumonia?"

He chuckled. "Nah. It's small and red. The damn things fast as hell, but I've caught it before."

"What?" he blinked. Kenny smiled at him maliciously and his eyes widened with realization. Kenny growled playfully and lunged for him, but Kyle turned and dodged, causing Kenny to plunge face first into the water. He gasped as he looked back up, seeing Kyle laughing at him. He smirked and jumped back up, advancing towards him briskly. Kyle laughed again and turned, sprinting away from him as he grabbed for him again.

"Goddamn you!" Ken chortled, chasing after him. They quickly sprinted through the breaking water, hopping over waves and dodging various seashells. Kenny neared him and outstretched his fingers, reaching for his arm. He lunged forward and grabbed him, pulling him back into him. Kyle slammed into his chest and they fell over into the water, completely submerged as a wave broke over their heads and thrust them apart. Kenny struggled and pulled himself back upright, gasping for air. He looked around for his Jew.

"Kyle?" he asked. "Dude? Ky, where are you?" Nothing but the sound of the waves breaking. "Kyle!" he shouted, scanning around desperately. He dove his hands down and searched the water. "Kyle?!" he began to panic slightly. Suddenly, something grabbed his waist as a wave crashed into him and brought him flying towards the shore. He spluttered as he collided with the sand and looked down to find Kyle smirking at him, firmly planted to his waist.

"Gotcha," he smiled.

Ken looked at him and laughed in-between pants. "You...you suck."

"Mmm, sometimes," he said saucily. "But only if you're a good boy."

"I'm always a good boy," he batted his lashes. He pulled Kyle up further onto him into his chest and they locked lips, letting the waves rush around them gently.

"How cliche," Kyle chuckled.

"We're not too cliche of people," he smirked. "We need some boring ol' romantic shit to balance us out."

"Not boring," Kyle corrected. "More...prosaicism than anything," he smiled.

Kenny blinked. "I'll take your word on that."

Kyle laughed softly and met their lips again. Kenny ran his fingers through his soaking curls, feeling the water dripping from them and contacting his own golden skin. They moaned softly, caressing each other's chests and shoulders. Kenny lifted his hips to meet Kyle's and pulled him down closer. Kyle pulled back and stared into his azure orbs.

"Not here," he said softly. Kenny frowned but looked around, finding a row of dunes behind them.

"There?" he pointed.

Kyle followed his gesture and smiled back down at him. "Maybe."

Ken broke into a grin and sat up, pulling Kyle up with him and rushing them over to the hills. He yanked him up to the top and surveyed around, finding an alcove of trees a ways down. "Come on," he urged, tugging on him and running down the hill with him. As they reached flat ground, Kenny turned and swooped the boy into his arms, his pace still steady and quick. Kyle merely grasped onto him, knowing full well that Kenny wasn't going to be stopping anytime soon.

After what seemed like a lifetime, they finally reached the trees. They looked around for signs of anybody watching, not finding a single soul. Kenny grinned and lowered Kyle onto the ground, climbing atop him and smiling. "Good?"

He nodded, "Yeah, good."

"Good," he replied, throwing his face against Kyle's and continuing where they had left off. Kyle propped himself up on his hands as Kenny sat atop his legs, stroking his hair lovingly.

They broke off and looked into each other's yearning stares. "You look so fucking hot in my clothes," Kenny growled. He smiled as Kyle grew his blush, "However," he continued , "you look pretty damn fine with your clothes off, too." he ripped off the shirt and threw it over his shoulder with a wild grin. He bent down and picked him up again, moving him over towards a tree.

"You're not tying me to it, are you?" Kyle asked from his arms.

"Unfortunately I'm lacking the materials to do so," he smirked, pushing him up against the trunk and smiling slyly. "This'll work just fine though," he pressed their hips against each other forcefully, gaining a gasp from the smaller boy. He smiled and leaned down, licking the underside of his ear, grinding into him. He could feel the pace of Kyle's heartbeat increasing along with his own and he sighed contently. He pushed his own shorts down and kicked them to another area of the alcove, pressing his hardening flesh into Kyle's trunks. He moaned softly and moved his mouth up to meet Kyle's briefly.

"Switch," he smirked, whirling their positions around. He yanked down Kyle's shorts and he flung them aside. He threw the t-shirt he had torn off of Kyle down below him and slowly sat down on it. He curled his index finger towards the Jew, grabbing his hands and pulling him down atop him. Kyle sat on his knees, straddling Kenny's thighs and looking at him saucily. Kenny pulled him forward and kissed him again, running his tongue along the boy's lips and teasingly rubbing his length. "Come here," he ordered, grasping his hips and yanking him up further on his legs. He spit on his fingers and reached around, invading Kyle and causing him to squirm around uncomfortably. "Hold still," he commanded. Kyle stopped moving, but his face contorted lightly and his fingers dug into Kenny's shoulders.

After he finished preparing him, Kenny slid a bit down the tree behind him, pressing his cock against Kyle's. "Come on," he took the boy's hips again and guided him up and over his throbbing member. Kyle grasped his shoulders tighter as he lowered himself onto it, biting his lip in a fit of pain and pleasure. Kenny thrust his hips upwards and noticed a slight stinging.

Kyle noticed it, too, as he cried out a bit. "Dude!"

"What?"

"There's sand on your dick," he winced. Kenny blinked for a moment before smirking.

"Guess we're in for a bit more feeling, huh?" he growled, pushing up some more into him. The small beads scraped deliciously in-between his cock and Kyle's body, sending them both steady courses of added pressure. Kyle threw his head back and let out a cry, his fingernails digging into Kenny's skin.

"I...I..." he started, trying to catch his breath. "I don't want sand up my ass!" he stated, looking back at Ken with half-pained eyes.

"Well we'll have to flood it out, won't we?" Ken purred, slamming into him harder. Kyle whimpered and threw his head into Kenny's shoulder, biting down tenderly on the skin. He started rolling his hips to match Ken's rhythm, the sand's coarseness pressing up into him relentlessly. Kenny's eyes rolled back slightly as the grains ran over the sensitive skin of his cock and he moaned huskily, tightening his grip on Kyle's slender hips.

"This is gonna hurt like a bitch afterwards," Kyle panted against his skin. Kenny snickered and turned his head, kissing his neck.

"I'm willing to take that risk," he hummed.

"Oh fuck!" he hissed as Ken increased his pace. The grains began to burn, sending tingles throughout their bodies. Kenny began biting down on Kyle's neck, leaving his mark as always, suckling and nipping furiously in time with the upwards thrusting of his hips into the boy. Kyle moaned and relished in the attention, still matching Kenny's rhythm. His cock scraped up and down the blonde's abs, riveting through the dips and curvatures of his toned skin.

"Like this, don't you?" Kenny grunted.

"Y-yes," he nodded breathlessly.

"How come?" he bit him.

"So...good...," he panted.

"How good?" he thrust harder. He could barely keep his head straight. Had to keep it to simple sentences.

"Oh God," he moaned, leaning further into him.

"How." Thrust. "Good?" Harder.

Kyle let out long whine and tensed slightly. "V-very..."

"Very what?" he demanded.

"Amazing," he gasped out as Kenny hit his prostate and he trembled in ecstasy.

"Same thought," he chuckled, rewarding him with a few jolting pushes against his sweet spot. Kyle threw his head back again, raking the blonde's back with his dull nails and leaving bright red streaks. He reached down and grasped Kyle's cock, stroking it sensually in contrast to his relentless driving.

"Ah!" Kyle squeaked as Kenny started jerking the blazing skin. "Mmm...," he groaned, putting his head back down and panting, gritting his teeth against the scraping he felt. "Oh god...it stings..."

"But it's good, huh?" he laughed brokenly.

"Y-yea...but...oh jeez..." he panted heavier, falling into Ken's shoulder and rolling his hips more feverishly into Kenny's pounding.

"Oh god, Ky," Kenny moaned, kissing his collarbone furiously.

"K-Ken...Ken, I'm...I'm gonna..." he breathed rapidly, clasping around him tightly. He released with a small moan, tightening his knees around Ken's thighs. His muscles clamped down on Kenny and he couldn't hold back his own explosion. He held the redhead tightly against him as he felt his warmth receding out back down onto his legs. They stayed tangled together, sweating and panting as they nuzzled into each other, Kenny's flesh softening inside of him. Kyle slowly sat up off of him, wincing as the length fell out of him, some remaining grains running down with the skin. "Ow...," he winced.

Kenny laughed softly. "Yeah...yeah, now I hurt."

"Jesus Christ, what the hell made us think that was a smart idea?"

"Nothing. I wasn't thinking for shit," he chuckled. "All I knew was that I had a pretty Jew on my lap and he was willing to be with me so I just went."

"Damn straight you just went," he hissed.

He frowned, "are you mad at me?"

He blinked at him and laughed, "No, Ken, I'm not...I just hurt a little."

"I'm sorry."

"We're on a beach. There's a lot of sand, I can't really say I expected anything else," he shrugged.

"Well, I certainly didn't," he laughed. Kyle smiled and shakily stood from his legs, holding out his hand and helping him to his feet as well. They walked over and grabbed their discarded shorts and yanked them back on. Kenny walked back over to his shirt and held it up for Kyle to see. "Wanna put this back on?"

Kyle looked at him unamused. "Yes Kenny. I absolutely love wearing clothes covered in cum."

"Really? Damn you_ are_ kinky!"

He narrowed his eyes slightly and Kenny couldn't help but laugh. He pulled off his own shirt covered in Kyle's release and sighed. "Well...we should probably head back to the house, huh?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Maybe Stan sobered up some."

"Or passed out."

"Either way is fine with me," he grumbled. They walked out of the alcove together and headed back up the dune. Kenny pulled him under his arm and cuddled into him, kissing his head softly.

"Feeling okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," he nodded. "I'm okay."

"You're lying," he sighed.

Kyle looked up at him sadly. "Well, I'm a lot better than I was, that's for sure."

"That is a good thing," Kenny nodded.

"Heh, stop worrying so much, Ken," he smirked gently. "I'm okay."

"I can't help but worry," he pulled him in more. "I care about you too much to not care."

"That was redundant."

"Doesn't make it any less true."

He chuckled softly as they reached the bottom of the dune and started back home. "I know you care, Ken and I am grateful that you do. And I can't thank you enough for helping get Stan off of me."

"You coulda taken him," he smiled reassuringly.

He snorted, "Yeah. The little ginger nerd can take on the quarterback."

"You're tough. If you can survive sex with me you can get through anything," he smirked.

He laughed softly, "Guess I can't argue with that logic," he broke from out of his arm and intertwined their fingers. He sighed, "Oh well. All that matters is that nothing really happened. I have to be thankful for that."

He nodded, "yeah. Look at the bright side of things," he grinned.

"I've been trying," he looked up at him. "I really have. It's just..."

"Hard," he finished. "And I totally get that, Dude. But I'm happy that you're really trying the optimistic route. I'm really proud of you for that, Kyle."

"You shouldn't be proud that I'm just trying to not be a depressed idiot."

"But I am. You're really trying to recover despite everything you've been through. I'm seriously ecstatic about it." he kissed his cheek. Kyle just sighed softly and nuzzled into him.

"I want to be better. I really do."

"I know."

"But...seeing Stan do that...God, it hurt, Ken. It really hurt."

"Don't worry about it," he reassured the boy. "I'll make sure that Stan never touches alcohol again unless it's like, one beer or something. And you know that he wouldn't hurt you."

"I know," he nodded. They heard a loud noise to their side and looked up, seeing a group of people having a party up at one of the beach houses, blaring music.

"Looks like they're drunk, too," Kenny mused.

"Heh, good for them," Kyle gave a short laugh. "Is it true you've never danced before?" he asked suddenly.

"What?" he raised his brow.

"Dancing. You said when we were playing 'Never Have I Ever' that you had never danced with anyone."

"Well so did you."

"Yeah...but I was a shut in. I figured you would have danced with someone before to...well...um..."

"Seduce them?"

Kyle blushed. "Um, yeah. Sorry."

"Don't be," he shrugged. "Nah, I never had to," they walked on and up towards the condominium. "I'd wink and they'd just...go," he shrugged again.

"Must be nice to have that kind of...power," he said softly.

"You do, too. Everyone knows Kyle Broflovski," he smiled at him.

"And hate me."

"Nah, you saw your yearbook. People were just jealous of you. You're rather seductive yourself, my little Jew, you just haven't fully realized it for yourself. You have a lot of power over people with just your cute little pout," he pinched his cheek gently. Kyle brushed his hand away and sighed a bit.

"Not really. Being the frizzy haired nerd doesn't do much for matters of getting someone to like you."

"I love you, so obviously something works here," he smirked.

"Ken, you and me...it's different, ya know? We actually know each other inside and out...other people know us on our appearances alone. And I think it's rather obvious that one of us far exceeds the other in that category."

"Ehhh, I dunno," he teased. "We have good looks on different levels."

"Different levels?" he repeated, furrowing his brow in confusion.

He nodded, "yeah. I have the rough dirty boy look and you have the angelic bookish look. I mean, that chick from a few days ago basically paid you for a kiss."

"Thanks," he said bluntly. "Now I feel like a whore."

"Ky, you're taking it the wrong way," he shook his head. "If I considered you a whore, I would have forced you into a threesome with Stan. You know that I don't think of you like that and you shouldn't have that kind of mindset either."

"Sorry."

"Stop apologizing," he said as they approached their door. They took a deep breath and walked inside, greeted by Stan lounging on the couch with one of Kyle's books, a CD playing softly in the background.

He looked up and smiled at them, "good. I was afraid you weren't coming back or something."

Kenny narrowed his eyes at him and pulled Kyle closer into himself. "Why are you waiting for us?"

"Well I had to make sure you were okay, Idiot," Stan rolled his eyes.

"Stan...why do you have my book?" Kyle blinked.

"Hm? Oh, movie ended and I was bored, so I just grabbed the one you left on the counter. Sorry," he shrugged.

They looked at him suspiciously. "Do...do you remember what the fuck you did?" Kenny asked.

"You mean try to force myself on Ky? Yeah," he nodded casually.

"Well thanks for sounding so okay about it," Kyle growled through gritted teeth. Stan smiled at him gently and sat up.

"Ky, Ken, can you sit down for a minute? I wanna talk to you."

They exchanged glances before walking over and plopping down beside him on the couch. Stan leaned back and sighed. "Dudes, I totally knew what I was doing. Yeah, I tend to get stupid when I'm drinking, but enough time had passed for me that I could still tell what was going on."

"Then why would you-" Kenny started, only to be stopped by Stan's hand.

"Let me finish," he said gently. "Now, I did what I did for my own reasons. And I don't mean just the idea of attacking Kyle," he said firmly. "Honestly, I was trying to figure something out for myself."

"Like?" Kyle blinked.

"Just how much Ken cared about you. How much you meant to him above what he wanted," he shrugged. "I know you, Ken, you're a fucking sex machine. I wondered what came first, the idea of Kyle being with you or the idea of merely fucking him."

"Why would you even think like that?" Ken demanded. "I mean, we obviously didn't have sex after he was raped or anything!"

"I know, I know," he nodded. "But just the way that you talk about your sex life and how Kyle's so against you doing it...I dunno," he shrugged again. "I guess my mind tried to figure things out for itself."

"So you thought that...faking trying to rape me...would fix things?" Kyle raised his brow and shook his head in confusion.

"Not fix things, but solve things for myself," he answered. "Look, Kyle, you're my best friend, Dude. I had to make sure that Ken wasn't going to take me up on my 'offer'," he quoted in the air. "If he had, I would have bashed his face in and taken you home."

"Couldn't you have found a better method than scaring him half to death?" Kenny scowled.

"Name me something better. Talking is too easy to lie through."

Ken blinked at him. "I...I don't know..."

"Exactly," he nodded. He looked back at the redhead and sighed. "Ky, I'm sorry I scared you. I just...I needed to figure things out, okay?"

"Did he pass?" Kyle asked.

"What?"

"Did Ken pass your test?" he elaborated.

He smiled and nodded, "Yes he did. Trust me, I don't think that I'll be doubting your relationship again anytime soon."

"Well...good," he said softly and sighed. "Just...never ever ever do something like that again, please?"

"You have my word," he promised.

"Where's Cartman?" Ken asked.

"I hauled his sorry drunken ass to bed," he rolled his eyes. "He was pretty much gone anyways."

A small silence filled the room, save for the soft music playing.

"Playing Seth's stuff, huh?" Kenny smirked.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Some of it's weird, but it's pretty good if you really think about the lyrics."

A new song started and Kyle smiled. "I like this one," he mused. "Not their usual sound, but I like it, nonetheless."

Kenny stared at his peaceful face a moment before smiling at him. "Dance with me?"

He looked at him with a quirked brow. "Huh?"

"Will you dance with me?" he asked.

"If you want to," he shrugged.

"I do. We can be each other's firsts," he winked. Kyle laughed softly and Ken stood, pulling him up with him from the couch. He threw the soiled shirts across the room and placed his hands on Kyle's hips as he grasped his shoulders. "Number four," he whispered into his ear as they began moving.

_Here I stand_

_Against the world_

_But all that matters is you, Girl_

_They can gawk_

_They can stare_

_Not like we really care_

Kenny and Kyle both started swaying their hips slightly, looking at their feet awkwardly, trying to find the rhythm. Dancing was too much like sex. Too much movement and you'd fuck up everything and get tired too easily, too little movement and you'd seem retarded.

_I have fought_

_Through love and war_

_And it only brings me to you more_

_Trying to see just where we are..._

They finally fell into beat with each other and the music, smiling as their feet glided across the hardwood floor. Stan pulled the coffee table against the couch to move it out of their way, leaning back and quietly observing them swaying around.

_I was shocked _

_With what I found_

_Then I nearly hit the ground_

_I found that you held my heart..._

_So come with me,_

_Cue up the band._

_Show me now, make me see_

_Try to make me understand_

_How I came about taking your hand..._

Kyle and Ken looked up into each other's eyes and Kyle laughed softly. "I feel really gay right now."

"We are," Ken smirked. "I'm happy we are."

"As am I," he smiled widely. Kenny leaned his head down, letting their foreheads rest against each other, their breath falling into pace with the music.

_How it started,_

_I don't know_

_But everyday; my heart, it grows_

_I see you_

_And I see me_

_Taking, the world; being free_

_And I know_

_I'm not alone_

_Without you, I'd not flown_

_Into my dreams, into where I belong..._

"Love you, Ky," Kenny smiled.

"Love you, too, Dude," he grinned back. They pressed their lips together, still moving to the beat.

_So come with me,_

_Cue up the band._

_Show me now, make me see_

_Try to make me understand..._

"And Cartman said Jews don't have rhythm," he smirked. Kyle laughed and clasped onto him lovingly, Kenny wrapping his arms around his frame and nuzzling into his hair.

_How I came about taking your hand..._

Kenny met eyes with Stan and they smiled at each other. They both saw the good in this. Kyle looked up at Ken, and he saw a light pink shade overpowering his emerald gaze. He bit his lip happily and held onto him tighter, dancing around the room still with his little Jew.

He probably looked gayer than he ever had in his life, dancing around a living room with his boyfriend in their swimming trunks to a slow pop-rock song while their best friend watched...but he couldn't be any happier.

He was a key. He knew it. He was perhaps_ the_ key to Kyle's happiness. The key that made him keep trying, that urged him to keep on going even though things just seemed to keep getting harder. But that didn't matter right then.

The trial, the threats, their job, the cloud that had stayed over their head had momentarily dissipated; lost in the soft notes of the music and the warmth emitting from the bodies and the overall emotion of the two lovers. Locked in each other's arms. Locked in each other's lives.

* * *

_A/N: Mmm, fluffy gay. I went from sand-in-the-ass sex to slow dancing._

_You have to admit, that takes talent XD_

_Anyways, that's our last vacation chappie. Next one, we're back home. However, the trial isn't starting just yet. I have one issue I want resolved beforehand. It's a biggie, but I need it out of my way._

_So next chap will be very Kenny-centric. Cause we all love Poor Boy =D_

_But trial = soon._

_And after the trial...well my loves, I'm going to start wrapping it up =)_

_But don't worry, we still got a few things to do before hand. We got at least eight more chaps in this, so no problems, right? Right._

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_PS: Once again, the horrid song. They only sound good in my damn head with my made-up music along with it. If you read it as a poem, it's just like, 'EW'. Oh well._

_PPS: Rocky Horror Picture Show. God I LOVE that movie XD...first time I watched it, though, it was with my parents. Yeah. Janet's 'Touch Me' song...I had to leave the room. Never watch with the 'rents, kids. It's...it's not fun O_O'_


	43. No Promises

_A/N: This is kinda sucky. I got to skip school today because I didn't want to go to pizza parties all day, but my mom had me come into her job to work -_-...and I get to go to my real job a few hours later. Blech._

_But I brought my laptop, so we're gonna have some fun =)_

_Enjoy _

* * *

_Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock._

He watched the second hand ticking by slowly, draining away at all his energy as he sat behind a desk, impatiently tapping his foot.

"What's wrong, Ken?" the woman beside him asked, shuffling through some papers.

"Joe said he'd have the stupid reports by noon. It's past noon," he grumbled. "I'm bored out of my skull here."

She smirked at him. "Just be thankful we're not incredibly busy. When we're like that, you'd give anything to be bored out of your skull, trust me."

"I'd love something in-between," he whined. "I mean, I've been sitting here for like, an hour and a half."

"Here, go file these, then," she handed him a few folders. He took them and stood, turning to the cabinets behind him and searching through the drawers for the files. The door jingled and he turned, smiling upon seeing the visitor.

"Ky, hey," he grinned, throwing the file into its space and closing the cabinet. "What's up?"

He shrugged, "I'm on my lunch. I decided to stop in and see you since you're only like, two minutes away."

"Well I always enjoy your visits," he smiled, leaning over the counter and pecking his lips sweetly.

"Take your lunch," the woman waved him away. "You're bored anyways, might as well head out."

"Thanks, Nancy, I'll be back eventually," he stated as he stepped out from behind the counter.

"As long as you do come back," she smiled at him. "We'll see you after bit."

"Alright. Tell Joe I'm pissed at him."

"Will do," she chuckled.

"Bye, Nancy," Kyle waved as Ken took his hand and started leading him out the door. They stepped out into the air and breathed deeply together.

"So, how's your day goin'?" Ken asked.

"Eh, a bit dull, but I'm finding things to do. Gloria has me looking around and rearranging books so they match the damn dewey system better," he rolled his eyes. "How about you?"

"Same. Well, no rearranging books, but I've been twiddling my thumbs for forever. Joe was supposed to give me stuff to fill out and file, but he's taking for-fucking-ever."

"Aw, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Wanna grab some food?"

"Hence the reason it's referred to as lunch, Ken."

"Shut up," he smirked. "Whatcha in the mood for?"

"I say we just hit the sub shop. Quick and cheap."

"Works for me," he smiled as they made their way there. Kyle yawned softly and leaned his head on Ken's shoulder. "Tired?"

He nodded, "Yeah. I had a freaky-ass dream and had some trouble sleeping."

Kenny bit his lip. "I thought I told you th-"

"I wasn't scared," he interrupted. "It was just weird. Trust me, it was not worth waking you up over. I was just a little confused about it."

Kenny separated their hands and threw his arm around Kyle's small shoulders. "Tell me about it."

He sighed and looked up towards the sky. "It was...different, that's for sure. At first, I really thought it was just going to be another nightmare. I heard myself screaming...and I was standing out in the middle of this field that had this disgusting looking snow in it. Then, it like, faded away and I was in a courtroom. I think it's kinda obvious why my mind went there."

Kenny nodded, "yeah. A bit."

"But then, it got fucking strange," he said slowly. "I had...yams. Seriously. There were goddamn yams everywhere! They kept falling on top of me. And then...this gargoyle...," he laughed in disbelief, "this gargoyle comes down and ties me up with this frayed wire and takes me away from the courtroom. He dropped me in the middle of another field, but this one...this one was better...it was green even though there was snow falling...but seriously, it was the most fucked up dream I have ever had." he shook his head a bit as they stepped into the sub shop.

Kenny nodded, "seems pretty strange."

"God, it was weird," he murmured. They stepped up to the counter and placed their order, grabbing their food and heading over to a corner booth. They sat down and slowly and silently munched on their sandwiches before Kenny spoke up.

"Screaming means that you're unleashing pent up feelings," he said softly. Kyle looked up at him with a mouth full of food and raised his brow.

"Huh?"

"If you hear yourself screaming...it means that you're really angry or scared...and you're releasing it in your dreams," he took another bite and swallowed before sighing. "A dead field means that your perception of the future is pretty bleak. You really don't like what's coming to you. My guess is that this is about the trial," he shrugged.

Kyle placed his sandwich down and leaned forward, listening intently. "What else?" he asked softly, staring at his boyfriend in awe.

"Dirty snow means that you feel...unclean," he said slowly. "It means like...a loss of innocence in a way. I'm thinking that this entire part of your dream is all about what happened to you and how you feel now." Kyle nodded slowly, agreeing with his guess. "Now...the courtroom, I'm not too sure about," he leaned back in his seat. "I mean, usually it means that you're being judged. But I'm not sure what that has to do with it. Or it could very literally symbolize how you're going into a courtroom."

"Okay...," he said softly.

"The...you said yams, right?"

"Yeah, yams," he shrugged.

"Yams usually mean that you're thinking about like, family memories. So maybe the prospect of you going against your dad in court is being shown through the potatoes."

"Huh. That's...that's odd. Why do yams mean family memories?" he cocked his head slightly.

He shrugged, "I'm guessing because they're like, a traditional family meal at holidays? I'm not really sure. But that's what I've found about them."

Kyle nodded slowly and they both took a bite of their food. "What about the gargoyle?" he asked.

Kenny swallowed and looked at him seriously, "they mean you're hiding secrets. Embarrassing or hurtful secrets. The cable he tied you up with, since it was screwed up, meant that you have a lack of strength. It's probably referring to the fact that you don't wanna tell anyone what happened to you just because of embarrassment or whatever."

Kyle frowned, "not embarrassment...just...okay maybe a little," he shrugged. "I just don't want them all to know what happened."

"Ky, what happened to the cable once the gargoyle dropped you?" he asked.

"Um, it...disintegrated, why?"

He leaned forward, gazing into his confused jade eyes. "You don't get it," he said lowly. "Kyle, these secrets of yours? They're holding you back. The gargoyle dropped you into a field, and he's gone with the cable. Green fields mean freedom, Kyle. And the falling snow? That means peace. A new start. Once he dropped you, once you got rid of the secrets, everything got better."

"The secrets got rid of me," he raised his brow.

"Don't get technical on me. I just want you to see this. Ky, the sooner you let go of all this, the sooner you tell what happened to you, the sooner it'll go away. This dream was a sign, Dude. You need to read it."

Kyle stared at him for a moment. "Ken...I...I don't know how."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I don't know how to...how to tell people that kind of stuff...," he shook his head slowly.

Kenny reached across the table and grasped his delicate fingers. "Why is it so hard?"

"Ken...the stuff they did... the things they made me do...No one should have to tell a crowd of people that kind of thing," he said softly. "Especially not a crowd that involves my closest friends and my relatives," he sighed heavily. "I can't imagine what's....I don't know what'll happen if they find out."

"Who in particular is 'they', Kyle?"

"My family, Stan....you," he said quietly.

"I want to know, Kyle. I need to know. Look, I watched them the first time they really did something to you...did it get worse?"

He nodded. "Yes. I...I know this'll sound dumb...but I wish that they'd stuck to just doing that to me," he muttered. "If I'd had a choice in the matter...I would have just let them keep doing that."

"What else did they do to you?" he whispered.

Kyle shook his head, "no. Not here. Not now. Maybe in a month you'll hear about it. Until then, I'm not going any further. I've made up that much in my mind."

Ken sighed sadly, "you're absolutely sure that you won't? Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do," he looked at him lovingly. "But it's...it's hard, Ken. It really is. You know that I tell you what I can...but you and I are different. You're easily able to talk about what's wrong, you're able to tell me if something hurts...Ken, I can't do that so easily. Think about it, I had to hide my depression for years, I had to train myself to not share. It's not easy for me to just come out and say what's on my mind."

"Well, you trained yourself to be a virgin, too," he smirked, leaning his chin into his palm. "You had no problem sharing that with me."

"That's different."

"How? How is talking more personal than your virginity, Kyle?"

"No, Ken," he sighed. "I mean...okay...I really don't know what the fuck I'm supposed to tell you. I guess trying the emotional level first was just too hard for me to jump on, ya know?"

He nodded, "I get that. Our emotional level was only up to best friends, which was a hell of a lot, but we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into when we started."

"But as time went on, it got a hell of a lot easier," he continued. "But as close as we are, we're still different people. I just wish that you could understand how much I wish that I could share with you."

"No, I get it," Ken sighed. "I know you. You're a kid who focuses on his mind more than his mouth. I just hope that one day you'll actually be able to share with me."

"I do, too," he said softly. He sighed and looked at his watch. "Oh shit," he muttered. "Our breaks are over in like, three minutes."

"Crap," Kenny groaned, standing from his seat along with Kyle. They rushed out, throwing their half-eaten sandwiches in the trash as they passed it by. They broke into a small sprint down the walkway, their footsteps matching each other's. As they approached the psychiatrist's and slowed a bit, they paused outside the door and smiled at each other.

"What time are you off?" Kyle asked.

"Um, five."

"Cool, I'm off at three. I'll make dinner and I'll see you then."

"Alright," he grinned. He leaned down and briskly pecked his lips. "Love ya."

"You too," he gave him another peck before quickly breaking away and walking down towards the library. Ken watched after him for a moment before walking back into work.

"I'm back," he waved at Nancy.

She smiled at him, "So I see. Lunch good?"

"Very."

"Looks like you were getting some dessert there, too," she nodded at the door with a sly smirk.

"You know it," he winked, walking over and sitting next to her at his place. "Joe bring the damn papers yet?"

"Not ye-"

"Right here," a man's voice called. They looked over and saw the hazel-eyed man walking towards them. "Sorry they took so long," he winced sheepishly. "Here," he handed them to Ken, who scanned over them quickly.

"This all of em?"

"Yup," he nodded. "You have your lunch already?"

He nodded back, "Yeah. Me and Ky hit the sub shop the next street over."

"How's he doing?"

"Pretty well. He plans on coming in for his appointment tomorrow still," he shrugged. "He's having some freaky ass dreams, though."

"And you've been interpreting them for him?" he asked, leaning against the counter and staring at him.

"Yeah," he looked down, picking up his pen and starting to fill out the forms handed to him. "I'm trying to explain to him that the damn things are trying to tell him to tell what he's hiding from everyone before the trial, but he won't listen to me. Or at least he listens, but won't actually spill."

"And he may not," Joe shrugged. "Kyle's secretive. He was suicidal for years, Ken. He's not going to just open up and blossom."

"I know, but it's hard seeing him like that."

"I bet," he nodded. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, what's up?" he asked, not letting his eyes leave his paper.

"Your interpreting of Kyle's dreams...they're pretty damn good to put it bluntly."

"Thanks?"

"You're here as an intern, so you need some experience other than just filing papers. I have one client that I'd like you to help me with."

He looked up at him and raised his brow. "How?"

"Well, we really focus on her dreams. It's our main source of helping her figure some things out about her life. She has memory lapses and we're trying to help her piece her life together. I'd like you to interpret her dreams for her next session."

"Um, sure," he smiled. "That'd be pretty awesome. When's her next session?"

"Uh...tomorrow?" he smiled sheepishly. "I have all the notes on me, but I have a buttload of work I need to do for some other clients as well. Would you be willing to analyze them for me and then sit in our session tomorrow and discuss your findings? It'd be excellent practice on your part."

"Sure, I can do that," he nodded. "All seven days worth?"

"Unfortunately," he laughed. "Her memory of her dreams is really great, very vivid. It's just during the day, she relapses and loses a piece of her memory. But she dreams about the memories she lost. Really, it's quite amazing."

"That's sad...but really neat," Ken smiled. "Are they like, specific situation dreams or what?"

"Well I'm gonna leave that up to you to find out," he grinned. "I'll get her notes and hand them off to you. Then you just finish those forms and you can start on them. Your memory of your notes is impeccable, but we also have some outside resources you can check out if you want."

"Awesome, thanks, Dude."

"Thank you," he smiled back. "I'll go grab those for ya." he walked back into his office and Kenny turned back to his forms.

"Wow, he's never let an intern in that fast," Nancy blinked.

"Really?"

"Yeah," she laughed softly. "He wouldn't let the last one in for a year. Course, she was just doing this to get out of classes."

"Well, that's not my case," he smirked.

"And that's a good thing," she nodded. "I'm glad you're serious about this. This is really a good career to get involved in."

He laughed nervously, "I'm not...too sure that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life."

"Well, what do you want to do?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I mean, I've never really had an interest in anything in particular."

"Well, maybe this will instill some interest, hmm?"

"Maybe," he shrugged again with a smile. "I mean, I've only been here over a month and I'm liking it here."

"I'm glad," she looked over at his forms. "What does he have you filling out?"

"Appointment records," he replied. "I have to make sure all the dates and payments are right."

"Ooh, fun," she smirked.

"Hey, it keeps me busy," he laughed softly. "So I really don't mind too much."

"Here they are," Joe called to him, walking back over with some papers in hand. He took them from the man and quickly looked them over. "Think ya can handle it?"

He nodded, "yeah, I think so. If all else fails, I'll have Ky look some specifics up in some books while I tackle the generic stuff."

"Good planning, I like that," he smiled. "Well, I have some stuff I need to take care of, so I'm going to disappear for awhile. Thanks again, Ken."

"No problem, Boss," he grinned. Joe nodded at them before turning and walking back into his office. Kenny stole a glance at the clock before looking at the notes in his hand. A few hours before he could be home again and see Kyle's shining face. Oh well. He asked for it.

* * *

Kenny stumbled up to the door with books piled in his arms. He tried to grab his key but failed miserably.

"Need help?"

He turned to see Joel walking up to him. "That'd be so awesome of you," he said. "My key's in my left pocket if you need it."

"I have the master key," he smiled, brandishing it to view. "How are things at work?"

"A lot more overbearing than it was last week," he breathed with a laugh as Joe unlocked the door for him.

"Well, you'll get that sometimes," he laughed.

"You look awfully dressed up there, Joel," he raised his brow, looking at his slacks and tie. "What's the occasion?"

He smiled gently, "If you must know, I have a date tonight."

"Ooh, who's the lucky lady?" he inquired.

He laughed softly, "Sal."

"Really? Ky said that it would happen one day and I just never believed him."

"Yeah, it's our sixth date," he nodded. "Feels pretty great."

"Well that's awesome, Dude."

"You have no idea," he chuckled.

"Oh but I do. I happen to have Kyle Broflovski on my arm. I know just how lucky a guy can feel," he smirked.

He nodded, "Guess I can't argue with that." He walked up and pushed the door open for him. "Well have a good night, Ken."

"You, too. Don't stay up too late now," he winked. "You got work in the morning."

"Yeah, I should say the same to you, Kid," he smirked. "Goodnight."

"Night," he nodded as Joel shut the door behind him and re-locked it. His nostrils were hit with the smell of butter and garlic and his stomach growled instinctually. "Ky? I'm home, Dude!" he yelled, kicking off his shoes beside the door.

The redhead popped out from around the inlet window and smiled. "Hey," he greeted.

"Hello, Love," he smiled back. "What's cooking?"

"Chicken and pasta," he replied, walking around and towards him. "What's all the books for?"

"Work," he smirked, dropping them down onto the coffee table and sighing tiredly. He turned and kissed Kyle, slightly nibbling on the boy's lower lip before pulling away. Kyle grinned and looked down at the stack as Ken fell into the chair.

"Doing more dream things?"

"Yeah," he nodded, watching as Kyle picked up a book and studied the back of it inquisitively. "Joe wants me to help analyze a client for tomorrow."

"All seven days worth?"

He nodded again. "Yeah, I only got halfway through the second day," he rolled his eyes. "He sent me out on a bunch of errands and stuff and I didn't get much time to look at it."

Kyle smiled sympathetically, placing the book back on top of the stack and walking behind the chair, reaching down and massaging Kenny's shoulders. He moaned softly and leaned into the warm touch of the delicate fingers. "Well, you get a nice dinner and that should help you relax some more," he said softly.

"I know...," he murmured, lost in the firm pressure on his neck and shoulders. "Will you help me?"

"Of course I will," he promised, leaning down and planting a gentle kiss on his hair.

"Yays...," he yawned.

"Tell you what," Kyle said, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Why don't you take a nap for awhile. Dinner'll be ready in about an hour. I'll wake you up, we'll eat, and we'll work on this thing of yours together, hm?"

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"God I love you," he murmured, tilting his head back and kissing him sweetly. Kyle smiled and pulled away slowly.

"And I you. Now get some rest. I'll get you in an hour."

"Mmkay...," he sighed, curling up into the chair. Kyle snickered lightly and patted his head before heading back into the kitchen. Ken deeply inhaled, letting the sweet smells of dinner lull him into a state of much-needed peace. He cuddled further into the chair, letting its soft cushions warm his skin. Not long after he had finally dozed off, he heard the phone ringing.

"Hello?" Kyle's voice answered. "Um...he's actually asleep right now, who is this?"

Kenny sat up groggily and picked up the phone, holding it to his ear.

"_I don't think you want to know that, Kyle."_

"Just tell me who you are and I'll let him know you called."

"_Only if you answer my question first."_

"What?"

"_Tell me. How does it feel to be so hated?"_

Kenny's heart lurched into his throat. "W-what did you say?" Kyle asked shakily.

"_He can't always protect you. He'll leave you on your own sometime."_

"Who the fuck is this?!"

"_You've brought this upon yourself. You've sealed your own fate."_

"Cartman? Is this you?!" he demanded. Kenny narrowed his eyes in concentration. The voice was distorted, probably through a radio or something similar.

"_I would watch my back if I were you, Kyle."_

"Who is this?!"

The voice chuckled lowly, _"Oh Kyle. Poor, poor Kyle. You know who this is. Don't worry, I'll make sure we see each other face to face soon enough, trust me."_

"Tell me who you are," Kyle breathed brokenly.

"_All in time, all in time. I'll be watching. I can't wait to meet again."_

The line went dead.

Kenny heard the phone clatter to the floor in the kitchen and he shot up off the chair and into the room. He found Kyle backed up against the counter on the floor, shaking and staring at the phone with wide eyes. He looked up at the blonde, still trembling. "K-Ken..."

He dove down beside him and clasped him into his arms. "It's alright," he cooed. "I'm right here, and I'm not leaving you again."

"Oh God..." he sobbed. "They're back....oh Ken...not again!" He screamed, clasping his hands over his ears.

"Look at me," Ken demanded loudly. Kyle shot his gaze up, revealing his navy iris' to him. Kenny bit his lip and held onto him tighter, stroking his hair. "This is fucking ridiculous," he muttered.

"I'm sorry," he sobbed.

"No, not you, not you," he assured him. "Damien!" he screamed out, still holding onto Kyle tightly, trying desperately to calm him down.

"Yo," the familiar voice greeted softly. Ken glanced up, seeing him looking down on them from atop the counter. "Kyle, stop crying."

"Shut up, Damien," Ken hissed. "It's your fucking powers that are doing this!"

"Hey, I told you both I had no fucking idea what they were, I just knew that they- Goddammit, Broflovski, stop crying!"

Kenny stood from his position and stood in front of the red-eyed boy. "He has every right to, you fuck!" he spat. "He's scared out of his fucking mind!"

"Why?!"

"That death threat bastard just fucking threatened him again!" he screamed. He looked back down at Kyle, who was curled up in a fetal position, covering his ears and crying for the voices to go away. He looked back up into Damien and shook his head. "Help him," he pled. "For the love of God, Damien, look at him," he gestured towards the shaking redhead.

"Not a good phrase for the son of Satan, McCormick."

"Just help him!" he demanded, grabbing the front of the demon's shirt and yanking him off the counter and shaking him. "Goddammit, help him!"

"What do you expect me to do?!"

"I don't know, but do something!"

Damien narrowed his eyes, looking down at the cowering Jew, his hardened eyes softening at the boy's disposition. He sighed and reached down grasping Kyle's arms and pulling him to his feet. Kyle shakily stood in front of him, looking up at him with his blue-tainted stare and tears streaming down his narrow cheeks. He grasped the boy's face gently between his hands and his eyes pulsed red. Kyle's eyes widened before they drooped shut and he fell limp. Damien caught him and handed him off to the blonde.

"Put him in bed, he'll be out for awhile," he directed. Kenny blinked at him before nodding and taking the boy in his arms over into their bedroom. He gently laid him down on the bed. He pulled off the boy's pants and shirt before tucking him down under their covers. He sighed sadly and brushed some of his fiery hair away from his eyes. He bit his lip and sniffled a few times, feeling a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Damien behind him.

"Come on, let's figure some stuff out," he said softly. He led the blonde out of the room and over to the couch, sitting him down and standing across from him, leaning on the television. "Now. What happened?"

Ken looked up at him distraughtly. "It was him," he croaked, shaking his head. "I...I listened to him. He...he told Kyle that he was coming for him."

Damien sighed, "McCormick, don't forget something: Broflovski has a lot of power in his possession now. He can defend himself against attack."

"Not when he's like this, Damien!" he shrieked.

"Like what? He just needs to focus and he can use his power and-"

"You don't get it!" he interrupted. "His powers waver with his emotions, right?"

"Right," he nodded.

"Well when he gets scared, **that** happens!" he pointed towards the bedroom. He jumped from the couch and began pacing frantically. "I...I can't believe I didn't connect this before!"

"Connect what?" Damien quirked his brow.

"Fear and what happens! Whenever Kyle has a nightmare or something just really freaks him out, he starts hearing these voices."

"Voices? What voices?"

"I don't know what they are. I can't hear them, only he can."

"What do they say?"

"They tell him to die and that he's alone and that he's useless and all this other stuff that depresses the shit out of him." he replied.

"So...he's crazy?"

"No!" he snapped. "This only happens when he gets scared, and his eyes turn that blue...it's something that has to do with his powers, I know it!"

"Like what?"

"How the fuck am I supposed to know that?!" he demanded. "Goddammit, Dam, why can't you tell me anything about this?"

"Because I don't know anything about it," he said softly.

"What about your father?"

"He's not really too sure either. Honestly, this is a natural power that was found with the first vessel. But they died at a young age, like seven or something, so the full extent wasn't found. The oldest we've had a vessel live to was about 20...and that was the guy that killed himself," he shrugged. "No one's really played with the power and no one, not even my father, really understands what happens and what causes what to happen to the wielder."

"Happy...," Ken murmured softly.

"What?" Damien raised his brow.

"Happy is pink. Restless is green. Angry is red. Sympathetic is black. Scared is navy. Protective is purple...I've only seen powers through the red, navy, and purple," he pieced together slowly. "But I think that his ability to feel the spirits works when he's restless, but then again, that's him most of the time, so I can't really say for sure..."

Damien nodded, "Alright, you have six different emotions that you've watched play out. There has to be some way to get them under control."

"Yeah, we figure out what the fuck they all mean!" he spat. "But you're kinda useless in that department, aren't you?"

He narrowed his eyes, "excuse me for not being oh so knowledgeable on a task that I technically don't even have to help you with."

Kenny stared at him for a moment before looking away in frustration, "Sorry," he muttered. "But...Ky's just having so many problems....and I don't know what to do about it."

"You stay beside him, you figure out what the hell these powers are doing, and you protect him. Honestly, I don't know what else to tell you, McCormick."

"I just...I just can't stand to see him like this," he said softly. "I love the kid and these powers are fucking tearing him apart from the inside, especially the damn voices. I wanna know who the fuck's talking to him!"

He shrugged. "I dunno, Dude...but I do know something that might make you feel a bit better." he smiled softly.

"What?"

"Come with me," he curled his index finger as he walked past him to the bedroom. Kenny blinked and stood, following him. They stood beside Kyle, looking down at his slumbering form. "Alright," Damien said softly. He held up his hand and a large knife appeared from the air, and Kenny's stomach knotted.

"W-what are you doing?"

"I'm not doing anything," he smirked, holding the knife out to Ken. He took it and raised his brow at the demon. "You're going to stab at Kyle."

His eyes widened. "Fuck no! I'm not stabbing my boyfriend!"

"Didn't say you'd fully stab him," he replied cooly. "We found this out a few vessels ago and it worked through all the ones it was needed for. Now, just swing your arm down."

"Why can't you?!"

He shrugged, "Dunno if it'd work for me since I'm not a mortal soul. I'm not taking a chance and actually stabbing the kid. Now do it. I promise that you'll feel better about the powers and his stalker situation."

Kenny looked at him and bit his lip, then looking down at the peaceful redhead curled up beneath him. He gulped and shakily raised the blade.

"He'll be alright, I promise," Damien assured him. "Just go."

Ken closed his eyes as he swung his arm down. He expected the sick feeling of impaling flesh, but was met instead with flying back into the opposite wall. "OW!" he cried out, holding his head after the knife dropped with a clang. He looked up to see Damien smiling at him.

"See? He's safe. His powers keep it so no one can brutally attack him if he's unconscious."

Ken shakily stood, staring at the boy in the bed. "Wow..." he breathed. "He's...he's really..."

"Strong?" Damien finished. "That he is. I have to say, though he's had so many issues, I really can't think of someone better to have these powers, Ken."

"Whaddya mean?" he blinked. Damien threw his arm around the blonde's shoulder and led them out the bedroom door, shutting it behind them.

"Kyle's different, Ken. You know that."

"Y-yeah...," he nodded,

"He cares about others before himself, but that doesn't mean that he's completely lost sense with who he is. He may not tell everyone on the outside everything, but he's well aware of his emotional strength. He knows that he's lived his life so restless, so he chooses to remain that way because he knows that his logic thrives if he's like that because it makes him wary of situations. He knows that he's short tempered, and he's able to harness and focus that power into what you've seen him do. Now, his depression and his fear are his worst enemies. But he's been trying to find a way to work past them, he told you that."

Ken nodded, "He said he was trying to be more optimistic."

"Exactly. He's working through this. He's taking it one step at a time because there's no other way to go about this, alright? You just need to be patient. It may require some puzzle-solving of your own, but your relationship is both of your greatest assets, alright?"

He nodded slowly, "I know."

"Good. Look, I have to get back, we've got a little situation at home. Can I trust you to be alright and not go on a killing spree?"

"No promises."

Damien smirked and patted his back. "Well, if you do, remember that slashing throats looks cool, but it leaves a hell of a mess. I wouldn't suggest going all out Sweeney on somebody."

"Duly noted," he smirked softly.

"Alright, see ya," he saluted as he faded away. Ken looked from the spot where he stood back to the bedroom door and he narrowed his eyes. He had to do something.

He walked over to the phone and hit their first speed dial. He waited a few rings before the other end finally picked up with a husky _"Hey."_

"Stan? Dude, it's Ken."

"_Hey, what's up?"_

"I need you to come over," he said, starting to pull his shoes on.

"_Why?"_

"I need someone to come and watch Kyle."

"_He okay?"_

"No, he's not. Look, just get over here and I'll explain everything. Just be quick about it, please!"

"_I'll be there in five," _he promised, promptly hanging up.

Ken hung up as well and put the phone in his pocket. He looked at the stack of books on the table and sighed. Looks like he'd have to make a stop, too. Great. The smell of burning food hit his nose and he ran into the kitchen, finding the chicken charring in the oven. He groaned and took it out, turning the appliance off and sighing heavily. He stared at the burnt meal and shook his head sadly. He had no idea what to do anymore.

He quietly walked back over to the bedroom door and creaked it open. He walked in in the dim lighting and over to his nightstand, sliding the drawer open. He grabbed the note in his hand and stared at it angrily before placing it into his pocket. Looking over at the young redhead curled up, he sighed and sat on the bed next to him, gently stroking his hair. He moved and caressed his loosely curled hand. Kyle's fingers slowly wrapped themselves around Ken's and he couldn't help but smile softly. He sat and enjoyed the quiet moment for a bit, though his heart still thumped slowly and sadly in his chest.

He heard the doorbell ring and he gently released himself from the Semite's grip, walking over to the door and opening it to Stan and Cartman. "Oh good, both of you," he breathed in relief, stepping aside to let them through.

"Yeah, what's going on?" Stan asked as they kicked their shoes off.

"Ky's in the bedroom, he's unconscious," he said hurriedly, starting to gather up his books.

"He black out again?"

"No, Damien knocked him out. He was having another freak out."

"Why?" Cartman asked, blinking as Kenny frantically scurried around the room.

"That death threat guy called. He knows where Kyle is and apparently Kyle knows him. I...I gotta go to the police. But I need you here. I don't want him in danger, alright?"

"Yeah, no problem, you need help?" Stan called as he opened the door.

He shook his head. "No. I want you both here. Two against one makes me feel a hell of a lot better."He quickly fled out of the apartment and down the stairs of the compex. he struggled keeping the books balanced and tripped at the last stair.

"Hon, slow down!" a worried voice called to him. He looked up and saw Sally and Joel staring at him in concern.

"S-sorry," he stammered, struggling to his feet.

"Geez, Ken, where's the fire?" Joel asked.

"I gotta go," he said quickly.

"Where?" Sally asked.

"Police station."

They froze. "Why?" Joel asked, he glanced up to the apartment and back at Ken again. "Is Kyle okay?"

"He won't be much longer if I don't get to the station. That guy that wrote that threat to him back in April called him."

"Oh God," Sally bit her lip. "Is he alright?"

"He...um, he fainted," he looked at the ground sadly.

Sally and Joel looked at each other. "Let's take a rain check," Joel suggested.

She nodded, "My thoughts exactly."

"Come on, Ken," Joel walked over and patted his back comfortingly. "I'll take you to the station and Sal will go up and check on Kyle."

"No, don't cancel for us," he insisted.

"We can always reschedule," he said firmly. "Now come on, let's go."

Ken looked up at Sal, who was stepping up towards their room. "Thank you," he croaked. She looked back and smiled gently at him before continuing on her way.

"Come on, Kid," Joel said softly, leading him towards his car. "I'm guessing you need to stop at work?" he nodded at the books occupying his arms.

"Yeah," he nodded.

"Alright, let's go." He shut the car door on Ken's side and went to his own. He started up the car and backed out onto the street and headed downtown.

"I'm really sorry," Kenny said after a few moments of listening to the gentle humming of the engine.

"Why? This is a little more urgent than dinner."

"But I feel-"

"Don't feel anything," he interrupted. "Your kids' safety is a bit more important. Me and Sal will go out this weekend or something." He pulled into the psychiatry parking lot. "Go talk to them," Ken nodded and hurried through the doors.

"Welcome back," Nancy greeted.

"Hey Ken," Joe smiled before it dropped slightly. "Something tells me that you're not going to be doing the dreams."

"I'm sorry," he frowned guiltily. "I really am, but we had an emergency. Someone's after Ky and I have to talk to police."

"Is Kyle alright?" Joe asked.

"He kinda fainted, but I have our friends watching him to make sure that no one gets in and goes after him."

"Good move," he nodded, taking the books from his grasp. "Alright, I'll pick up where you left off."

"I'm so sorry," he repeated.

"Don't be, go talk to the cops and you call us with an update, alright?" he pushed him gently towards the door.

"Thanks," he nodded softly before heading back out the exit and into Joel's car.

"Everything okay here?" he asked.

"Yeah, they understand. Let's hit the station." Joel nodded and pulled out of the lot, speeding down the street towards the police. Kenny took the phone from out his pocket and sighed.

"Why do you have that?" Joel questioned.

"I'm having them track the number."

"And then you're letting them take it from there, right?" Kenny stayed silent. "Ken, this is a police situation. Don't get too involved." he warned.

"He threatened my boyfriend. I have every right to be involved."

"You need to know the boundary between telling and tracking them down. Think about the last time you did that, Ken. Do you really want that to happen again?"

"Hence the reason I enlisted Stan and Cartman," he muttered, crossing his arms defiantly. "I'm seeing this through to the end. I'm not letting anyone make a claim on Kyle."

Joel was silent for a moment before sighing heavily as they pulled into the station lot. He shut off the ignition and looked at him sympathetically. "Look," he started softly. "You can't do this. I want you to tell the police what happened and have them track the number. I don't want you to ask for the location. I just want you to tell them to handle it. They'll catch him and then you'll be able to deal with the after effects, alright? You don't want to get hurt and you don't want Kyle in any more danger than he needs to be, alright?"

Kenny looked back at him and sighed shakily. "No promises," he muttered, turning and clambering out of the car. Joel shook his head and followed suit, trailing him into the station.

"Hello," the receptionist greeted. "Can I help you?"

"I need to speak with a cop," Kenny said bluntly. "I need a number tracked and then someone strung up by their neck." Joel clasped a hand over his mouth and looked sadly at the receptionist.

"Sorry, he's a bit upset about the whole situation," he explained. "Could we please speak to an officer...," he glanced at her nameplate, "Penny?"

She nodded, gesturing back behind her with her thumb. "Officers Bostic and Mager are here. You can speak to them."

"Good, I know them," Ken nodded, walking past her desk briskly.

"Thank you, Ma'am," Joel said politely before following him.

"Customer service never dies, does it?" Ken murmured as Joel caught up to his pace.

"Heh, lots of training, Kid. Trust me." They walked past a few holding cells as they neared the desks towards the back. They approached the officers and nodded at them sharply.

"I recognize you," Bostic raised his brow at the young blonde.

"Yeah, I was there when you arrested Mitchell Derrick after he attacked my boyfriend."

"Oh, yes," Mager nodded at him. "How is he?"

"He's okay...but now he's in trouble again."

"Okay, what can we help you with?" Bostic put his paperwork down and stared at him intently.

Kenny took the phone from out his pocket and slammed it on the table. "Track the last number," he said. "Someone wrote him a death threat awhile back and then they called him tonight. He got so freaked out he had a breakdown and passed out. I want this person found."

"Do you have the first threat?" Mager asked. Kenny nodded and handed him the paper.

He quickly skimmed it and looked up at Ken, "When was this written?"

"April."

"Why didn't you come forward sooner?" he asked, handing it to Bostic to read over.

"We figured it was an empty threat," he said softly. "But this guy talking to him tonight...it's obvious that this isn't empty. He's really after Ky. Can you help me find him?"

Bostic nodded after finishing his reading. "We'll track 'em down. Before hand, we need Kyle's guardian to fill out a few things."

"Uh...that's...that's not gonna work," he shook his head slowly. "His guardians kinda...aren't...uh...speaking to him. Ever."

"I'll do 'em," Joel suggested. "I'm not his guardian, but I'm old enough to be."

"What's your relationship to him?"

"He's Kyle's uncle," Ken said quickly. "He's visiting." Joel looked at him with an eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Alright," Mager nodded. Follow me and we'll get some paperwork done. Bostic, go work on the phone call. And you," he pointed at Ken, "Stay here. Just sit and wait, alright?" He nodded. "Good." The adults all walked out of the room, leaving Ken standing alone in the middle of the area. He walked over and plopped himself onto a chair, sighing heavily and staring at the ceiling. He leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to fight off his impending migraine.

"Hey there, Kenny."

No such luck.

He shot his head back up, finding himself staring into the demented brown eyes of Mitch himself. "How's it goin'?"

He growled and turned away from him.

"Aw, you don't wanna talk to me?" he pursed his lips. "I think you should. It's your damn fault I've been stuck here for two fucking months."

"It's your fault!" Ken retorted through gritted teeth.

"You do wanna talk!" he taunted. "Come on, look at me and let's chat. Not like I can hurt ya or Kylie or nothin'."

He turned and looked back at him. "Don't they record what you say, you twisted freak?"

"Not anymore," he shrugged. "They did the first few days, but they don't give a shit anymore."

"Wonderful," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Ain't it though? So. How's little Kylie?"

"Shut up."

"It was a general question. Not like I questioned as to your sex life or anything."

"Don't fucking call him Kylie," he growled.

"Why not?"

"Because I fucking said so!"

Mitch waved his hands in front of him. "Ooh, big man. I'm scared now," he laughed. "Couldn't defend your little boyfriend both times I got a hold on him. Why should I be intimidated now?"

"Shut up!"

"Strike a nerve, did I?" he clucked his tongue. "Not my fault you can't protect a 90-pound weakling."

"128!" he spat back.

"Oh, sorry," he drawled out. "Didn't recognize that huge number difference there. Either way, he's like, fucking puny. Don't see why you got so upset over me and Barn taking him. I mean...you would, too," he shrugged.

"No I wouldn't, you fuck! I don't fucking rape people and then turn around and go back for them!"

"Easy prey," he smirked. "Kylie's just what I like in a person. Weak, helpless, willing to bend to my will, and pretty. Not to mention someone who gives good head and such," he chuckled lowly, leaning against the bars of his cell. "So. Sounds like someone else is after Kylie's pretty little ass, too, hm?"

"It's none of your fucking business."

"And why not?"

"Because you sick freak, Kyle's going to fucking put you behind bars for life!"

"Oh really?" he leaned his head into his palm. "Funny. His daddy is pretty sure that we're gonna win. He's got a lot to use against our little redheaded friend."

"Like what?!" he demanded.

"Like I'm gonna be stupid enough to tell you that," he rolled his eyes.

Kenny growled and looked away, but felt something prying at his pocket. He whipped his head around, finding the glowing green stare of a boy trying to delve into his wallet. They locked their gazes, the boy looking far beyond Ken's level of shock.

"Y-you can..."

He nodded softly, trying not to let Mitch see him.

"H-how...?"

Ken turned and wrote a note on a piece of paper on Bostic's desk.

"Doodling?" Mitch snorted.

"Yeah. Trying to imagine a creative way to fucking murder you," he muttered back. He finished writing and flickered his eyes back and forth between the boy, signaling for him to read his notes. The boy looked up and skimmed the paper.

"W-why do I need to t-talk to you?" he asked shakily.

He wrote again: '_Trust me. I'm going to help you. Just hold on. I can't talk with this guy around us. Sit down and wait for me. And stop trying to steal my wallet.'_

The boy nodded and sat down beside his chair, trembling just slightly. Ken looked back up into Mitch's eyes and growled. "I want to ask you a question."

"Is it about how I claimed your boyfriend? Because that's quite a long answer."

"NO!," he shouted before slamming his eyes shut and taking a composing breath before opening his lids once more. "Why?" he asked simply.

"Why what?"

"Why would you do something like that? Why would you go after someone like you went after Kyle? What's your motive?"

"You don't need to know."

"Yes. I do," he breathed heavily. "You completely destroyed him. I don't think you get just what you did to him. You wanted an easy victim. You got to fuck him a few times and that's all. No skin off your nose until you got caught. But he's...he's lived with the fucking torture. The nightmares, the pain, everything. I want to know what the fuck justifies what you did!"

He smirked. "Told you. Easy fuck."

"Going back after him wasn't easy," he growled. "Kidnapping me and holding me for fucking ransom for Kyle's body wasn't easy. There's something else here and you're just not telling me."

He chuckled lowly. "Of course I'm not. There are some things that kids just don't comprehend."

"How will you know I won't 'comprehend' unless you tell me?!"

They looked up at Joel and Mager walking back into the room and then looked at each other again. "Maybe in a month, you'll know," he snickered, walking back into the corner of his cell and lying down on the cot. Kenny growled at him, but felt a gentle hand upon his shoulder. He looked up to see Joel staring down at him.

"Come on," he motioned. "They'll take care of the number and call you in the morning."

Kenny looked at him sadly before nodding and standing. Mager walked up and patted his back. "Don't worry. Bostic's tracking it down. We'll know where it came from soon enough, alright?"

"Kay," he nodded.

"We'll get in touch soon," he clapped his shoulder. "See ya around."

"Thanks," Ken half-smiled.

"Thank you," Joel added before leading the blonde past the officer and to the front doors. "Come on, Ken, let's get you home."

"Um...can I walk?"

"Why?" Joel blinked.

Ken's eyes flickered towards the boy trailing shyly behind him and sighed. "I just need some time alone. Please?"

"O-okay," he nodded. "Keep your phone on."

"Yes, Dad," he smirked. Joel smirked back and climbed into his car, pulling away from the station slowly. Ken watched him go and looked down at the kid next to him. "So," he smiled gently.

"How c-can you s-see me?" he asked.

"I have awesome powers," he shrugged. "What's your name, Kid?"

"I'm Jacob," he said shyly.

"Hey, Jacob, I'm Kenny."

"H-hi," he waved.

"Hi," he nodded. "So, I'm gonna help you."

"With what?"

"You're stuck on Earth for some reason and I need to get you to your afterlife. Will you come to my house so we can talk?"

"Um...I gots to get my sister," he stated urgently.

"Your sister?" he repeated.

"Y-yeah...can I? I'll meet you back out here, I promise!" he held out his pinky. Kenny chuckled and returned the pinky swear. Jacob broke off their fingers and ran back into the station.

Ken sighed and sat on a bench out front, staring intently at his feet. What Mitch had told him was still bothering him. He wouldn't comprehend it? What was that supposed to mean? Wasn't he just a horny jackass? Or was there something that he had missed completely?

"I gots her!" he turned his head around to find Jacob pulling a younger glowing girl behind him, sucking her thumb. He got up off the bench and went to kneel in front of her.

"Hi," he smiled. "What's your name?"

"s'Kayla."

"Kayla? That's a pretty name." He looked between the two of them. "Will you talk to me at my house? I have some cookies and stuff for you."

He was sounding way too much like a pedophile for his tastes.

They smiled brightly. "M'kay," Jacob grinned. Kenny grasped his small hand as he held on tightly to Kayla's still and they walked linked together down the sidewalk. Kenny took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. He'd wait to talk to them until Ky was with him, it just made things easier. He looked back down to see a familiar form approaching him and he narrowed his eyes.

"Why are you here?" he spit.

The form walked up to him and shrugged with a sheepish grin. "Free fucking country, McCormick. I'll do as I see fit."

"Go fuck yourself," he muttered.

"Nah, fucking you was more than enough."

"Shut up, Tucker," he growled, trying to step around him.

"Why?" he blocked his path. "Admit it, you totally want to do it again, don't you?" he smirked.

"Don't make me bash your face in, Craig!"

"Aw, that's not very nice," he pouted. "I mean...I gave you a free fuck and on top of that I haven't even gone after your boyfriend yet! I mean, I'm just all kinds of nice."

"Fuck you!"

"Mmm, do you wanna? I'll let you," he batted his lids mockingly.

Kenny blinked before snapping back into focus. "Not what I mean, you freak. You fucking threw drugs into my drink and raped me and now you act like we're all cool?! What the fuck is wrong with you?" he demanded.

"Not my fault you're so retarded you couldn't figure out what was happening."

"What's going on?" Jacob asked, tugging on his hand. Ken's eyes flickered down towards him and he looked back towards his black-haired opponent.

"I don't have time for this," he muttered, pushing past Craig and leading the kids away.

"Just wait," Craig called after him with a chuckle. "Even Kyle will disregard the pathetic person you've become."

Ken froze in mid-stride. "What did you say?" he asked softly.

"You heard me."

Ken whipped around, letting go of Jacob and faced Tucker again. "It was you...It was you, wasn't it?" he whispered, shaking his head softly. Craig looked back at him, still smiling.

"Took ya long enough," he replied simply.

"Wh-why?" he shook a bit. "Why would you do something like that to someone you like?!"

Craig rolled his eyes. "Please. I have no interest in that Jewish nerd's scrawny ass. I was trying to get you two apart, but you're both so fucking stubborn, nothing worked!"

"What?!" he backed up in shock. "Why?!"

"I let you be my first and you just fucking stumbled away the next morning," he growled.

"S-so? I did that to a lot of people..." he blinked.

"Yeah, well it pissed me right the fuck off. You fucking made me miserable! So I figured why not return the goddamn favor!"

"How is writing Kyle a death threat supposed to get revenge on me?!" Kenny shook his head still. This was so fucking confusing...

"God, you're so fucking stupid," he rolled his eyes before settling their cold grey stare back on the baffled blonde. "I thought that the tension of the note and trying to figure out who wrote it would drive you two apart. I was hoping that you'd break up and be fucking torn to shreds. Obviously, that didn't work."

"W-wait..." he shook. "W-why did you...but...why did you do what you did to m-me?"

"Well, I was hoping that once Kyle saw you didn't have your clothes on, he'd figure it all out. Apparently Mr. Valedictorian can't even acknowledge the simplest of clues."

"He figured it out right away," he retorted. "But he made sure I was okay!"

Craig blinked a few times. "Are you serious? I fucking fuck you and he just takes you back, no questions asked?!"

"You raped me, you idiot! He wouldn't break up with me when you fucking attacked me like that!"

He yelled in frustration and tugged at his ebon hair. "I don't believe this! Goddammit, be miserable like me!"

"Not possible. I have Kyle," he sneered. "I don't have a reason to be miserable."

"You will once I fucking kill his ginger ass," he glowered.

"What?" he challenged.

"You heard me. I'm going to fucking break you down just like you broke me, McCormick. And if a certain Jew happens to get in my way, well that's not my fault, it's yours."

"Fuck you!" Ken screeched. "You're not touching Kyle!"

"Unless I do," he raised his brow. "You can't always protect him. He'll be alone and you'll find him bleeding on the floor. Won't that be fun?"

"Kenny...," Kayla whined. "He's scaring me!" Ken looked down at her quickly and shot her a comforting smile before looking back up at Craig and scowling.

"You're. Not. Touching. Him." he repeated, breathing heavily.

"Maybe I won't have to," he smirked. "Dad's got a gun," he shrugged. Ken's eyes widened and he ran towards him with his fists drawn. Craig jumped at him and they collided their fists time and again; grabbing each other and randomly flailing their limbs, trying to make solid contact with each other.

"Just get the fuck out of our lives, Tucker!"

"Nah, too much fun," he smirked, pushing Ken back. His muscular football-enhanced build easily overpowered the blonde and he went spiraling back into the ground. He landed against the concrete harshly and cried out in pain. Jacob and Kayla ran to his side.

"Are you okay?" Jacob blinked. "Hey you!" he lectured Craig. "Don't be a meanie!"

"Yeah!" Kayla contributed. Ken groaned and slowly sat up.

"Craig...what the fuck did I do? I just fucking nailed you, I mean, come on!"

"I didn't realize you were so into one night stands," he growled.

"What? You thought we'd date or something?"

"I don't know, McCormick! Guess I was expecting something more than a fuck and a 'see ya at school', ya know?"

Ken blinked. "Dude. I was the whore of the school! You can't honestly say that you thought you'd get more out of it."

"I thought if I let you top it'd be better and my chances of something else would increase," he rolled his eyes.

"I never bottomed!" he exclaimed. "Everyone I was with was always taking it, got it?! You weren't an exception to my rules! I never bottomed until I let Kyle on top about a month ago!"

"And that pisses me off, too! I should have been your first, not that fucking kike!"

Ken jumped to his feet, "Don't you call him that!" he screamed.

"I'll call him whatever the fuck I want to!" he flipped him off.

"Oh, real original Craig," he nodded mockingly. "God, you fucking asshole! I made it clear to you that I was in it for some ass, got it?! I'm with Kyle. Only Kyle. I don't want you!"

"Good, I don't want you either anymore," he growled. "I just want you fucking torn apart!"

"Good luck with that. Ky's not getting hurt again. I'm personally guaranteeing it. So you're pretty much screwed there because if I have him, I'm fine."

"Not if I put you in a hospital," he growled.

"Just because I didn't date you?!"

"Good a reason as any to stab someone," he snarled, pulling a flick knife from his pocket. Kenny's eyes widened and he backed away slowly.

"Dude...don't," he held his hands up defensively. "I didn't realize you wanted more. I would have let you be if that was the case."

"Too late now," he sneered, advancing towards him quickly. Ken tried to keep up with his pace going backwards, but slipped in a puddle of water from a discarded leaky hose and fell to his ass. Craig continued to run towards him and pulled the knife back. Jacob and Kayla screamed and Ken held his arms up over his eyes, waiting for the attack. Suddenly his body was overcome with cold and he was sure that he was hit before he looked up to see a purple flash explode in front of him and send Craig skidding backwards against the walkway. He blinked before looking at his hands, seeing a purple glow emanating from them. He looked in the puddle of water, seeing his eyes vibrantly pulsing with violet iris'.

"What the fuck?" he murmured. He felt his phone vibrate and reached in, flipping it open, keeping his eyes on Craig's unmoving form.

"Y-yea?"

"_Dude, Kyle's not breathing!" _

Ken's heart stopped. "Stan? Why? What's going on?!"

"_I-I dunno! I was watching him and all of a sudden, he glowed blue and stopped breathing!"_

"B-blue?"

"_Yeah! Is he gonna be okay?!"_

"I don't know. Stay on the line," he commanded, putting it on hold and getting back to his feet. Craig groaned and sat back up, staring at Ken.

"Neat trick. Didn't even see you move," he growled. "But I'm going to fucking have my way, McCormick!"

Ken's eyes narrowed and he felt stinging sensations throughout his body. A quick glance in the puddle showed his eyes glowing the ruby red and he smiled maliciously. He walked towards Craig slowly and held out his hand in front of him. "Try." he dared.

Tucker blinked at him a moment before narrowing his eyes and lunging towards him again. Ken's eyes pulsed and the black-haired boy flew back again into the concrete.

He looked up at him fearfully, "How did you...did I even...?"

"You hit me, but I hit back," he replied simply. "You know what they say, people'll do anything for the ones they love. And I will kill you. You know that guy I told you I shot? Well, that bullet hit a few vital parts. So I wouldn't suggest testing me," he warned.

Craig stood and slowly backed away. "I...I..."

"Never talk to my boyfriend again. Are we clear?" he demanded, his voice deep and menacing. It seemed rather obvious he was using a power from Hell itself. "You do anything else and I will hunt you down. That includes threatening calls and letters. Got it?" Craig just blinked. "WELL?!"

He nodded, "f-fine..."

"Good." he nodded. "Now get the fuck away from me before I lose my temper." Craig backed up and turned, heading the opposite way of his adversary.

A figure popped up beside him and grabbed his arm, he turned and found Damien beside him. "Come on," he motioned. He took the kids in his arms and they all faded, landing in front of the complex.

"Jesus, you're fast," Ken blinked.

He snickered, "I know. Now, me and the kids will meet you upstairs. Go." he nodded before fading off and taking the kids with him. Ken shook his head briefly before heading back through the complex doors.

"Hey, Kid," Joel nodded at him. "You alright?"

"Yeah...yeah, I'm fine. Um...I'm still really sorry," he winced.

"Don't be," Sally smiled softly. "We're going to a late-night movie instead." she flipped her curly blonde hair behind her shoulder. "Kyle's alright, your friends have been keeping a close eye on him."

"G-good," he smiled a bit. "I'm gonna go see for myself...enjoy your date and uh...thanks again."

"Not a problem," Joel winked. "Catch ya around," he waved to him and took Sally outside under his arm. Ken watched them for a moment before dashing up to the apartment and barging in.

"Is he okay?!" he demanded upon seeing faces.

"Your eyes..." Stan blinked.

"Is he okay?!" he repeated.

"Go see him," Damien nodded.

"He's still not breathing," Cartman muttered. Ken ran into the bedroom and towards the Jew. He looked down at his still form and trembled.

"Kyle...," he croaked, seeing the pale face paler than usual. He gently grasped his hand and continued to shake. He calmed down a bit into confusion as Kyle's body glowed gold and his chest raised a bit with a large breath before lowering back down onto the bed as he blinked his jade eyes open.

"Holy shit...," Stan gaped.

The redhead looked up at the confused blonde and lunged up, grasping him in his arms. "Are you alright?!" he cried out.

Ken blinked and held him back. "Y-yea...why?"

"Craig was trying to stab you!" he explained.

Kenny pushed him back and stared at him. "How...how did you know that?" he asked.

"I saw him!" he exclaimed. "He was the one who did the threats and everything! You were fighting and he ran at you with a knife!"

"How did you know that?!" he repeated, his mouth agape in shock. He heard a small chuckle and looked over at the son of Satan. "Damien...what aren't you telling us?" he and Kyle stared at him in confusion.

Damien looked at them and smiled. "Well, Kyle gets more than one power, why shouldn't you?" he shrugged.

"Wait...what?!"

He looked up at the boy with a grin still upon his face. "Ken, welcome to the truest extent of condition number three."

* * *

_A/N: So. You almost didn't get this chapter. Someone just left a review as I was typing and it broke my spirit. Seriously, it sent me into tears. I had a horrible day and then I come home to someone saying that they hate this story. I know that it's just one person, but really, it hurt. I've never fucking cried over something like this, but I was wailing. _

_I may go slash my wrists now. I'm that fucking depressed._

_Oh well._

_Anyways. Ken gets new powers, we found out Kyle's threatener, and a few random things. Jacob and Kayla next time along with an explanation of Ken's newfound abilities and then we'll start leading into the trial._

_I dunno. I'm still really depressed about that review. I think I'm gonna go cry again. _

_Thanks to all you really awesome people out there. You're the only reason I kept on going tonight._

_Btw, I feel the need to say that Joel and Sal are my favorite OC's. They're the parental figures that Ken and Ky lack now and I love them. I decided they needed to date =D_


	44. Possession

_A/N: (This is gonna be a long one!!!!!)....Few things to address here. Okay. So I got the nicest comments ever on Possession last time, but also I got a few that basically said, "it's too long."_

_I KNOW. _

_I ASKED what should I do and everyone who voted wanted the longer version with fillers and all that. I've built this huge plot with way too many elements and I need to get them all out into the open._

_I also haven't developed Ken and Ky's characters apparently? Funny. I have Ken being a sweet, reckless, and perverted boy who has his brashness about him while still being willing to come to anyone's aide if necessary. I have Kyle being a strong-hearted kid with a good will that's just been through the worst experiences of his life and is trying to rebuild himself through his strength and logic. Funny. I thought that was development but apparently I was mistaken. So sorry on my part, but you're stuck with them like this._

_Now, my despressive-ness. Seriously, I cried, I did. But not because of this really. If you had heard the conversation my parents and I had had not an hour beforehand...you'd understand. It was basically what the reviewer said, but in regards to my real life. Anyways, I'm writing to calm down from my parents screaming at me and this review comes up and I'm all excited and stuff because I love my reviewers. I really do. Then I read it._

_Needless to say, that was just the final fucking straw. EVERYTHING just came fucking tumbling down. So no, this was not just a review-related emo-fest. And the slashing my wrists thing...whether or not I was serious, I have no idea. I've been a cutter. I can go back. I'd prefer not to, but whatever happens, happens. I mean, I love writing, but I'm not obsessive to the point where it controls my life, Jesus Christ. _

_On a final note, I'm sorry this is such a fucking huge story. I can't help it. I enjoy this. I really do. Whether or not someone else likes this story is irrelevant. I LOVE my story. I'm damn proud of Possession and how its gained popularity throughout these past few months. I sit down to write and the banter just goes, the smex just goes, everything plays in my head and I write it. Maybe it's because I like longer stories that I'm like this. I'm sorry. But at the same time I'm not. Honestly, it's all my style. Description down to the last breath, okay? I mean, at least it's not epically long with grammar errors galore, right? (I try. I find some after its posted, but ya know...)_

_Sorry for yet another A/N rant. I'm sorry it's slow. I'm sorry it's flat. But I'm getting to the end, so I guess I'll keep on going. _

_A special thanks to everyone supporting me. I was gonna list you all, but the number keeps growing XD_

_And to V. Black: I don't agree with you by any means, but as I've said multiple times in the past, I accept flames. I honor your opinion with the mindset that it can only help me improve in certain areas. It wasn't supposed to blow up and I do apologize on behalf of those calling you names. I'm a fair kid, I wasn't trying to make my readers angsty towards you._

_To the rest of you, enjoy 43._

* * *

The group of six all sat around the main room, the older four looking around at each other in confusion. The children sat close by, happily nibbling on some cookies that had been procured for them. Kenny pulled Kyle under the crook of his arm as the redhead served as a seat for young Kayla, him stroking her messy brown locks maternally.

Damien finally walked back out into the room with a beer in his hand. "Who else wants one?" he held it up for display.

"I think we all do," Stan muttered.

"Me!" Jacob raised his hand and shook it.

"Me too!" Kayla piped up.

"I don't think so," Kyle smirked as Damien handed him his own. He popped the cap off and took a long drink.

"Didn't think you were much of a drinker, Broflovski," Damien smirked as he took his own sip.

"I'm not a lush if that's what you mean," he rolled his eyes. "Now would you care to explain what the fuck is going on?"

"Yeah, really," Ken mumbled. "Dam, what the fuck happened?"

Damien plopped down on the coffee table and stared at him with a playful grin. "You said you wanted to know what was going on with Kyle. So my father and I found a way. Although it was a simple case of merely escalating the extent of your other powers," he shrugged.

"Whaddya mean?" Cartman raised his brow.

Damien chuckled and looked at Kyle. "Kyle, come here," he curled his finger.

Kyle raised his brow. "Why? Last time I did that you knocked me out."

"Well, it was necessary," he shrugged. "Now come here."

The redhead sighed and lifted Kayla from off his lap and stood, moving closer towards him. "What?" he demanded.

Damien snickered and pulled him down to sit next to him on the table. "Hold still," he placed his hand on the side of Kyle's head. Kyle's eyes widened and slowly turned gray, his pupils disintegrating into the shade.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Ken asked, staring into the lifeless eyes.

"Making him dormant for a moment. Just calm down," he rolled his eyes. He stood and left Kyle on the table. "Stand," he ordered.

He slowly stood beside him, his movements smooth and flawless. "What's going on?" Stan blinked.

"Dude! The Jew's a puppet!" Cartman clapped his hands together evilly. "Kahl, say Jews are the scum of the Earth!"

The body just stayed still, staring into nothingness.

"You idiot, he's my doll, not yours," Damien scoffed. "Watch. Kyle, knees." He instantly dropped to the floor. Kenny dove down in front of him, cupping his chin in his palms.

"Damien, why are you doing this?" he pleaded, looking at the doll.

"Just hang on, McCormick. I promise that I have a purpose. Sit back down." Ken looked up at him and glared for a moment before releasing his hold on Kyle and backing up back onto the sofa. "Good," Damien nodded between the two of them. "Back up," he commanded. Kyle slid back to his feet. "Watch," Damien winked. "Kyle, anger."

They looked as the gray in his eyes slowly changed red, his expression shifting from neutralness into rage. "Now, show us it," Damien insisted. Kyle raised his hand towards the light above them, the light bulbs shattering into pieces.

"Holy fuck!" Stan and Cartman gaped.

"Good," Damien nodded. "Protective." The Jew's aura shifted to purple and he raised his hand again. "Hold still," Damien murmured to Stan. "Show us," he raised his demonic nails about to slash into the boy before a violet flash went off in-between the two and Damien stumbled back slightly. "Son of a bitch, that hurt," he pouted.

"You said Ky's strong," Ken smirked.

"That I did," he smiled. "Alright. Sympathetic." Kyle's eyes dulled to black.

"Dam, I don't think this one has powers," Ken blinked at him.

"Ah, there has to be something here. Kyle," he looked at the doll, "Show us."

Kyle slowly moved over to Stan and bent down to his eye level, staring at him deeply. Stan just blinked. "Uh...hi?"

Kyle took his hands and placed them on Stan's cheeks gently, not moving his somber gaze.

"I think he's trying to rape your mind, Stan," Cartman raised his brow. Stan didn't respond, just looked back at Kyle's stare. Neither of them blinked or said a word.

"Are...are they okay?" Jacob asked, pulling on Ken's sleeve.

"I have no idea. Dam?"

"Hold on, I know just as much as you do about this," he retorted, observing them quietly.

"You're a good person," Kyle said softly. "You're strong and you care."

"What the fuck is he talking about?" Ken blinked.

"Nothing that you did was wrong," he continued talking to the blue-eyed lad. "She'll come around. She knows how sweet you are to her."

"Okay...," Cartman raised his brow.

"Don't doubt your character. It's better than what you seem to hold unto yourself. Find your self-esteem. You deserve to flaunt it."

"What the hell?" Damien stared with the other boys. They watched as Kyle took his hands from off Stan's face and the black-haired boy sprung back with a shaking breath.

"Stan, what happened?" Ken questioned.

"He...he was in my head!" he responded, taking another wavering gasp and grasping at his hair. "He was judging me!"

"Judging?" Damien repeated.

"Y-yeah..." he nodded. "He was weighing the good and bad...and then he just started naming off what he saw to be good traits or something...he was trying to find ways to comfort me from my fight with Wends today..."

"So...he judges people on their character and helps them solve problems weighing on their minds?" Ken cocked his head slightly.

"It appears so," Damien nodded. "This could come in handy for your cases one day, McCormick if he learns to fully utilize the powers." Kenny nodded slowly in agreement.

"Happy now!" Kayla clapped her hands. "This is fun!"

"I agree with her," Ken smirked. "Let's see it."

Damien nodded. "Kyle, happy." Kyle's expression brightened into a soft smile, his iris' changing into the comforting rose that Ken had grown to love. "Show us."

He walked from Stan to in front of Kenny, grasping his hands and pulling him to his feet, looking at him with his solid eyes. "I love you," he said sweetly.

"Huh?" Ken blinked. Kyle pulled him down and locked lips with him gently. He grasped around the blonde and held him closely. Ken stood there for a moment, dumbfounded before he began to melt into the kiss. His heart fluttered lightly and he kissed back, pulling Kyle into him forcefully.

"Dude, how is this a power?!" Stan protested.

"He's making Ken happy," Damien observed, stroking his chin. He's looking into his soul for what makes him the happiest and he's using it to help match their feelings. Interesting."

"Okay, stop eating each other," Cartman demanded.

"Kyle, stop," Damien ordered. Kyle instantly pulled away, leaving Kenny standing with his lips pursed and pouting.

"We were having sexy Jew time!" he whined.

"Later," Damien rolled his eyes. "Sit down," he nodded at the blonde. Ken stuck his tongue out at him before obliging and plopping down next to the kids on the sofa with his arms crossed. Damien sighed and looked at his doll. "Kyle, look at me." Kyle turned his head to look at Damien blankly. "Alright," he nodded. "Now. Scared."

"Damien, are you sure that's a good-" Ken started.

"We have to figure things out," he interrupted as Kyle's eyes faded into navy. "Now," he said slowly. "Show us."

Kyle stayed perfectly still, staring in front of him at the wall. They watched in shock as tears began freely flowing down his cheeks, but his expression never wavered.

"What the fuck..." Kenny gasped.

"Is he alright?!" Stan asked.

"Better than alright," Damien grinned a bit.

"How?!" Ken demanded. "He's crying!"

"No...no he's not," he shook his head in thought. "Ken...he's not crying. The powers. Those voices..._they're_ crying. If Kyle was, his body would be reacting to it. But since I gave him no control over his body and therefore no direct link with his powers in that sense, he's merely a passageway for the powers to escape from. This is excellent news," he smiled more.

"How?" Cartman asked. "How is him being thrown around by freaky powers 'excellent'?"

"Because, my bloated friend, of a few reasons."

"Ay!"

"First off," he ignored Cartman's retort, "it means that he's not crazy. These voices are there and they're going only through him. Second off, it means that he's not crying through fear or depression, but the voices through him are. So his depression isn't nearly as detrimental to his mental state as we previously thought."

"But what are the voices?" Stan asked.

"Kyle," Damien addressed him. "What are the voices telling you? Are they doing anything?"

He nodded slowly.

"What are they doing?" he asked. Kyle straightened up and walked away from the group towards the kitchen, leaving them staring after him in confusion. He came back towards them, a chef's knife clutched into his hand.

"K-Kyle...?" Stan blinked.

"What are they saying?" Damien asked lowly. "And doing?"

"Die." he said softly. "You don't deserve a life. Take yourself. Feed yourself to the fires of everlasting torment....," he said monotonously. He took the knife and held it to his forearm.

"Ky...Ky, don't...." Ken blinked.

"Die, worthless..." he stated simply before digging the blade into his flesh and ripping the skin open from his wrist up to his inner elbow. "You're making a mess," he giggled maniacally. "You dirty, filthy son of a bitch...."

They watched in shock as the blood seeped out of his arm onto the floor below him before Ken finally snapped to his senses. He leapt up and tried to pry the knife away from the boy. "Kyle, give me the knife!" he demanded.

"We all die sometime," he said calmly. "Why not just kill yourself and save God the pain of having to see his creature as so disgusting?"

"Kyle, let go!" Damien snapped. His grip around the knife loosened and Ken stumbled back and fell with its gleaming red surface clutched in his grasp.

"Nobody loves you," he looked at the blood collecting in his palm and snickered. "Look. The blood. It matches that of a pig," he laughed harder. "A dirty, useless little pig."

"God...what's wrong with him?!" Cartman stared in horror.

"I...I don't know," Stan shook his head.

"Kyle has a boo boo!" Kayla pointed at his bleeding appendage.

"Kyle...," Ken said sadly, getting to his feet and approaching him slowly. "It's okay, I'm here...just calm down..."

He looked at him with a devilish gleam to his deadened gaze. "Worthless and weak. That's what you are," he smirked. "You've destroyed others happiness and now even God himself would never love you!"

"Ken, what's your biggest fear?" Damien asked suddenly.

"What?! What the hell does that matter?!"

"Answer me!" he demanded. Kenny just looked at him and blinked.

"I...I don't really have any phobias...but I think Ky's a bit more important right now!"

Damien nodded slowly. "Right. Kyle." He looked at the bleeding boy and sighed. "Sorry. Kyle stop." he muttered. Kyle stopped ranting and held still, his eyes turning gray once more. "Forgive me for this, Ken," the anti-Christ's son held up his hand and two figures came from the glowing red aura he had created. Kenny blinked at them recognizing two very familiar faces.

"Hey, Blondes," one smiled.

"We'll take your pretty little boyfriend if you don't mind," the other smiled maliciously. "Mitch," he nodded at the other man.

The Mitch copy came and grasped Kyle's hair, slamming him down onto his knees. He tied Kyle's hands together and slammed his hand over his small mouth. "Say hello, Kylie." he taunted.

Kyle shut his eyes before looking up at Ken, his usual emerald stare back into place. "Kenny! Help!" he screamed from behind 'Mitch's' palm, tears streaming down his face.

The Barney clone walked around, slowly raising up his shirt and stroking his firm abs. "Don't!" Kyle cried. "Please don't!"

Ken stared, unable to move. His mouth was agape, his body trembling heavily as he saw his legs were chained to his spot. He looked around for the others, but they were all spectating as the show went on.

"God, no!" Kyle screeched as 'Barney' pushed him onto the ground and held him down. "Kenny, help!" he repeated.

Kenny shut his eyes and shook before being plunged into an icy feeling. He heard...sounds. Murmurs. He listened closer.

"_Killer...die....killed me...you don't...."_ He gasped to himself. Kyle's voices.

"_With the knife...he hurt me....I killed them....I lost..."_

Too many voices...too much going on...

He fell to his knees and slammed his hands over his ears, trying to hear himself think over the decibels of sound emitting from the darkness. But he couldn't stop them. The noise escalated around him, surrounding him in a smothering mess of sound.

_I didn't mean to...I hate myself...Just kill...Why me..._

He screamed and shook his head viciously, trying to ward away the people yelling at him. Trying to block them out. He curled into himself and shook violently. "Help..." he croaked out. "Make them stop!" he cried out. Suddenly, he felt a warm embrace from familiar arms and found himself fading off into the blackness, the voices going along with him.

* * *

He slowly creaked his eyes open, finding himself looking at the sleeping face of the little redhead. He blinked at him and shakily sat up, looking around and seeing that they were in bed, the clock beside him reading 10:24 PM. He looked back at Kyle and reached over towards him, trembling. He placed his hand on his head, lacing his fingers through the scarlet curls. Kyle sighed and nuzzled into his touch, prompting a small smile from Ken.

"Good, bout damn time you got up," a voice entered the room. He looked over to see glowing red eyes in the darkness. "Come on. Grab him and get out here. We need to talk." he walked back into the main room. Ken blinked at him before turning to shake Kyle gently.

"Kyle? You okay? He asked, watching him intently.

Kyle's scrunched his brow before it relaxed and he looked up at him with tired green eyes. "Hey," he smiled softly at him.

"H-hi," he breathed out with a return grin. "You alright?"

He nodded softly. "Yeah...what happened?" he blinked as he sat up beside him. He looked down at the crimson stained gauze attached to his arm and raised his brow. "What the...what'd I do?!"

"Damien did it, not you," he assured him.

"Why did Damien cut me?!" he blinked. "What the fuck happened...I never finished dinner!"

"You...you don't remember what happened?"

"Wait...wait..." he pressed fingers to his temple and gasped lightly. "Craig...oh God, you!" he looked at the blonde and quickly shot up onto his knees. "Are you okay?!" he cried, searching Kenny for wounds.

"I'm fine," he assured him, gently grasping his face in his palms. "Let's go talk to Damien. I have a few questions for him." Kyle nodded and they got up off the bed and walked back into the main room together.

"Finally," Stan yawned as he awoke from the couch. "Took ya long enough."

"Shut up," Ken murmured, leading Kyle to the couch and sitting down beside him. The kids were sleeping together on the love seat while Cartman was lazily picking at his nails. Damien slowly paced in front of the TV, looking at the ceiling in deep thought.

"Damien?" Kyle asked.

"Yes?"

"What's going on?" Ken questioned. "Why...why did I hear the voices?"

"You did?" Kyle shot his head around to look at him. "You really did?"

"Yeah...yeah..." he nodded.

"I'm not crazy..." Kyle turned and looked at the coffee table with a small smile on his face. "I...I'm not crazy," he repeated in relief.

"Of course you weren't," Ken murmured, gathering him into his arms. He looked back up at the demon who was looking at them quietly. "Why did I hear them? How am I using Kyle's powers?"

Damien smirked at him. "Ken, I said this earlier, myself and my father merely escalated the extent of your powers. I want you to watch something. Stan and Kyle, come here," he pointed beside him. They looked at him apprehensively.

"Why? You're not turning me into a puppet, are you?" Stan raised his brow.

He chuckled, "no. None of that. Just come here." The best friends looked at each other and shrugged before getting to their feet and walking up beside him. Damien placed them beside each other. He grasped Kyle's damaged arm and tore off the gauze, revealing the wound still bleeding.

"Why'd you do that to me?" Kyle demanded.

Damien looked up from the wound and smirked. "I didn't. The voices did. Now, shush." he ordered. "Marsh, arm." Stan held out his arm and Damien made a gentle cut into the skin with his claws.

"Ken, come heal them," he motioned. Kenny got to his feet and grasped Kyle's arm, gently rubbing his fingers over the wound. They all watched in interest as the gash healed up, leaving but a small pink mark across Kyle's pale skin. He kissed the skin gently and smiled up at the redhead, who smiled back with a small blush. He moved over and grasped Stan's arm.

"Don't kiss me," he warned.

Kenny snickered lightly, "no promises." He healed up Stan's wound and looked over at Damien. "Okay, so what?"

Damien grabbed Stan's arm and made yet another small incision in his forearm. "Okay, Broflovski, leave."

"What?" he blinked.

"Go sit in your room or something and close the door. Wait for me to call you back out, alright?" he sighed in exasperation and pushed him over towards the bedroom door. Kyle looked at the group before shrugging and walking into the room, softly shutting the door behind him. "Do it again," he nodded at Kenny. Ken blinked at him for a moment before grasping Stan's arm again and rubbing over the wound gently once more. He narrowed his eyes as it failed to seal.

"What the fuck..." he murmured, sticking his tongue out in concentration.

"Just as I thought," Damien stroked his chin. "Kyle, come back," he shouted. Kyle walked out back towards the group and they watched as Stan's arm began to heal up.

"I...I can only do this with Kyle around?" Ken cocked his head at the demon.

"As he can only perform his powers with you around," he nodded to himself. "As my father and I thought. Transferring Kyle's power from you to him resulted in you having a connectedness with your abilities, the same concept must have transferred with your healing abilities as well."

"What about when Kenneh took the Jew's powers?" Cartman asked, crossing his arms and looking between the lovers. "He wasn't anywhere near him when he was attacked."

"Right," Damien nodded, starting to pace around the table. "Kyle was unconscious at the time..."

"But I could see Ken," Kyle said, crossing his arms and biting his lip in thought. "I mean...at first, I was totally out. Everything was black. Then...then Ken got angry or something and next thing I know I'm seeing Craig; hearing him...and I see him with a knife...," he looked over at Damien. "Why could I see through him?"

"You're connected in more ways than you may have ever thought," he said slowly. "It seems that should you be out, should you not be able to utilize your powers yourself, they go through Kenny should the need arise. The first vessel was in constant control of their powers, despite the fact that he was so young and he really didn't know how to use them. He was still able to use his powers, even in his sleep. However, your powers don't work aside from the one that merely protects you when you're unconscious from being attacked."

"But he hears the voices in his sleep," Stan pointed out.

"Not really," Kyle shook his head. "I have nightmares, I wake up, then I hear the voices. I never hear them when I'm actually sleeping."

"So when you're separated from your usual state of mind, your powers are completely useless to you," Damien stated. "But one of you needs control of the power at all times. We've never had a partnership for this job, so it makes sense that the powers stay balanced in-between the both of you."

"What about when we're both asleep?" Ken asked.

He shrugged, "I tested that while you both were out. You both hold the protective ability."

"So...you tried to stab me," he replied flatly.

"I needed to see, McCormick," he sighed. "I made sure that I would have been able stop in case it didn't work. Turns out you two can protect yourself against those who aren't mortals," he smiled softly.

"That just fills me with happiness," he rolled his eyes.

"Anyways, I guess the powers lie dormant within Kyle should you both be unable to use them at the time," he shrugged. "Then you're both under his protection."

"But...what happened to Kyle?" Stan asked. "I mean...he just glowed and stopped breathing!"

"Well, remember that his physical being is not in particular danger from that scenario," Damien responded.

"That doesn't mean that I'm not gonna freak out when he stops breathing!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," he sighed. "The powers aren't merely abilities. They are the very things that make him who he is."

"What do you mean?" Kyle cocked his head slightly.

"When you gained these powers, they became you, Kyle," he said lowly. "They keep you going. I made you dormant and you were absolutely nothing. Only when I had you exhibit your powers did you have any signs of life flowing through you. In all technicalness, you were unconscious. Only because I was able to keep you on the brink of being conscious were you able to use them. But after I had you demonstrate the effect that the voices had on you and made you unconscious again, Ken was able to utilize the power for his own."

"So these fucking powers are the only thing that's keeping me moving?" he asked quietly.

He nodded slowly, "Yes, I suppose so. I told you not too long ago that Stan, Cartman, and Kenny were the driving force behind your existence. However, my father entrusted these powers unto you on the idea that you are the very essence of emotional power."

"So just because he's an angsty little priss Satan thinks that he needs powers?" Cartman asked.

"Not a great way to phrase it, but in a way, you're right," he nodded. He gestured towards the Jew, "Kyle can fully delve into his emotions, a very powerful trait. Dangerous, but it's something needed for his particular task."

"Question."

"Yes, Ken?"

"Why did you make me scared?" he crossed his arms. "Why did you make me hear the voices?"

"My own reasons, actually. I wanted to see how you reacted to hearing the voices."

"Um...what'd I do?"

"You went fucking insane," Stan said worriedly. "You were begging us to make them stop and you fell over crying and screaming. It was just like watching Kyle."

"I made Kyle hug you as he was still all drone-like," Damien stated. "The contact took the powers from you, but I think that the stress and the sudden loss of the powers made you fall unconscious. And he went down with you."

"Did the voices say the same type of things to you, Ken?" Kyle asked softly.

He nodded, "Kill yourself and I'm useless and all that."

"Wait, do they say that you're useless or that they're useless?" Cartman asked.

"A bit of each," Kyle said, walking around biting on his thumbnail in contemplation. "These powers...they're meant to be used for our job...right?"

Damien nodded slowly, "yeah...why?"

He looked up at him and his brows furrowed a bit in thought. "What if...what if it's the ghosts talking?"

"Whaddya mean?" Ken blinked.

"Damien...you said I have a connection with the ghosts, right?"

"Right," he nodded. "Your death connected you to them."

"Did other vessels hear the voices?"

"Not to my knowledge, no."

"If I have this connection where I can feel spirits...what if I can hear them, too? What if I'm hearing the reasons for various people and why they're stuck? I mean, it's just a theory, but it really seems to be the only logical explanation in my opinion. I've heard them talking about being killed. Being depressed. Being...lost." He looked at them each slowly. "Maybe that's all this is."

"That...that would make sense based off of what you've told us," Damien nodded in agreement.

Ken nodded as well and broke into a smile, "You always were the smart one," he mused.

They heard soft sounds coming from the love seat and they shot their heads around to look at the kids. Kayla was sucking on her thumb with her brows furrowed, sniffling softly and frequently. Kyle dropped into a frown and walked over towards her, kneeling down and stroking her brown locks away from her face. She creaked her eyes open and shook a bit.

"Monsters," she just barely whispered.

"Where?" he asked softly.

"Everywhere," she whimpered.

"There are no monsters, I promise."

"I saw them!" she sat up slowly and looked at him. "They...they were big and scary!" she held her arms up to emphasize her point. She sniffed again and pointed towards the kitchen, "I saw them go in there."

He followed her gesture and turned back at her with a soft smile on his face. "I don't think that you did, Kayla."

"I did so!" she insisted.

"Hm," he grinned still. "How about me and you go check, okay?"

"But...he'll eat you!" she whispered in a strained voice. He chuckled and stood, bending over and scooping her into his arms.

"Not possible. Monsters don't like how I taste. They don't like my brand of shampoo."

"These ones do!"

He snickered again. "Come on, me and you'll go check. If they get me, you run back out here and tell them, alright?" He motioned towards the group sitting around, "Then they'll come get it."

She dove into his chest and hugged him with short nods. "Okay." He shot Ken an amused grin before toting the girl off into the kitchen in his grasp.

They watched him quietly before Damien broke the silence with a short laugh. "That kid is certainly something else."

"Yeah, a dirty stinking Jew," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Whaddya mean, Dam?" Ken asked after glaring at Cartman for a moment.

"He's been through more than you guys know...and yet he still maintains his humanity. Quite admirable."

Ken dropped into a frown. "I need to ask you a question."

"Yes?"

"You watched...you watched them attacking Kyle. You know everything that happened. Will you care to fill us in?"

"What has he told you?" Damien asked.

"Barney and Mitch called him, he went over, they told him to do as they said for Ken's sake," Stan explained. "Then the two of them raped him for a few hours, let him go, and then he called me."

Damien nodded along with his words. "Okay. He really hasn't told you half of the story, then."

Their eyes widened. "What?" Ken gaped. "Then...then what else happened?!"

He shook his head. "If Kyle doesn't want it revealed, I'm going to respect that. What happened is his business and his alone. I know it, my father knows, and Oliver knows. If things go wrong in the trial, he plans on jumping out with it, but only if the need arises."

"This is my business, too," Ken hissed. "I was involved!"

"But not to the extremes that he was," he growled. "You were abducted and beaten. I'm sorry for what happened to you, but that's a small pittance compared to what happened to Kyle."

"I think I should know," he argued.

"Then you talk to Kyle and you learn from him because it won't be from me. Maybe he'll tell you one day. It may be a month, it may take twenty years. But he will eventually tell you, I guarantee it. Just be patient. You have been throughout this whole thing, don't fuck it up now for curiosity's sake."

Kenny opened his mouth to retort but quickly shut it as Kyle and Kayla came strolling back into the room. "No monsters," Kyle smirked at them.

"They ran away," Kayla smiled sweetly.

"They were terrified of Jewboy's face," Cartman snickered.

"No, they saw you and your mass and were afraid you'd implode into yourself and create a black hole."

"Like a blue giant," Stan grinned.

Kyle looked at him and smiled back. "Very good," he praised. Kayla jumped down from his grasp and skipped around the room a bit. He watched her before walking over to Jacob and pushing his hair out of his face. Jacob mumbled and cuddled into himself, leading Kyle to shake his head and go to sit back down next to Ken on the couch.

"You protector of the dead now?" Ken asked.

"Sure. What's your job title?"

He leaned his head back in thought before looking back at him. "The pleaser of the Jew," he smirked. Kyle laughed softly and leaned into him. Ken's body was stricken with ice and he faded away once more.

_He looked left and right, not finding much near by. He saw a light further on out and bit his lip. He slowly moved towards it, noticing that it wasn't getting any closer. He heard soothing voices emanating from the light, and tried to reach them, but to no avail. He broke out into a desperate run, outstretching his hand towards the glow. He squinted and saw two shadows with gentle, glowing blue eyes, but they were distorted, their forms wiggling around as though they were made of gelatin. As he ran faster to approach them, they just wavered more. He finally gave up, stopping to take a few deep breaths, his gaze still locked on their flittering figures. Finally, as they faded off into nothingness, he felt a hand in his, locked tightly in his grip, a feeling of loneliness passing over his pounding heart._

Ken shot his eyes open and leaned off the couch, shaking his head. He looked over at Kyle, who was already up and watching him intently. "You alright?"

He nodded. "Yeah. You're the one who gets hurt in em, so are you?"

"Yeah," he said softly. "I was just really really cold for a long time and I blacked out."

"I kept running towards these shadows that were all wriggly and stuff," he explained for himself. "Then they faded and I felt someone's hand in mine."

"That happened in mine, too," he mused. "I'm guessing that it was just the kids being linked together."

"Why did you just now have your visions?" Damien raised his brow.

"I didn't touch Jacob until just now," Kyle stated. "I think that should the ghosts die together, their visions will be related in some way."

"That's a possibility," he nodded.

Kyle leaned back into the couch and bit his lip thoughtfully. "Wavering shadows?" he repeated.

"Yeah. I couldn't get near em." Ken said.

"Kayla, come here," he motioned to the girl. She stopped skipping and walked over to him. He reached down and pulled her into his lap. "Can you tell me something?"

"What?" she questioned.

"Can you tell me about your mom and dad?"

She dropped into a frown. "I can't."

"Why not?"

"Jacob says it's a big secret."

"How come?" Ken asked.

She shrugged, "I dunno. He just says it is."

Kyle looked at her and bit his tongue for a moment before breaking into a smile. "Kayla, do you like games?"

She nodded vigorously. "I love games," she squealed.

"Would you like to play one with me?"

"Yeah!" she clapped her hands together in excitement.

"It's called 'Never Told'," he said softly.

"Howddya play?"

"You go back and forth between two people and tell a new secret every time."

"Secret?"

"Mhmm," he nodded. "It's fun. You learn a lot about that person."

"Okay," she grinned. "You go first," she poked his nose.

He looked up thoughtfully. "Um...my middle name is Issac."

She giggled, "That's a funny name. My turn! My middle name's...uh..."

"You don't know your middle name?" Stan asked.

"What's a middle name?" she blinked.

"Ignore it and tell something different," Cartman rolled his eyes.

She bit her lip and then smiled. "I found a nickel once on the sidewalk and I threw it at a bird. She was mad with me," she giggled. "Your turn," she pointed at Kyle.

Kyle smiled gently at her. "I...hmm. Kenny's the first person I've dated for longer than a few days," he prodded the side of the grinning blonde's head.

"Are you gonna get married?" she squealed.

"Uh...," he looked at her and blinked.

"And you can have a baby!" She added.

"Moving on," Kyle said quickly.

"Aw...you don't wanna have my baby?" Ken pouted. Kyle shot him a glare.

"I'm not willing to give this kid the bird and bees speech, so drop it," he growled.

"Well...if I asked you to marry me, would you?"

Kyle's face dropped along with everyone else's except Kayla's. "K-Ken, now is not the time to talk about this."

"Just answer me," he looked at him curiously.

"Ken...," his eyes darted around the room nervously. "I-I dunno," he shook his head softly. "I really don't know."

"You'd consider it?!" Stan blinked.

"Dude, now is not the time!" he repeated. "Kayla, your turn." he insisted. Subject dropped, much to Kenny's dismay.

"I once, when we were alive, cut off Jacob's hair," she snickered. "I told him a rat ate it all!"

He chuckled with her. "I'm a type one diabetic," he revealed.

"What's a dibletic?"

"A di-a-bet-ic," he corrected. "It means that my pancreas doesn't work right, so I have to have a certain amount of sugar to keep me healthy."

She nodded, obviously still confused. "I'm six," she beamed.

"I'm seventeen," he countered.

"My favorite color is purple."

"My last name is Broflovski," he smiled.

"I can hold my breath for eighteen seconds," she stated proudly.

"My parents made me leave home a few months ago."

"I don't know who my parents are," she instantly slapped her hands over her mouth and looked at Jacob nervously.

Bingo.

"You don't know who they are?" Kyle repeated gently.

She gulped and nodded, shakily lowering her hands. "J-jacob said we couldn't tell anyone or the bad man would take us away."

"Who's the bad man?" Damien asked softly.

"He takes children...a-and takes them far away if they don't have parents," she bit her lip fearfully.

"Child services," Ken muttered. Kyle looked at him and nodded softly before looking at Kayla again.

"Kayla," he said softly. "Do you know when you and your brother died?"

"When he was eight."

"No, no, no," he shook his head. "I mean do you know what year?"

She shook her head back. "W-what's a year?"

Kyle and Ken looked at each other for a moment before glancing at her again.

"What's your last name, Kid?" Ken asked.

"Last...name?" she blinked at them.

Uh oh.

"Um...n-never mind," Kyle stuttered. "What did you do with your brother?"

"We...we lived in this little room in somebody's cellar," she shrugged. "We would only leave to get some food."

"Who fed you?"

"Everybody. We got some from the church, from the grocer, from families..."

"They just gave you food?" Cartman asked.

"W-well...no," she looked down at Kyle's hand in shame.

Ken and Kyle looked at each other again and tried to mentally communicate on what to do. Kayla let out a yawn and they gave up and Kyle cleared his throat gently. "Kayla, would you like to sleep in mine and Kenny's bed?"

"Really?"

He nodded. "Nice and warm. No monsters, I checked for myself." He stood with her clasped in his arms still. "Ken, get Jacob," he instructed. "We'll put 'em both in there."

"I'll get him," Stan volunteered, hopping off the couch, walking over and gently grasping the slumbering boy. They walked off with the children in their arms, leaving Ken, Damien, and Cartman staring at each other.

"You seriously want Jewboy to marry you?" Cartman broke the silence.

Ken shrugged. "It was a simple question. I just wanted to know how serious he is about our relationship."

"You know how serious he is," Damien raised his brow. "He's proven it to you time and again. Just take the ring from your pocket and drop to your knee, McCormick."

"I don't have one," he rolled his eyes. "It was just a question."

"Uh huh," he smirked as the other two came back.

"Ken, this could be a problem," Kyle said softly.

"How so?" he asked.

He sighed and began pacing in front of the couch. "Did you see their clothes? I think that they're from like, the early 1900's or something."

"So?"

"So?" he raised his brow at him, still pacing. "Ken, they didn't start keeping South Park records until about the 40's. Then on top of that, we don't have last names. For all we know, Jacob and Kayla aren't even their real first names! We can't find out anything much unless Jacob knows a bunch, and from what he's told us, he doesn't."

"Dam, could you help?" Ken asked.

He shook his head. "We keep track of those who pass through Hell's gates, not the living and not the stuck. We're having you record your findings to help add to our paperwork. You're gonna have to figure something out," he shrugged.

"And if they don't?" Stan blinked.

He shrugged again. "I guess the kids are just stuck. I can't fix it and neither can my father. It's Ken and Kyle's job, not ours."

Ken groaned and massaged his forehead, looking up and seeing his lover still pacing. He grasped his small waist and pulled him down into his lap. "Ky, we'll figure something out."

"I hope so," he murmured, placing his head atop Ken's. "We have enough to think about right now."

Damien nodded, "I agree with that. You need to start prepping for this trial. Oliver's getting all set up as we speak."

"What do you think the chances of Mitch going to jail are?" Ken asked, tightening his grip around the Jew.

"Strong. We have solid evidence if we need it."

Stan raised his brow. "How?"

"We went to the scene not long after the incident," he explained.

"W-what did you find?" Kyle asked.

"You know exactly what we found," he stated softly. "But, it'll only be used if it has to be, please don't doubt that." The redhead nodded softly, biting his lip.

"Okay, I need to get the fuck out of here."

"Me, too," Stan nodded in agreement. "Ky's okay and that's awesome, but I need to talk to Wends."

"Alright," Damien nodded, "I'll take you and fatboy home."

"Ay! Watch it, demon-boy!"

"I'm shaking," he smirked. He grasped Stan and Cartman's sleeves, saluting the two immortals as they faded away. "Good luck," he smiled before they all vanished entirely.

Kyle sighed and nuzzled closer into Kenny. "God...what a mess."

"It'll be okay," he cooed, kissing him gently. "You heard Dam, they have a way for you to win. It'll be fine."

"Yeah...," he said blankly. "But still...my...my dad..."

He clasped him tighter. "You show him that he should regret kicking you out," he said firmly. "Show him that you could've made the best law partner in history and he fucked it all up."

Kyle looked down at him and smiled. "How the hell do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Somehow you manage to cheer me up no matter how shitty I feel...I love how you can do that."

"I love how you can do that trick with your tongue," Ken smirked. Kyle raised his brow at him and chuckled.

"Is that a hint?"

"Does it need to be more subtle?"

"Nah, I think I get it," he purred, turning and straddling the blonde's hips. They locked lips and slowly ground their groins into each other's, emitting small moans and heavy pants as they continued to kiss.

Kenny broke off a bit and laughed. "I was only joking, ya know. We don't have to."

Kyle pulled back and looked at him before shrugging. "Okay." he got up and walked over to the chair and sat down, staring at him expectantly.

Ken looked at him and blinked. "Well I didn't mean to stop!'

"Make up your mind."

"My mind is made up," he pouted. "Get your hot little ass back over here!"

"Don't you order me around," he said in a bored tone. "I don't have to listen to you."

"Yes you do!...to an extent!"

"And just what will you do if I don't comply?" Ken looked at him before feeling an inside grin spreading. Kyle was playing with him. Damn little tease.

"I'll do unspeakable things to you."

"Like?"

"I'll tie you up."

"Uh huh."

"Fuck you until you're screaming my name."

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"And then...then my dear little Kyle, I'll reprogram your calculator so the buttons are mixed up!"

He gasped. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Don't try me," he growled seductively. "Just think...pushing the eight and instead a decimal point comes up! What will you do with yourself?"

"Anything but that!" he pled pathetically. "I...I need my calculator! It means the world to me!"

"Then you'll do just as I say," he purred.

Kyle nodded slowly. "O-okay."

"Get over here." Kyle walked over in front of him and Ken grinned. "Good," he nodded. "Pants off." The Jew complied, slowly unbuttoning his jeans, wiggling his hips teasingly as he slide the pants down his slender legs. Ken watched intently, licking his lips as he saw that Kyle wasn't wearing underwear.

"Going commando today, I see," he raised his brow amusedly.

"Don't tell me you don't love it," Kyle smirked.

"Never said I didn't," he snickered. "Saves me some extra work. On your knees."

Kyle dropped down and looked up at him expectantly. "Well?"

"I'm looking at my prey. Don't interrupt my thoughts," he lectured. He watched as Kyle slammed his mouth shut and he smiled ferociously. He slid his own pants off and threw them aside. "I think you know where my head is right now," he smiled. "You know me well enough."

Kyle chuckled before raising up on his knees, resting his arms on Kenny's thighs. He grasped Kenny's hardening cock in one hand and lifted it up out of the way so he could teasingly stroke his balls. Kenny laid his head back and took a shuddery breath as Kyle continued to fondle him. The gentle fingertips were replaced with the Jew's damp tongue savoring the flavor of his skin. They traced the contours of Kenny's sac before moving upwards, licking the skin of his member and suckling gently on a few different sections. He ran his tongue all around Ken's cock before he finally decided to go ahead and attack the head. He sucked heartily on it as Kenny's fingers entangled themselves in his red curls.

"Oh God..." Ken moaned, his hips jerking upwards a bit as Kyle delved further. "Yes, yes, yes," he panted, his eyes rolling into the back of his head in pleasure. Kyle took him fully into his mouth and down into his throat when Ken stopped him by putting firm pressure on his head. Kyle shot his emerald eyes up at him confusedly and Ken smiled. "Let me," he said sadistically. He began bucking his hips into Kyle's mouth, making him grip onto either side of his legs to keep from being pushed away, though Kenny's force atop his head helped secure him as well. He gagged a few times as Kenny thrust harder, but he tried to keep up with the rhythm, sucking and licking the skin hungrily as Ken face-fucked him. Kenny bit his lip as he neared his climax, tightening his grasp on Kyle's hair. "Feel good?" he asked, looking at him.

Kyle looked up and shrugged. "Mhm," he mumbled past the stiff rod in his mouth.

"Good," he laughed softly. "Oh boy...," he moaned as he reached his peak more quickly. He felt himself about to explode, so he buried his cock down to the hilt all inside of Kyle's throat and released the hot liquid straight into him. Kyle mumbled frantically, trying to pull back and swallow, but Ken wasn't listening as his body trembled uncontrollably. Kyle's hands beat on the side of the couch and smacked the blonde's thighs a bit before Kenny finally released him. The Jew flew back from him, grasping at his throat with one hand and coughing harshly.

"God..." he panted out. "Ow...." he groaned. "What the fuck possessed you to choke me?!" he shot a glare up at Ken. He smiled back on him playfully.

"You look hot when you're all defenseless and stuff," he shrugged innocently. Kyle just rolled his eyes and wiped some remains streaming down his mouth. Kenny grabbed his arm and he shot his watered eyes up at him. "On the couch," he purred. Kyle frowned momentarily before obliging. "Sit right here," Ken instructed. "I have a special treat for you," he winked. Kyle's brow raised but he stayed still as Ken quietly broke into their room.

He looked at the sleeping children and went to their closet. He took out a large paper shopping bag he'd procured a few weeks ago and smiled. This was gonna be fun. He trekked back out, stepping cautiously as Jacob shifted a bit. He passed them and went back out towards Kyle, sitting on the other edge of the couch. Kyle caught sight of the bag and raised his brow.

"What's in there?"

"I didn't say you could speak," he teased. He curled his index finger and Kyle crawled over to him. He moved the bag to under the arm of the sofa so Kyle couldn't see, much to his dismay. He reached over the side and grabbed his object of choice, holding it up for Kyle to see. "What is this, Kyle?"

Kyle cocked his head at it. "A...dildo?" he guessed.

"Mm, close," he nodded. He turned it so a switch was visible. "It's a vibrator," he explained.

Kyle blinked at him. "Uh..."

He held it out in front of his mouth. "Suck it," he grinned.

"H-how long...how many other people have used this thing?" he asked worriedly, backing up slightly.

Ken smirked. "For one thing, calm down, no matter what we use, it's safe. I was a clean whore. I sterilized everything to the point even you would be proud of. For another, I bought this just for you. It's bigger than the other ones I have," he grinned sadistically.

"Thanks for your generosity," he rolled his eyes.

"Not at all. Now. Less talky more sucky." He held the toy down by his hip. Kyle sighed irritably and leaned down, starting to tongue at it. Kenny watched intently, licking his lips as Kyle did as told with unintentional sensuousness. As it became coated, he slowly pulled it from his lips and lifted his chin with his other hand, bringing him in and pressing their lips together. He sat up on his knees, starting to reach around towards Kyle's ass, when he pulled away a bit.

"Do...do we have to?" he asked. Ken pulled back and looked at him with a raised brow.

"What's wrong?"

"Uh...I don't...um..." he bit his lip looking at the toy in Ken's hand nervously.

Kenny grinned, "You scared of a bit of plastic, are you?"

"Um...I-I dunno..." he winced.

"Trust me, everyone's nervous the first time around," he assured him. "After that, they grow to love it, though. Just watch." He kept reaching down and pushed it into Kyle's hole. He let out a soft whimper and clutched Kenny's shoulder. Ken pulled back and reached into his bag again, producing a pair of cuffs.

"At least they're not fuzzy," Kyle grumbled. Kenny laughed and grabbed his right wrist and clicked the cuff around it. He pulled the boy in-between his legs and smiled up at him. The blonde took his other arm and secured it under his own arms around his torso, locking them together. "Okay...," Kyle looked at him confusedly.

"I wanna have some fun," he smirked, reaching back around and flipping on the vibrator. He watched Kyle's expression as he melted down and leaned into Kenny's torso, shivering and moaning softly. "Good, huh?"

"Oh...god....," he panted, grasping onto Kenny's shirt. Kenny smirked, wrapping his arms around the trembling form and stroking his back.

"Good boy," he cooed, petting his hair.

"I'm...not a...dog," he half-yelled.

"Not this time huh?"

"F-fuck you."

He smiled. "Nah, this is good enough, dontcha think?" Kyle just moaned and nuzzled his face into Kenny's shoulder. Ken reached down and started thrusting the vibrator in and out of Kyle. The redhead bit down a bit on his shirt, trying to stifle his moans. "Don't tell me you don't love this," Kenny whispered.

"Never said I didn't," Kyle mocked softly, his fingertips grasping and releasing his shirt in regular intervals.

"Mm, I think you'll love this more," he purred. He pushed Kyle onto his back, trapping himself between the Jew's tiny torso and his captured wrists. He gave a few more thrusts with the vibrator before pulling it out and smiling down on him.

"W-what are you planning?" he asked, still shaken by the toy.

"Gonna make you a happy Jew," he stated simply. He held out his index and middle fingers and smiled. "Suck."

"Yes you do," Kyle rolled his eyes before doing as told, seductively trailing the digits with his small tongue. Ken ripped them from out his mouth and reached back down, sticking them into Kyle and scissoring him. "W-wait...," Kyle blinked. "What are you doing?"

"Getting you ready, Silly. We've done this before."

Kyle raised his brow. "Not this much."

"Okay, so I have a few things in mind," he shrugged. He took his fingers out and looked at him innocently. "You seem suspicious."

"I am."

"Well, you should be," he mused, thrusting into him. Kyle's back arched off the couch and he gave a soft yelp as he was invaded.

"Damn it, you suck at warning!" he panted.

"You suck at some things, too."

"Fuck you!"

Ken smirked and placed a fingertip on his small nose. "My dear, I'm afraid you don't understand the term. You see, it is you who is getting fucked here."

"Then why do guys say they get laid even if they're with a chick?! Aren't they the ones doing the laying?! The terms make no fucking sense, Ken!"

"...Touche."

Kyle looked up at him pleadingly. "Will you move or something?!"

"Aw, does my Jewey want more?"

"No. Let's just fucking stay like this until the kids wake up and then you can just pull out of me and we'll go get some ice cream!" he spat.

Ken smirked. "If that's what you want."

Kyle threw his head back and groaned. "Goddamn it, please?!"

"Please what?"

"Please...Ken, come on..."

"You know what I want to hear, Mr. Broflovski. I want to hear it or I'm not budging."

He sighed in defeat and looked up into Kenny's eyes. "Fuck me? Please?"

"And...?"

"I belong to you. My ass is yours. Etcetera etcetera, Dude. Please?!"

"Certainly," he smiled, thrusting into him slowly. Kyle moaned happily and leaned back, holding onto Kenny with his bound arms. Kenny took advantage of his distraction and grinned, picking the vibrator back up. He held it down at Kyle's entrance and the small Jew shot his head up.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, you won't agree to a threesome, so I have to compensate," he shrugged, watching as Kyle's eyes widened.

"I...I..."

"Don't worry," he cooed. He stopped thrusting and slowly slid the toy in with his cock. Kyle tensed up and his eyes watered slightly.

"Ow..."

"I know, I know," he stroked the boy's stomach. "But...how does this feel?" he switched on the vibrator and they both let out husky moans. It shook against Kenny's sensitive skin and sent him into overdrive.

"Oh God...," Kyle moaned. Ken took it as his invitation and started thrusting into him as he held the toy in place. Kyle let out a long, high pitched whine and dug his fingers into Kenny's shirt, his nails still able to be felt through the thin fabric. Ken looked at him and licked his lips, eyeing his lusty expression.

"Feels good, hm?"

"Yes..." he purred.

"Really good?"

"So good." he laughed in-between his heavy breaths.

"Ever...ever gonna doubt me on this again?"

"Never...never," he shook his head and bit his lip. "Mm...fuck...oh fuck...." he moaned. Ken smiled, sitting up a bit straighter for better balance. He took his free hand and started pumping Kyle's cock in time with his thrusting. "Oh god!" he cried out.

"Jesus, Kyle," he panted. "You're fucking tight..." Kyle just moaned again in response, his eyes rolling back as the three sensations took him over and made his body all but completely limp. Kenny deepened his thrust and roughly struck Kyle's prostate, making him arch viciously off the couch. Ken took the opportunity and slid his legs under Kyle's ass, propping him up and making it easier to harden his thrusts. "Atta boy," he grinned as Kyle started tensing and whimpering more. "Come for me, Ky. Right here, come on..."

"Couch...cleaned...oh god...," Kyle garbled out, trying to look up at the blonde but failing and letting his head fall back into the cushions once more.

"Let it out, Kyle..."

"N-no..." Kenny laughed. Always the competitive one, his little Jew.

"Don't make me talk dirty to you. You know what that does to you."

"N-nu uh," he said defiantly. "I'm n-not cleaning the...the couch!" he yelped as Ken hit into him particularly hard.

"Come for me," he commanded, increasing the pumping on the Jew's blazing skin. "All over us. Come on, just for me. Scream my name, Kyle."

"D-Don't...," he shook his head, his voice cracking a bit.

"Don't what?" he flipped some sweat drenched hair out of his eyes. "Don't make you tremble beneath me? Don't make every inch of your hot body scream for me? Don't give you absolute ecstasy in every fiber of your being? Don't what exactly, Kyle?" He was rather pleased with himself for being able to form sentences so coherently. Apparently he was the competitive type, too.

"Don't tease...nn-nngh...me..." he breathed.

"How am I doing that?" he smirked. "I'm just telling you what to do...," he lowered down a bit and increased the vibrator's settings and let Kyle cry out a bit before speaking again in a huskier voice. "Fuck the couch. You know you wanna come just for me, Kosher boy. You want to scream that you're mine to the fucking world, dontcha?"

"Not particularly right now," he squeaked out.

"Come on...all over us. Our dirty," thrust, "little," thrust, "secret," he whispered as he felt Kyle's muscles clamping a bit.

"Oh god...nng...Kenny!" he cried out as he came intensely, his load coating Kenny's shirt and their legs. Kenny took out the vibrator and thrust harder as Kyle exploded, his euphoric moaning enough to take Ken over the edge once more. He leaned forward and claimed Kyle's lips as he buried himself to the hilt and released inside of the Jew.

As soon as the white spots passed, he slid out of Kyle, pulling him up as he sat by his bound wrists. Kyle leaned against his chest and panted and he laid his head atop his an did the same.

"I've...I've never been this worn before...," Ken laughed.

"Y-yeah...," Kyle nodded slowly. "What the fuck's gotten into you today?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"You're not usually so...I dunno, vigorous I guess."

"I'm not?"

He laughed softly and looked up at him. "I think I would know," he smirked. Kenny smirked back, leaning down and kissing him softly.

"You would. And no one else will ever know," he smiled at him.

"Yays." he said softly, snuggling into him. Kenny clasped him back and sighed. "Ken?" Kyle asked, muffled by Ken's shirt.

"Yes, Beautiful?" he murmured happily.

"Can you untie me, please?"

"Do I have to? I like you so...vulnerable."

"I don't care. Let me go," he demanded, looking up at Ken and tugging on his arms.

"You don't like being tied together with me?" he pouted.

"Dude, I'm close enough to you to let you stick your cock up my ass, isn't that enough for you?"

"Well it is a good bit of happiness for me, yes," he snickered.

"Then you don't need the added bondage," he rolled his eyes. "Off with the damn cuffs, if you please. My wrists are going raw."

"Oh fine. Slide back with me," he said. They scooted back on the couch together and Ken reached over the side and grabbed the key. He reached behind himself and tried to get to the keyhole. "Shit, where is it?" he mumbled, having trouble maneuvering it behind his back.

"You got it on, so get it off."

"I already got you off," he smirked.

"Ha ha," he rolled his eyes. "Come on, Dude."

"I'm trying, I'm trying." he bit his tongue in concentration. Kyle groaned and leaned his head against his broad chest as he continued to work. They heard a knock at the door and shot their heads up.

"Kyle? Kenny? You home?"

"Shit, that's Wendy," Kyle hissed. "Come on, Ken!"

"I'm working on it!"

"Boys?"

"Bebe too, oh great," Kyle bit his lip.

"Just a minute, girls!" Ken called out.

"Why?"

"Just...just hold on, will ya?" Kyle yelled. He looked back at Ken with a panicked gaze. "Give me the key," he ordered. Ken tried to hand it off, but it slid in-between their fingers and fell into the couch cushions.

"Uh oh."

"We're coming in!"

"No!" Kyle shouted. "Not ye-" Too late. Bebe and Wendy stepped into the room, looking at them with wide eyes. They slowly stepped in and shut the door behind them, quietly locking it as their grins grew wider.

"Oh. My. God," Bebe bit her lip with a gigantic smile.

"It's um...not what it looks like?" Kyle tried with a wince.

They walked over and observed their blushing forms, well Kyle's blush at least. "Yeah," Wendy nodded. "Your cuffed to each other, missing pants, and covered with a sticky substance. It's not what it looks like at all."

"It's not," Kenny shrugged. "We're playing cops and robbers. I was giving Kyle a full cavity search and he struggled against me and I lost my pants in the midst of his brutality."

"Explain the goop," Bebe raised her brow amusedly.

"Uh...we just ate waffles and this is the syrup?" Kyle shrugged.

"God, please continue," Bebe begged sitting in front of them on the coffee table with Wendy joining her. "I wanna watch!"

"We're done, sorry," Ken smirked.

"Aww," Wendy pouted.

"Excuse me!" Kyle hit Ken's back with his fist. "Find the damn key!"

"Why?"

"I want my pants, that's why!" he looked into his blue stare in aggravation.

Ken reached behind him and dug in the cushions trying to locate the key. "Dude, I can't find it!"

"Try. Harder," he said through gritted teeth.

Bebe stood and smirked. "I'll find it," she said. She dug into the sofa, and pulled out the small object, waving it in front of them. "Guess what I want in return?"

"Don't," Kyle shook his head slowly.

She went and sat back on the coffee table. "Continue," she instructed.

"We're done!" he yelled at her.

"Well go again," she blinked patiently. "We can wait," she gestured between herself and Wendy, who was staring at them expectantly.

"We're not sexbots," Ken cracked.

"Mm, but still..." Wendy mused, leaning her chin into her palm. "We wanna see some action."

"Dude...we're wiped...," Kyle pleaded. "Just let us out of this."

"At least tell us what you were doing," Bebe batted her lashes.

"Okay," Ken shrugged, pushing Kyle back onto the couch.

"Kenneth!"

"Okay," he ignored his protesting boyfriend. "Kyle and me were like this, okay? And he had a vibrator shoved up his ass."

"Kenneth!" he repeated, trying to get out from under him. "Stop!"

"It's either this or we don't get out and you don't get your pants back on, Ky," he rolled his eyes. "Consider the options they gave you." Kyle blinked at him and lowered his head in defeat, looking at the back of the couch with a giant red smear staining his cheeks.

"Go on," Bebe urged.

"And I just kinda...went," he shrugged.

"You'd make a terrible erotic novel writer," Wendy smirked.

"Well I show, I don't usually tell," he snickered.

"So show us something," Bebe grinned.

He looked up and considered this. "Okay," he shrugged. "Let me give you a hint for later when you're banging Stanny or Butters," he said. "If he's not fucking you and he wants himself a handjob, best thing to do is this," he grasped Kyle's limp cock and made him release a squeak.

"Ken, don't!" he pled, trying to wriggle his hips away. Kenny just smirked and let go of him, much to his relief.

"Aw, that wasn't much instruction." Wendy pouted.

He laughed. "That's because I'm not ready yet." He sat stride Kyle's hips and closed him in.

"Don't...," Kyle warned.

Kenny snickered and lowered himself down to the Jew's ear. "We took care of my kink today," he whispered. "Time for yours."

"Don't!"

"See girls," he ignored him and pulled himself up. "First thing is you need your object wet, like so," he licked his hand and took Kyle's cock again. He began running his hand up and down it fluidly.

"Kenneth!" he screeched, trying to break loose.

"See? Absolute control," he smiled casually.

"Dude, stop!" he pled. "It hurts, Ken, stop!"

Kenny immediately released him and looked at him worriedly. "You okay?"

"I'll kill you," he threatened, trying to hit him, but only managing to pathetically beat on his spine.

"It hurt?" Bebe blinked.

"Not very good advice there, Ken," Wendy raised her raven brow.

He laughed sheepishly, "I didn't consider that we just got done...he's a bit sensitive right now...take that as your advice, will ya?"

"Yeah, got it," Bebe laughed softly, getting up and releasing Kyle's wrists. He immediately shot up and tackled Kenny, switching their positions. He looked down on him and narrowed his eyes.

I. Said. No," he growled.

Kenny gulped. "Uh...I-I love you..."

Kyle's disposition relaxed a bit, but his scowl remained. "When I say no, I fucking mean it! Got it?!"

"Got it," he nodded vigorously. "Don't hurt me," he winced. Kyle's eyes automatically softened and he reached down and grabbed his pants. He backed off of Ken and yanked them on, pulling off his covered shirt and flinging it across the room with Kenny following suit. Kyle ran his fingers through his curls and looked up at the girls in annoyance.

"Why are you here so late?"

"W-well, we have a message for you...from Ike," Wendy said softly.

"Why do you have a message from him?" Ken asked.

Bebe sighed. "We were IM-ing him for a bit. He was on your screen name," she nodded at the redhead.

"Well...what did he want?"

"There's some...turbulence on the home front," Wendy explained.

"How so?" Ken asked, pulling Kyle into him.

"Apparently they've been arguing nonstop about the trial...Your mom just wants to let things go while your dad wants to win this case..."

"Whaddya mean 'let things go?'" Kyle narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"She...she doesn't think that you're telling the truth," Bebe bit her lip. "She thinks it's a scheme to get you back home."

"What does my father think?" He shook in rage as Kenny held onto him tighter.

"The same," Wendy stated. "The difference is that your mom thinks this is your issue, not theirs. And your dad thinks that it's their fault for kicking you out that you would want to draw attention to yourself so it's their responsibility to teach you a lesson." she winced.

Kyle just looked at her and shook violently. "Why didn't Ike tell us himself?" Ken asked quietly.

"They...they blocked calling access to here," Bebe said quietly. "And all four of your cell phones."

"Four?" Kyle blinked.

"You two, Stan, and Eric," Wendy explained. "They know that they're here a lot, so they just took that step as a precaution. They don't know that we're here with you guys some, too."

Kyle placed his face into his palms and sniffed. "Oh Jesus Christ..." he looked back up at them and sighed. "Did Ike say anything else about the trial?"

They shook their heads. "We didn't talk much," Bebe said. "Ike said that Gerald mostly goes to the jail to discuss the trial...he doesn't say much at home."

"Are...are Mom and him going?" he asked softly.

Wendy nodded. "Yes."

"No...no, no, no...Not Ike. Tell him he's got to stay home or something," he pled.

"Why?" She cocked her head.

"Would you be able to take your younger sibling hearing all that?" Kyle asked. "Look, it's bad enough that you two...and Stan and Cartman...and my parents...that everyone's gonna be there. But I don't want Ike subjected to it. Please...please, I'm begging you to at least try to keep him out of there."

They looked at him and nodded softly. "We'll do what we can," Bebe said softly, getting to her feet. She knelt down in front of him and grasped his face in her hands, smiling gently. "I...I don't know what happened, Kyle. But I love you," she kissed his forehead. "I'm just happy you're alright."

Kyle laughed and kissed her cheek back. "I'm fine. Everything's gonna be okay."

"You sure?" Wendy asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. I've got the idiot with me," he jerked his thumb towards the blonde clasping onto him. Ken smiled and nuzzled into the crook of his neck. "Go home and get some sleep, will ya?"

"Okay...you do the same. Your workout seems to have burnt you both out," Wendy smirked.

"Be quiet," Ken stuck his tongue out at her. "Little Mr. Jew over here is a good lover. Can't half ass anything with him," he held onto him tighter and smiled childishly.

Kyle groaned and rolled his eyes. "Text us when you get home, please," he looked at them.

"How come?" Bebe asked.

"Because you're two teenage girls walking through this shit hole of a town at midnight with no protection, that's why," he stated. "If I don't get a text within a half hour, I'm calling the cops."

Bebe giggled and kissed him again. "I love you, Kyle."

"He's mine," Kenny pouted, pulling Kyle into his lap and baring his teeth playfully at her.

"You're not gonna piss on me to mark the territory, are you?" Kyle raised his brow.

"Don't tempt me," he smirked.

"Bye guys," Wendy laughed, leaning down and pecking both of them on the head. "We'll let you know when we get home, we promise," they started walking towards the door.

"See ya, Girls," Ken waved.

"Thanks for letting me know," Kyle smiled painfully at them.

"Not at all," they walked out the door and quietly shut it behind them. Ken looked up at Kyle, who was shaking a bit.

"You...you okay?" he asked softly, pushing hair out of his pale face.

"They think I made it up...," he whispered. "I...I don't believe it."

"I do, they're assholes."

"Even I'm not twisted enough to make something like this up," he sighed in aggravation. "This just...it's just so wrong on so many fucking levels, Ken."

"I know."

"No...no you don't know," he sniffed.

Kenny grasped his chin and forced him to look into his eyes. "Damien said I don't know half of the story...what am I missing?"

Kyle started back at him for a long while. "You...you know everything that you need to know. That I want you to know...Ken...I love you. You're a fucking idiot who doesn't listen, but I love you more than I thought possible. Which is why I refuse to tell you everything that happened."

"Why?" he demanded. "Do you think I'll stop loving you?"

"You might," he shrugged. "I really don't know," he sighed and looked away. "One day...one day I'll tell you. One day I'll just let everything that happened play out for you...but today is not that day...tomorrow won't be either."

"You say you trust me...do you mean it?"

Kyle grasped his hand, bringing it up to gently kiss the skin. "I do," he stroked him lovingly. "I trust you more than I trust Stan...or myself. I told you over five months ago that I do. And that was before we were dating," he smiled. "My trust has only grown since then, Kenny. But...I'm me," he shrugged. "You know me. You know that I wouldn't do or say anything that I can control to jeopardize what we have. I cherish it too damn much."

"How much do you trust me?" he asked, intertwining their fingers and staring at them intently.

"More than anything."

"What do you trust me with?"

"Everything, Ken."

"Even your life?"

"Of course...I gave you the reins on what I am and what I do when I said I would be your partner. I'm not stupid, Ken...I know that you own me by Satan's word." Kenny looked up at him in shock and Kyle chuckled at his expression. "Yeah, I'm fairly observant, Ken. I mean...the way you react to whenever Damien mentions 'condition three', the way you clasp onto me if he mentions a possession...Ken, I get it. I'm yours. I'm happy like that. I chose to be like that...and if anyone had to own me...well I'm glad that it's you," he smiled.

Kenny looked up at him before sliding him down onto the couch and holding up his hand. "Wait here," he instructed. Kyle blinked at him in confusion, watching as he gathered up his toys and threw them back into the bag, walking back into the room. Ken snuck past the kids again and placed them back into the closet. He took a shuddery breath and sniffled a bit, looking back out towards the open door into the light. He didn't know if it'd work. But he had to try.

He walked back out towards Kyle, who was still looking confused and stood in front of him. "Kyle?"

"Hm?"

"What surprise are we on?"

Kyle looked up thoughtfully. "Hmm...seventeen is your next one I believe," he stated.

"Cool," he smiled softly at him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Kyle looked at it and blinked.

"What is that?"

"Number seventeen," he said softly, dropping to his knee and revealing a small ring to the redhead. Kyle's eyes widened.

"Y-you're...you're not..."

"I am...," he nodded. "Kyle, I fucking love you, I really do. And if what you just told me is true...then I really think we're meant to be together. I know we're young and poor and kinda dumb...one of us at least," he shrugged. "And we fight, and I embarrass you...,"

"Kenny..."

"And I don't help with the laundry and I'm inappropriate..."

"_Ken_,"

"And I do that dumb thing with my hair that you hate and I kick you in the bed..."

"KENNY!"

"What?"

"You're rambling," he said softly, his eyes gentle and a bit scared looking.

"S-sorry," he shook a bit. "I'm...I'm actually really terrified right now, ha ha," he laughed with a wince. "I...," he sighed and dropped his head before looking up into Kyle's lovely green eyes determinedly. "Kyle Broflovski, will you marry me?"

Kyle stared at him and the ring for a long moment. "We're...we're seventeen and eighteen..."

"I don't mean right now," he explained. "It may be...four years or something...but this is a promise ring. One that says that you'll be my husband one day...even if I have to wait."

Kyle bit his lip and looked around the room, thinking. Ken's heart sunk a bit as he realized Kyle's logical side was overpowering him.

"I...I don't know...," Kyle said. "I love you...but..."

"I know we haven't been together long," he spurt out, knowing exactly where Kyle's mind was going. "But look at us, Kyle. We're living together. We have been since day freaking one. We...we've had one major fight and only one. We fall asleep in each other's arms every night. We help each other when we're hurt or scared. We've found ways to support ourselves and still find the time to tell each other how much we're in love with one another...Kyle, I don't know if I know any pair better than us!"

"We agreed to spend eternity together," Kyle continued softly, working his own way through. "We...we're certainly a different pair," he laughed brokenly, obviously still conflicted.

"Different in the sense that we were destined to be together, Kyle," he said softly. "I mean...look at what we've gone through, and yet we're still together? All the ghosts and the turmoil and our constant issues haven't torn us apart. Something is working here for us, Kyle. I don't know what the fuck it is, but something is obviously there and I don't ever want it to leave, Dude."

Kyle looked down and took the ring from its box and stared at it. "It's beautiful," he whispered.

"I...I've been saving for it," Ken said softly.

"For how long?"

He laughed a bit. "Since I was fourteen. My ma told me that one day, I'd need to buy a ring to grab the heart of someone special, to seal the deal...so I started saving, knowing it was the one thing that may or may not make the difference in my life. I bought this one about three months ago."

"Three months?" he repeated.

"I...I really do feel like we should be together," he gulped nervously. "I have for...for awhile. I got this ring...because it reminds me of me and you."

"It matches our eyes," Kyle smiled softly.

"It's a tsavorite garnet," he explained. "I saw it and I knew I had to have it."

"You realize...if I do say yes...," Kyle drawled out slowly. "We...we have to come to some compromises, here."

"Like?"

"Like it means yes you own me, but I get some ownership of you, too. And I want you to stop going when I tell you that I want you to stop. And I don't want you to keep saying you're not good enough for me..." he trailed off a bit, staring intently at the ring.

Ken placed his hand atop Kyle's frail one and smiled. "My yin to your yang, Kyle." Kyle looked up at him and smirked a bit.

"You're really serious."

"Of course I am. I wouldn't joke about this. I've told you I don't throw the concept of love around, Kyle. And...and I can't express how much I love you in any other way," he smiled softly at him. Kyle looked between him and the ring before breaking into a small smile.

"No running off and eloping?"

"No. We'd get hitched when you were ready."

He watched as Kyle slowly slid the ring onto the fourth finger of his left hand and held it up, looking at it upon his pale finger. Kenny raised his own hand and intertwined their fingers, watching the garnet as it sparkled in the soft lighting and the pink glow emitting from Kyle's eyes.

* * *

_A/N: And some of you think that the story is ruined now. _

_Nah, not yet. Not until two chapters from now when you're puking your guts out at my detail =D_

_Yup, we've got...three chaps and an epilogue left? Two for the trial, one for the epic ending of epicness and then one set in the future. Oh, my ending is gonna suck, but I have it planned out, so you're gonna deal with it._

_Anyways. Proposal! I know a few couples my age who got hitched a month into dating, so this isn't too unrealistic. It'll be fairly important in the end, trust me._

_And a reply to a review on Kyle's powers with the blue eyes (Scared power): Dude, Ken knew that the eyes were a part of his power, however, he wasn't aware that the voices were. He thought that they had to do with Kyle's breakdowns, hence the reason they told the psychiatrist about it. Silly. Of course glowing eyes have to do with the powers. It was the voices and crying that threw everyone the fuck off._

_Hopefully I finish before the end of January. I'm sure I will. The trial is gonna be hella fun but hella graphic. So if you have a weak stomach...just wait a few days after the chapters are posted and read the reviews XD_

_Thanks and sorry for the long wait! I kinda got uninspired for a bit, but I jumped back =)_

_PS: Kayla and Jacob are their first failed case. They're gonna hang around for a bit. You'll see next chapter. ;)_


	45. Philosophical

_A/N: Welcome to September =)_

_...__**I LIED!**_

_We're not hitting the trial today. I have to get things going on a different portion first and then we'll get into it. I have other stuff I need to do...well not need to, but the stuff I need will take up too much room, so I have to throw in some filler first._

_Trust me, otherwise everything will be choppy and just all over the freaking place. Bear with me for this one more chapter._

_...You're getting an extra chapter out of it. Doesn't that excite you?_

_...I'm really sorry. I was really trying to get around doing this, but I really couldn't._

_Enjoy anyways =)_

* * *

Kenny broke his eyes open into the afternoon light, finding himself looking straight into the narrow face of his redheaded lover. He smiled gently and scooted closer towards him, wrapping his arm around him, drawing him into his grasp with a soft sigh. Kyle moaned a bit and cracked his eyes open towards him, smiling back.

"Good morning," he yawned quietly.

"It's afternoon," he replied, kissing his forehead. "Sleep well?"

"Decently enough," he sighed, nuzzling into his chest. "What's today?"

"The second."

"Oh...good...," he mumbled. Kenny laughed softly and kissed him again. He leaned his head atop Kyle's and they basked a bit in the rays of light bursting through their balcony door.

"Kenny, Kyle!" voices called to them.

"Don't they ever sleep?" Kyle groaned.

"Doubt it," Ken smirked. He looked back at the door and called out, "Come in, Kids."

Kayla and Jacob burst through the door and jumped onto their bed. Kayla landed harshly on Kyle and sent him flying up with a yelp. "Morning," she grinned at them.

"Hello," Kyle ran his fingers through his hair and yawned again. "Why are you awake?"

"Couldn't sleep," Jacob shrugged. "You promised us ice cream today," he grinned.

"Not first thing!" he retorted.

Kayla stuck out her lip and pouted. "But you...but you promised..."

"Alright, alright," Kenny sighed. "We'll get your ice cream. Just let us get dressed."

"Yay!" they cheered before hopping off the bed and going back out of the room.

"Jesus, didn't think I'd be a dad at fucking seventeen," Kyle rolled his eyes as they got out of the bed.

"Neither of us did, but you make a good dad," Ken smirked.

"You're not half bad yourself. You're the one who keeps them entertained," Kyle smiled at him. "Told you you'd make a great dad one day."

Ken walked over to his side of the room and wrapped him in his arms, gently planting a kiss on his lips. He intertwined their left hands and smiled at him. "Well I have a great partner," he said softly. They looked down at their rings and smiled wider.

"Guess there's a lot I wasn't expecting at seventeen," Kyle mused softly. "Engagement was also on that list."

"But do you regret it?"

"Do you still see a ring on my finger?"

"That I do," he smirked, pecking his nose softly. They leaned their foreheads into each other's and sighed. "You know...you gotta tell Stan sometime," Ken laughed softly.

"Do I have to? I'm afraid he'll kill me."

He snickered, "Well, good luck with that."

"You know what I mean," he pouted.

"Come on, Dude. It's been over a week...," he pulled back and looked at him seriously. "What's holding you back?"

Kyle cleared his throat lightly. "Well...Stan was thinking about proposing to Wendy..."

"And you told him it was too soon, didn't you?" he smirked.

"Maybe," he blushed. "I haven't seen him since that night anyways...and I think that it's only fair that I tell him to his face...that way he doesn't have to make the drive just to punch my lights out."

"He's not gonna punch you," Ken rolled his eyes, breaking apart and walking over to their dresser. He pulled out pairs of jeans for them both and tossed Kyle his.

"Well, you know...he might have a bit of a freak out."

"He might puke and that'll be the end of it," Ken replied, sliding his pants on. "You know that he only wants what makes you happy and I think he finally gets that our relationship does just that."

Kyle sighed. "I dunno."

"What? Are you gonna wait and tell him by means of a wedding invite with a post-it note that asks if he'll be your best man?"

"No, I do have some degree of tact," he muttered before sighing again. "Why haven't you told anyone?"

"Waitin' for you to tell numero uno, Ky. I mean, if you can't tell Stan, I'm sure as hell not going through the streets screaming it like I want to."

Kyle laughed softly and pulled on a shirt and began buttoning it up. "Well...maybe we should get 'em all at once."

"How so? Sky writing?"

"Nah."

"Billboard? I'm totally willing for that," he struck a goofy pose with his thumb up and Kyle burst out laughing.

"No, I mean we get the gang over here and tell them properly."

"When?"

"Tonight I guess...," he said softly. "I mean...tomorrow isn't really an option...and we don't know how long this thing's gonna go on."

"Well, they'll notice once they see the rings," Ken wiggled his fingers of his left hand in the air for display.

"I feel like I owe it to them to tell them in a somewhat civilized manner after all the shit I've been putting everyone through. Broflovski traditions die hard I guess," he shrugged.

"Isn't it Broflovski tradition to call everyone as soon as you're engaged, though?" Ken smirked. "Didn't your cousin call you a few months ago?"

"Well that was her," he frowned. "She was marrying some foreign rich-ass banker. I'm marrying you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Kyle finished buttoning up his shirt and laughed softly. He walked over and threw his arms around his neck and smiled. "It just means that I'm not marrying someone just because my family's going to be jealous of me. I'm marrying you because that's what I want to do."

Ken smiled and grasped him around his waist. "Love me that much hm?"

"Mhm," he nodded. "Very much so."

"Awesome," he chuckled. They leaned forwards and connected their lips, their tongues dancing slowly against each other.

"Eww..."

They broke apart and looked at the door, seeing Jacob and Kayla standing and staring at them, giggling lightly.

"What part of waiting are you two not understanding?" Kyle raised his brow amusedly.

"The part that gets us our ice cream faster," Jacob grinned.

"Alright, point taken," Kenny smiled. He grasped Kyle's hand and they walked out towards the kids. They all walked into the main room and stopped.

"Okay, what are the rules?" Kyle asked.

"No disrupting the public," Jacob relayed.

"No ice cream until we're in the park," Kayla added.

"If we see a-anyone, we give you the ice cream so they don't see us."

"Good," Kenny nodded. "And what about stealing?"

"Don't," they replied together.

"Excellent," Kyle smiled. "Are we ready then?" The kids jumped up and down excitedly as the boys looked at each other and smirked.

"Let's hit it," Ken led them out the door. He kicked it shut behind them and they all walked down the flight of steps into the lobby. He saw Joel and Sally and smirked. "Hey! Isn't it against the code of conduct to make out with fellow employees?"

They instantly broke apart and blushed. Joel cleared his throat and glared a bit at him, "Shouldn't you be somewhere?"

"Like?"

"I dunno, work or something?"

"We have the week off," Kyle smiled gently.

Sally gasped and got to her feet and sped towards them. She grabbed their left hands and looked up at them in shock. "Really?!" she squeaked.

Ken blinked. "You're observant."

"Oh my gosh, that's wonderful, boys!" she said, clasping them in a tight hug. "That's absolutely wonderful!"

"What?" Joel cocked his head. She broke off of them and held their hands up for display. He broke into a grin. "Well I'll be damned," he laughed, walking over to them. He held out his hand for Ken to shake, which he returned happily. "Great for you two," he nodded. "I'm happy for you." He moved and switched to Kyle.

"Thanks," Kyle blushed lightly as they shook.

"When's the wedding?" Sally asked, her eyes shining.

"Dunno," Ken shrugged. "We'll figure it out eventually. Until then, we're just riding it out."

"We will once we're firmly on the ground," Kyle added.

"Good planning," Joel nodded. "Where are you off to? Tell your friends?"

"We will later today," Ken said. "We're going out for some ice cream. We're celebrating in a way," he shrugged. "We'll have the real celebration tonight."

"We will?" Kyle blinked.

"Well, yeah," he shrugged. "If we're telling everyone, we need to celebrate."

"I agree," Joel smiled. "My last marriage, us guys went out the night I told them and drank ourselves silly. But don't you do that."

Sally chuckled, "I don't think they'd be able to pull off twenty-one...at least not Kyle."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?!"

"Take it as a compliment, Dear," she smiled. "Now, go on and get out."

"Wanna keep makin' out huh?" Ken stated slyly. "Well, don't let us interrupt...just don't use that key to use our apartment for it. We may have some issues if you do that."

"No promises," Joel winked. "Have fun, Boys."

"Will do," they nodded, walking towards and out the doors for the complex. They took a deep breath and leaned into each other with the kids walking beside them, each grasping one of the boy's hands.

"Well, that's two people down to know," Ken smiled at him.

"Heh, yeah. Wasn't planning on telling the landlord before anyone else, though," Kyle chuckled. He paused and looked in front of them thoughtfully.

"What's on your mind, Love?"

"Our families...Ken, do we tell them or not?"

Kenny furrowed his brow in contemplation. "I...I dunno....I mean...we should..."

"Let's ask Stan and the others what they think," Kyle interjected. "I mean...considering who we are and our stance in this, we really don't have a lot of opinion on it...we should get some outside sources to aide us a bit."

He nodded, "sounds like a plan."

"Speaking of them...celebrations, huh?"

"Fuck yeah." he took his hand from Jacob's, whipping his phone out of his pocket and dialing a number.

"Who are you calling?" Kyle raised his brow.

"Shh...You'll see."

"_Hey Ken."_

"Hey Stan. Question for ya."

"_Please don't tell me Kyle's hurt again."_

Ken chuckled, "Far from it, he's right here."

"_Good," _he breathed in relief.

"You and Wends doing anything tonight?"

"_Why? Are you wanting a double date or something?"_

"Not really."

"_Not a foursome I hope?"_

"Hold onto that thought," he smirked. He hit the mute button and looked at Kyle. "Wanna foursome with Wendy and Stan?"

Kyle's face dropped in disgust. "EW!"

He snickered and put the phone's volume back on. "Kyle says maybe later."

"_Yeah, I'm sure. What's up anyways?"_

"Any chance you two can grab Bebe, Butters, and Cartman for us and meet us somewhere for dinner?"

"_How come?"_

"Well, think about tomorrow, Stan. I kinda want Ky to be a bit more relaxed, ya know?"

"_Yeah, I get that. I'll grab em. When and where?"_

"Let us say...Marion's at 5?"

"_I hope you're footing the bill because I couldn't afford that place if my life depended on it, Dude."_

He chuckled, "Don't worry, I gotcha covered. My last paycheck was good sized, so we should be okay."

"_Should be?"_

"If not, you'll have pretty little dishpan hands. You can show Wendy that you'd make a great husband one day."

He laughed lightly, _"I hope that's not her main concern on my marriage eligibility."_

"Dunno, Dude. She is a chick."

"_True. Alright, I'll get em and meet you then."_

"Awesome. See ya then," he hung up and smiled over at Kyle. "Hope you don't mind, but I made some dinner plans."

"At a steakhouse," he muttered.

Kenny hit his forehead with his palm. "Shit, I forgot. I'm sorry."

Kyle laughed, leaning up and pecking his cheek. "It's cool, Dude. They have chicken."

"I was trying to take you somewhere romantic," he shook his head in embarrassment.

"It is, Ken, calm down. I'm fine with it."

"I'll change the restaurant," he insisted.

"Don't," he smiled at him sweetly. "I like that...one cheesy chicken thingy they have," he shrugged. "It's the thought that counts. I'm cool."

"You're absolutely sure?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Ken. I am. Now let's get the damn ice cream, please," he nodded towards the cart they were approaching.

"What flavors?" Ken asked, looking between the kids.

"Brown!" Jacob shouted.

"Pink!" Kayla giggled.

"I'm gonna guess that's chocolate and strawberry," Ken raised his brow.

Kyle snickered, "it is now." They approached the cart and smiled at the vendor.

"Hey there," he nodded. "What can I get for ya?"

"One chocolate, one strawberry, one vanilla..." Ken listed off. "Ky?"

"Uh...nothing, thanks," Kyle shrugged.

Ken raised his brow, "why?" he looked down at the menu and mouthed "oh." He looked back up at the vendor. "Do you have anything sugar free?"

"Unfortunately no, sorry, Kid," he shrugged.

"Then just get the first two," Ken instructed. "I'll be back," he let go of Kyle and Jacob's hands.

"Where are you going?" Kyle blinked.

"To find something less discriminatory towards you," he smiled, walking down the street and looking at the various carts spread around. His eyes landed on the nacho cart and he smiled. He was pretty sure it fell into Kashrut. He approached and ordered a large plate, looking around aimlessly as he waited for his order.

"Hey, McCormick!" he shot his head around and saw Token and Clyde approaching him.

"Hey," he smiled.

"Hey yourself," Token nodded. "Where's Kyle?"

"Getting ice cream. Where's Tweek?"

"Getting his fix," Clyde laughed, motioning over towards a nearby espresso cart. Tweek looked over and Ken waved at him. Tweek spazzed a bit and waved back before turning back to wait for his caffeine.

"What about Craig?" he lowered his voice a bit.

"Psh, after what he did to you?" Token stated. "He's less popular than Kyle was," he rolled his eyes. "What a fucking dick."

"Yeah, tell me about it."

"You seen him since...then?"

"Yeah, ran into him about a week ago. Said he wanted me to date him or something and something about revenge...and he threw in a nice little threat that involved killing Kyle, so that just put him as my number one pal and all that," he muttered.

"Jesus Christ...," Clyde shook his head. "You think you know a guy."

"Yeah, well, this town's rather judgmental of just about everybody. I don't think anyone's ever pegged anyone right. With the exception of our two separate cliques, maybe," he smirked.

"Sans Craig," Token added.

"Yeah. What've you be up to?"

They shrugged. "Nothin' much," Token said simply. "Just waiting for college. How about you?"

"How goes being the lover of the Jew?" Clyde smirked.

Ken smirked right back. "Amazing, thank you."

"Doin' him all night?" Token grinned.

"Every night," he nodded. "Kid's got more endurance than anyone ever gave him credit for."

"How far have you gotten?" Clyde asked.

"Uh...I just said we fuck all night, Dude."

"No you idiot," he rolled his eyes. "You two talk about living together or anything?"

"We have been since we started," he shrugged, taking his finished nachos and paying the vendor. "Day one I spent with him and every night since then."

"Wow, you move fast," Token raised his brow.

"Oh, you have no idea," he smirked, chomping on a chip.

"Whaddya mean?" Clyde cocked his head.

"Promise not to tell?" he asked with a mouthful of cheese.

"Sure," Token shrugged. Ken grinned and held up his left hand, showing off his ring. The other boy's jaws dropped together.

"No. Fucking. Way.," Clyde blinked.

"Yes fucking way," he smiled. "The night I had my tiff with Craig was the night I asked Kyle to be mine."

"And...he agreed." Token said slowly.

"No, I just wear this as a fashion statement," he rolled his eyes.

"Kyle. Kyle Broflovski," Clyde stated. "Mr. Thinks-before-he-acts...agreed to marry you of all people."

"Yes. Yes he did," he beamed.

"Why?"

"Whaddya mean why?!" he pouted. "Kyle and me are together and we're happy...we decided that we were meant to be."

"Aren't you a little..." Token started.

"Young?"

"Uh...no..."

"Inexperienced?" he guessed again.

"Let's try too experienced," he winced. "I mean...aren't you like..."

Kenny frowned. "I haven't willingly slept with anybody since I got with Kyle. I don't do that shit anymore. I'm here for him and him alone."

"And you have our support," Clyde said defensively. "It's just a little...shocking to say the least."

"But we are happy for you, nonetheless," Token smiled reassuringly. "I mean, it's weird as hell...but dude...you're getting married! Gimme props," he held out his fist. Ken bumped it and they smirked at each other.

Clyde held out his hand and he shook it. "But why can't we tell anyone?" the brunette asked.

"Ky hasn't told Stan yet, so we're waiting to really make it public."

"Really?" Token asked. "Of all people, he hasn't told Marsh?"

"Try being as sensible as Kyle and try to tell your best friend the biggest shock of his life aside from the whole 'coming out' ordeal. Not easy."

"Ken?" Kyle's voice spoke up.

"There's Wifey now," Clyde batted his lashes.

"Hey guys," Kyle smiled, approaching the small group.

"Hey Kyle," the other two nodded with large grins on their faces. Kyle studied them for a moment before dropping into a frown and looking up at the blonde.

"You told them."

"Uh..."

He sighed and shook his head. "Ken..."

"Sorry."

"I bet you are."

"Ooh, looks like trouble tonight for you, Ken," Token sniggered.

"Congrats, Kyle," Clyde smiled at him. Kyle returned his expression.

"Thanks, Dude."

"Well, this has been fun, but myself and Kosher boy need to go frolic in the park."

"Don't frolic too loud, the kid's will hear you," Token grinned perversely as they began walking off.

"Didn't hear us last time," Kyle shrugged before turning back away from them. "See ya," he called behind himself and Ken.

Kenny looked back with a huge smile, seeing Token and Clyde's taken aback expressions and breaking into laughter. "And remember, he's taken," he winked. He turned back with Kyle and kissed his cheek. "Well. You had your lewd moment of the day. I'm very proud of you."

"And now my life is complete."

"Damn straight."

"Are we there yet?" Jacob tugged on his arm.

"Almost," Ken reassured him softly.

"Just hang tight," Kyle added. They headed in through the entrance of the park and headed down into woods, out of sight. They came upon Ken and Kyle's oak tree and the boys shared a mischievous smile.

"Okay, this is good," Ken announced, plopping down on the ground. Kyle followed suit with the kids, handing them their treats.

"Thank you," they stated together before attacking the ice cream.

Kyle leaned into Kenny and they started nibbling on their nachos, keeping ears out for passerby's.

"So, why'd you tell Token and Clyde?" Kyle finally asked.

"Because I'm damn proud," he shrugged simply. "I'm sorry but I feel the need to brag. At least I didn't tell Tweekers."

Kyle chuckled, "he'd 'gah' himself into a coma if you did that."

"Exactly," he smirked. "I told them to keep it on the down-low. Until Mr. Stanny knows, that is."

"I'm not looking forward to this. Worst of all..."

"Cartman?"

"Surprisingly no, that's not my worst bet," he looked up at him. "Bebe and Wendy."

"Oh, the squealing," Ken winced.

"Oh well," he shrugged. "We'd have to deal with it eventually."

"Yeah, and we'll do it in public so they can't kidnap us and drag us off to make plans," he snickered.

"Willing to bet they still try," Kyle smirked.

"Well, we'll grab onto Cartman should they try. Can't move that boulder."

Kyle laughed and nuzzled into him a bit. "I wouldn't mind them planning it though, would you?"

"Fuck no. They're a lot cheaper than pros."

"Oh well...we have awhile to think about it. Kinda more pressing matters at hand," he grumbled.

"Not today," he said, pulling him in further. "I don't want you stressing into an ulcer. So it's all about you today," he kissed his head lovingly. Kayla yawned and leaned into Kyle.

"See?" Kyle said. "This wouldn't happen if you two would sleep."

"But...it's funner to stay up," Jacob retorted, leaning into Ken. Kenny smirked and lightly tugged some of his messy brown hair.

"Until you pass out during the day," he finished. He sighed and leaned his head atop Kyle's.

"We can't carry them back out," Kyle said.

"I know," he chuckled, feeling Jacob fading beside him. "Guess we're stuck for awhile."

He sighed and cuddled into the blonde. "Oh well. That's fine."

"Yeah...nice and qui-"

"KITTY!" Kayla squealed. They jerked apart from each other and looked at her. She was pointing away from them with a wide grin. They looked over and saw a kitten trekking around.

"I'll be damned, it is a kitty," Ken blinked.

"Yeah, too young to be out here," Kyle frowned. He broke away from Ken and grabbed a nacho. He slowly stood and made his way towards the cat, crouched down and extending the treat. "Here kitty, kitty, kitty...," he clicked his tongue. The kitten stretched its neck out and sniffed at his offering. "Good kitty...," he murmured. "Come on...take the treat..." The cat obliged, licking away at the cheese. "Good...," he nodded, still moving towards it. He gently reached under and picked it up, still letting it lap away at the cheese. He moved back over towards their group and looked at Ken with a smile.

"Kitty!" Kayla repeated, looking at it with shining eyes.

Kyle lifted it up a bit and checked. "It's a girl."

"Girl kitty!" Jacob added in excitement.

"Can we keep it?" Kayla asked, looking at him giddily.

Kyle raised his brow and chuckled. "I dunno...," he looked over at Ken and smiled. "Well? What do you think?"

"Your call," he smiled.

"You're the one who's had experience with pets. This is your decision."

"Do you think we can?"

"I dunno," he looked over at the kids and back to him. "Pets are a lot of responsibility. They need fed and brushed and loved..."

"We can, we can!" Jacob pleaded.

"Are you sure?" Ken raised his brow.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Kayla clasped her hands together and bit her lip. Ken and Kyle looked at each other and smiled.

"I don't think it's a bad idea," he shrugged.

"Well then it's settled," Kyle said. "We have a kitty now," he held up the cat and it started chewing on his hair. "No tags or anything, and it smells pretty gross. I think it's safe to say she doesn't have an owner."

"Cool," Ken nodded. "Why don't we finish here and take her home?"

"I think it's official," Kyle smirked, grabbing a nacho and munching on the chip while sharing the cheese with the cat. "We're a fucking family already."

Ken looked between the five of them and looked back up at him and smiled. He leaned forward and pecked the boy's lips. "I'm not complaining about that."

"Did I say I was?"

They laughed and met foreheads. Kayla and Jacob crowded around them, petting at the kitten clutched between the boys grasp. Sure it was soon. And technically, neither the kids nor the cat legally belonged to them. But damn it, it was close enough for a tender spot in Kenny's heart to ache just a little with happiness.

* * *

Kyle and Ken walked back down the walkways of South Park, heading towards the restaurant.

"Think they'll be okay?" Kyle asked softly.

"Dude, we left them the number, we gave them instructions, and we bolted the door shut. They've lived a lot longer than us. And they have Snickers to distract them. They know how to behave."

"I know..."

"Not like they can really get hurt, Dude," he threw his arm around the Jew.

"Snickers can."

"They know they can pet her and play with the toys with her and that's all. And if something goes wrong, they know how to call us."

"Heh, yeah..." he nodded.

"Stop being such a worry-wart, dude. Let's address the much more pressing matter. How are we telling them?"

"Um...'Guess what, we're getting married?'"

"Where's the fun in that?" he pouted.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I'm not a fun guy."

"Yeah, you are, but you're refusing to let out your creativity...we'll just hide our rings till the end of the meal and tell em then," he smiled.

"So Stan can throw up seventy dollars worth of food?"

"Yeah! Delicious irony."

"From our pockets."

"You're spoiling my fun," he pouted.

Kyle sighed and leaned into him. "Sorry. Nervous about this and nervous about tomorrow...I'm a bit edgy."

"Well don't be," he kissed his head. "Everything'll be fine."

"Not really. But I'll pretend that that's a true statement for awhile."

"That's all I ask," he smiled, opening the door and ushering him in. They shoved their hands into their pockets and approached their group.

"Hey, Boys," Bebe smiled at them.

"Hey Dudes," Stan and Cartman nodded.

Kyle looked around confusedly. "Where's Wendy?" he asked Stan.

"Over there," he gestured behind them. Ken and Kyle looked over seeing her talking softly with another girl.

"Is that Red?" Kyle squinted.

"Put your glasses on, Jew," Cartman smirked. "But yes, that's Red. She came to visit before college started."

"Cool," Kenny smiled. He turned to Butters and leaned in, "So, you been doin' the nasty with Miss Stevens over there?" he wriggled his brow.

"W-well...well...."

"Good for you," he slapped his shoulder a few times. "Still owe you a beer. Don't let me forget." Butters just smiled shyly up at him.

"Your table is ready when you are," a hostess came up and smiled at them.

"Red, Wends, let's go," Stan called. The girls got up, grinning at each other, and followed the rest of the group towards the back of the restaurant. They sat themselves around a large round table and smiled at each other.

"Patch things up?" Stan asked Wendy.

"Mhm," she nodded. "Hey there, Ken and Kyle. You doing well?"

"Very," Ken nodded.

"Heard you two are dating, is this true?" Red asked, looking at them devilishly.

They glanced at each other and smirked. "You could say that," Kyle nodded.

"Well good for you," she nodded back. They all looked down at their menus and Cartman whistled.

"How the hell can people pay this much for food?"

"They get jobs, Cartman," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"It's inhuman!"

"So are you."

"Shut up, Jew!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Stan interjected. "We just got here. At least wait until halfway through to ruin the meal."

"Sorry, Sir," Kyle smirked at him.

"Yeah, you better be," he smirked back. "Why here, Ken?"

"Hm? Oh. Well, Kyle deserves it," he pecked the young boy's cheek. "He needs all the pampering he can get."

"Eric told me about that," Red said worriedly. "Are you gonna be alright, Kyle?"

He looked at her and laughed nervously. "Y-yeah," he shrugged. "I mean...it's not that big of a deal."

"From the way he phrased it, it sounds like a huge deal," she argued.

"It'll be fine," he waved dismissively.

"You don't sound too sure..."

"I am," he beamed at her falsely. "I'm totally cool. I just have to go and talk, right? Everyone always said I have a big mouth and now I can prove it," he laughed a bit shakily. They all gave him a worried glance before looking at each other with the same expression.

"You okay, Ky?" Stan asked softly.

"I'd be a lot better if that subject wouldn't be brought up," he replied, staring holes into his menu. "Can we please just drop it?"

"Y-yea," they all responded before looking back at their pamphlets. They looked back up as their waiter came by, going around the table and taking their orders. As he finished the round, Kenny's hand went and found Kyle's under the table. He gently stroked the ring and flashed him a comforting smile. Kyle looked up at him and gave him a forced one back, his eyes troubled and murky.

"You okay?" Ken mouthed.

Kyle shrugged. "I dunno," he mouthed back, turning and looking down towards the table.

"So...," Stan started, trying to dispel the tension wafting around the group. "How are you two doing?" he asked Bebe and Butters.

They broke into grins and intertwined their hands on the table. "Amazing," Bebe commented.

"Couldn't be better," Butters mused.

"Good," he nodded. "Ken? Ky? How about you?"

"Incredible as always," Ken boasted, gently pecking the Semite's cheek. "Better than you could imagine," he added with a smirk. He looked down at Kyle for an agreement, instead meeting him staring intently at the table.

"Kyle?" he blinked.

"Dude, what's up?" Stan cocked his head. No response.

Kyle slowly raised his free hand to the table and grasped his steak knife, staring at it with almost deadened eyes. He slowly twisted it in his slender fingers, biting his lip in contemplation.

"Ky?" Kenny tried again gently, shaking his hand a bit.

Kyle snapped up as if waking from a trance. He glanced over at Ken, who furrowed his brows in concern as a tinge of navy passed over the boy's eyes. "B-bathroom," he stammered, quickly pushing away from the table and speeding away from the group, who stared after him in confusion.

"What the fuck? What's up the Jew's vagina this time?" Cartman question.

"Fuck if I know," Ken muttered. "I'll find out, though," he stood and pursued the redhead into the men's room. He glanced in, finding Kyle alone in the room, vomiting in one of the stalls. He rushed over to his side and ran his fingers through his hair. "It's okay...," he cooed, rubbing his back gently. "It's alright..."

"No...no it's not," Kyle panted, shutting his eyes and holding his stomach in pain.

"Shh...," he tried. "Tell me what's wrong."

Kyle reached up and flushed the toilet before looking back at Kenny with shining eyes. "I...I..." he shook his head slowly.

Ken stood him up and they walked over to the sink. Kyle ran some water into his hands and splashed his face a few times, Ken handing him a towel as he finished. He scrubbed at his skin vigorously before pausing with the towel covering his face and sniffing a few times. "Let's talk," Ken suggested, leading him over to sit along the side wall. He gathered him into his arms and rubbed his neck. "Now...what's wrong?"

Kyle pulled his face from the towel and looked up at him. "I think reality's finally fucking sinking in for me."

"How so?"

"I...I dunno," he half-shrugged. "What...what Red said...she's right. This isn't just a...this isn't...," he shook his head, a stray tear trailing down his cheek. He brought his knees up to his chest and took a shuddery breath.

Kenny wrapped his arms around him and kissed him gently a few times. "It's gonna be okay," he said softly, stroking his hair with loving fingertips.

"I don't think so," he whispered. "I really...really don't think so."

"Kyle, look," he said firmly, cupping his chin and making him look up at him. "I know you don't wanna do this...I don't entirely understand why since I don't know the whole story...but you know that I love you. Stan does. Cartman cares to an extent. You need to figure that out. No matter what happens, we're right here, okay?"

"I'm just...lost, Ken. I'm really confused...and I don't know what to think anymore."

"You just need to think about how much good this is gonna do in the end."

"Everything has the potential to backfire," he said blankly.

"Not everything," he replied, bringing the boy's left hand up and gently pecking his fourth finger.

Kyle sighed and sniffed lightly. "I'm just scared, ya know?"

"I do. I'm downright terrified for you," he mused. "But I also know you. I know how strong you are and I know that you'll be okay."

"You _hope_ I'll be okay," he corrected, leaning into him.

"No, trust me, I know you better than you know you." he pecked his head softly.

"Hey," Stan's head poked in the door. "You okay in here?"

"We're alive," Kenny half-smirked.

He chuckled and walked in, standing in front of them and looking down on the two. "What's eatin' ya, Ky?"

"Life," he muttered. Ken watched as Stan's face contorted into confusion and his brows furrowed. He kneeled down in front of Kyle and grasped his left hand. His face dropped into shock and he looked between the two of them.

"No."

Kyle cringed. "Uh...ta-da?"

He reached over and grabbed Ken's hand before dropping them like they were on fire. "You're...you're seriously...," he fell onto his ass.

"Y-yeah...," Kyle stammered. "I was hoping to tell you in a bit of a better manner...," he glanced around at the bathroom tiles surrounding them.

"ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE?!" Stan shouted.

Kenny scowled, "No, we're not."

"Kyle, you're seventeen!" he pled. "What the hell are you thinking?!"

"Dude, calm down," Ken lectured.

"We're not running off and doing it right now, Stan," Kyle said softly. "We're gonna wait, we're gonna be smart about it, don't do this, please?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose tighter than Kenny had ever seen him. "You two...have been dating...for five months."

"Stan, don't," Kyle pled. "We feel like we're ready for this step and your support would be nice."

"Why is my support so important? I didn't support the initial dating to begin with!"

"Well, he was kinda hoping you would be up there standing on the other side of him the day of," Kenny growled. "Why are you so against this?"

"I think you're going too fast," he said lowly. "I mean, I've fallen into the part where I am all for your relationship, but getting engaged? I really don't think you're ready."

"What makes you the expert on marriage?" Ken questioned.

"Nothing," Stan groaned. "But..."

"But you have concerns," Kyle continued softly. "Stan, if we think we're ready, then we are. But as I said, we're not going off and doing it right now. It may be a few years."

"So...you haven't...booked a church or anything?"

"Church?" Kyle raised his brow. "Who says it'll be a Catholic wedding?" he nudged Ken playfully.

Ken smirked and ruffled his curls lovingly. "I did say I would convert for you," he said.

"Okay...so...you're not eloping?" Stan said slowly.

"No, we're waiting, I promise," Kyle replied. "We're smarter than you're giving us credit for."

"Sorry...," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and sighed. He got to his feet, extending a hand to help them both back up. "It just...shocked me a bit," he shrugged.

"How do you think I felt?" Kyle smiled gently. "Ken comes out of the room with a ring babbling like an idiot and I had no fucking idea what to think."

"You thought through every bad scenario and you opposed it in every way that you could," Ken smirked. He looked over at Stan and smiled at him. "He was very Kyle-like about it."

"Well...I guess that's a good thing," Stan laughed softly. He held out his hand for Ken to shake. "I guess I'm happy for the both of you. Still a bit weird, but I support you." Ken shook back and smiled at him. He switched over and yanked Kyle into a hug. "And here you and I thought I'd be engaged first," he rolled his eyes jokingly.

"Oh, you're just jealous," he smirked, looking up at him.

Stan looked over at Kenny and cocked his head. "I don't think I'm too jealous of you marrying _that_."

"Oh, you know I'm hot," the blonde smirked.

They chuckled and Stan and Kyle separated. "Seriously, though, Dude. Are you alright?" he put his hand on Kyle's shoulder.

He sighed and nodded a bit. "I...I'll be okay. I think that I'm just finally waking up to the fact that this is really going to happen and I can't do anything to stop it."

Stan clapped his shoulder a few times. "You'll be alright, ya just gotta...go," he shrugged.

"Maybe I don't wanna just 'go'," he mocked. "Maybe I wanna run. Really really far. And just...get the fuck away from it."

"That's the Cartman way out," Ken lectured.

"What was that, Poor-boy?!" his voice boomed into the room. He walked in with a raised brow. "You three having a fag orgy in here or something?"

"Your mind would go there first," Kyle smirked.

"You're just jealous because you're too late to join us," Ken added.

"Why are you here?" Stan quirked his brow.

"The girls were having freak outs," he rolled his eyes. "They wouldn't stop panicking, so I told them I'd make sure you were all alive. You seem to be so."

"Can't prove it," Ken scoffed.

"You're right. You smell too nasty to be living," he smirked. "Seriouslah, though. What the fuck's the matter with you, Jew?"

"Nothing, Fatass," he rolled his eyes. "It's none of your concern."

"Uh huh," he nodded sharply. "Yeah, I'll pretend that you're not lying for a second. Because I need to ask Poor-boy a question."

Kenny sighed, "what?"

"Why are you fucking drug-happy right now?"

"What?" he blinked.

"You get Jew to suck you off or something before you got here because you've had that stupid smile on your face the whole damn night."

Kenny blinked again before breaking into said stupid smile. "Are you sure you wanna know?"

"No, Kenneh. I asked for the mere enjoyment of talking."

"Well, you sure seem to like the sound of your voice, you egotistic moron," Kyle retorted.

"No one's talking to you, Jew!"

"Hey, watch it, that's my future husband you're talking to!" Kenny wrapped an arm around Kyle securely.

Cartman blinked at them. "What?"

They both held up their left hands with sheepish smiles, watching as Cartman paled severely. "HOLY SHIT!"

"Yeah, that was basically my reaction," Stan chuckled.

"No fucking way!" his jaw remained dropped. "Jew...and Poor...holy fucking shit! When the fuck did this happen?!"

Kyle cleared his throat lightly. "A-about a week ago...during...that night you guys were over...," he shrugged.

"You hid this from me for a week?" Stan asked, deadpan.

"Flustered, are we, Kahl?" Cartman crossed his arms and raised his brow amusedly.

"Well...I...we didn't know how you would react!" he defended.

"And he thought we should have the decency to tell you face to face. God forbid he have some consideration," Ken rolled his eyes.

"Consideration?" Stan blinked. "That's flat out lying."

"Lying?" he repeated. "Stan, lying would be him saying, 'No, Stan. I'm not engaged, and I'm a virgin to boot!'"

"KEN!"

He cringed and looked over at Kyle. "Sorry?"

He sighed and shook his head. "_Anyways_, I'm sorry we didn't tell you right away, but it was kinda...we've been a bit preoccupied for the past few days."

"With what?" Cartman asked. "I mean, you don't fucking do anything but fuck."

"We're the proud parents of two ghost children," he replied monotonously.

"You haven't helped them yet?" Stan asked.

"They don't remember anything," Ken shrugged. "No last names, no address, no parent names or descriptions...no nothing. They're stuck."

"It's not like they're that big of a deal either," Kyle added. "They just kinda went along for the ride when we had a case a few days ago. We decided that we have a responsibility to 'em," he shrugged. "We couldn't just boot out two kids for another hundred years."

"Is this why you two are getting married?" Stan questioned.

"No, it's not," Ken said firmly. "We had no idea what was going on at that point with the kids."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Because...I love him?" he shrugged as though it were the most obvious thing ever. And to him it was.

"Oh that's a pussy answer," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"How is it a 'pussy answer', Cartman?" Stan raised his brow.

"He's just saying that because the Jewrat's right here," he pushed Kyle's shoulder a bit.

Kyle growled and pushed him back. "Fuck you, Cartman!"

Cartman pressed back against him again. "No thanks, Fag. I'm sure you'd love my hot bod, but you decided to settle for Ken since I don't swing that way."

"Oh get over yourself, you fatass!" he growled.

"Calm down, calm down," Ken interjected, grasping Kyle from behind and holding him tightly. "Kyle, you're gonna get hurt."

"Not if he makes me angrier, I won't," he growled.

"Right, can't take me on unless you have powers from some other world, huh, Jewey?"

"Cartman, I'm gonna hurt you!" Kyle tried to break away from Kenny's grasp.

"I'm shaking."

"I can tell from the blubber jiggling all over the place, Fatboy."

"Fuck you!"

Stan stepped in-between them and pushed Cartman back. "Guys, no. We're in public. Calm down, alright? There's enough shit going on right now that we don't fucking need you two destroying a restaurant."

They both slightly backed up, still eyeing each other evilly. Kenny sighed and kissed Kyle's neck. "Look, go back to the table. I need to talk to Stan real quick."

"Why?" he looked over and blinked.

"Just go," he smiled at him. "I'll tell ya later at home, okay?"

"Okay...," he raised his brow at him.

"Trust me," he winked. He pecked his lips and gave him a gentle push forward. Kyle gave him one quick look back before he and Cartman headed out, giving each other harsh pushes forward.

Stan and Kenny watched them and laughed softly as they stepped out. "So, what's up?" Stan asked.

"Okay, can you do me just a teensy little favor?" he smiled sweetly.

He raised his brow. "What?"

"How do you feel about...babysitting?" he bit his lip hopefully.

"Babysitting?" he repeated. Kenny nodded. "For ghosts?"

"Uh...yeah," he nodded sharply. "Please?"

"Why?"

"Do you really need a reason?" he pled.

"I'd love to know why I have to take care of two deceased kids, yes."

He sighed and massaged his forehead. "Because I proposed to my boyfriend a week ago and we've yet to celebrate, alright?"

"Celebrate?" he cocked his head.

"Read in-between the lines, Marsh. Consider who the hell you're talking to," he raised his brows together.

"You want me to take care of kids just so you can screw Kyle?" he shook his head in disgust.

"Please?!" he whimpered. "Look, the kids don't freaking sleep, like ever. Please? Just one freaking night. And I bet that it'd help Kyle feel better about tomorrow...please?"

Stan groaned and pinched his nose. "I..."

"Get Cartman to help!"

"Cartman's busy with Red, you idiot."

"Come on, Stan. You'd do anything for Kyle, and this is for Kyle!"

"This is for you, too, you perv," he rolled his eyes.

"Kyle's my _fiance_, Stan. How am I a perv for wanting to sleep with him?!"

"You've always been a perv, Ken," he raised his brow.

Ken grasped at his hair in frustration. "Look, just please. One night."

"You plan on taking them to the trial?"

"Yeah, that was the plan all along. We can't leave 'em alone for that long with the cat," he shrugged.

"Cat?" he repeated.

"Uh...yeah," he laughed. "We kinda picked up a kitten earlier today."

"Jesus Christ, what the hell's going on here?" he raised his eyebrow. "What's gotten into you, Dude?"

"Whaddya mean?"

"I mean this whole thing!" he waved his arms around. "You have an apartment that you're sharing...You're marrying Kyle...you've practically adopted kids, and you got a pet? Ken...Dude, why are you so different now?"

"I'm not," he shook his head. "Honestly, Stan, I never was much more different than now. I mean...I lived a shitty lifestyle, Dude. I wanted something better, I just never thought I'd get it. Hence the reason I did all the fucked up things that I did. Honestly, it was mostly an escape from the reality that I was living in a third world country with my family. But then I got Kyle as more than someone to run to when I was hurt or just needed someone to talk to," he shrugged. "I'm still the shameless perv that I was, Ky would tell you that in a heartbeat. I want this. I want to be with Kyle...I really wasn't wanting to have kids right now...but neither of us can turn kids away like that. They grow on ya kinda quick," he chuckled. "And the cat...we found her in the park today when we took the kids out for ice cream and we just decided to take her home. I mean, we're like, the weirdest 'family' around, but it's something. It's something that I'm happy with and Kyle is, too."

Stan laughed in disbelief. "Wow...you of all people. I just can't get my freaking brain to wrap around it."

"What the hell's so complicated about this, Stan? I was fucked up. Kyle came along and got me out of there. I am no longer fucked up. All I want is one night with my fiance before he goes through perhaps one of the worst scenarios of his life that derived from the worst scenario of his life, alright? Please help me out here."

Stan smirked. "Alright. I guess I can do that. Still think it's fucking weird."

"Whatever. If it gets me a night with my kosher boy, I don't give a flying fuck."

"Cartman drove us all. He has some drinks in his trunk if you want em."

"He'd sooner try to kill me, I'm sure," he smirked.

Stan laughed, "I think I can convince him."

"You'd do that for me?" he batted his lashes.

Stan threw his arm around his shoulders and started leading him out the door. "I think I can work something out. I was a bit uncool about the entire thing today. So I believe I shall help you with the bill tonight and sneak you some booze. Sound good?"

"Oh if I wasn't with Kyle, I'd totally be going after you," he smiled, hanging back off of him.

"Ha, you wish," he squeezed his shoulders. "I'm betting that our food is out by now."

"Cheaper food for me to boot," he snickered.

"Yeah, yeah, just consider yourself lucky, Buddy."

Kenny stole a glance down at his left hand and grinned. He had no fucking idea how right he was.

* * *

Ken, Kyle, and Stan jumped out of Cartman's truck, the immortals waving goodbye to the rest of the group.

"We'll see you tomorrow, guys," Wendy nodded.

"Yeah, see ya then," Kyle nodded.

"I'll be right back," Stan saluted. He leaned in and whispered to Cartman before following the other two up the stairs. They walked into the room, coming across Jacob and Kayla passed out on the furniture with Snickers curled up in-between them.

"They're annoying to no end, but they're kinda cute when they're quiet," Kyle smirked.

"How does the cat not freak out?" Stan cocked his brow. "I mean...there's air that's petting him!"

"Her," Kyle corrected. "Pets have a sixth sense, maybe she knows the kids aren't going to hurt her. She's pretty comfortable, she purrs an awful lot when they're scratching her. She knows somehow."

"Yea," Ken nodded. He walked over and gently shook them.

"Ken, what are you doing?" Kyle hissed. Kenny smiled at him for a moment and signaled for him to wait for a moment.

"Kenny?" Kayla yawned, rubbing her eyes. Jacob and her sat up sleepily.

"Hey, who wants to do a sleepover?" he asked.

"Sleepover?" Jacob asked with a cocked head.

"Yeah, you're going over to Uncle Stan's," he said, pulling them up and pressing them towards him.

"What?" Kyle blinked.

"You're gonna have fun with him," Ken said. "We'll see you in the morning, okay?"

"Okay!" they grinned, grasping Stan's hands.

"You owe me," Stan smirked. "See ya tomorrow, guys," he nodded, leading them out the door. Ken shut it behind him and looked at Kyle predatorily.

"Dude, you just threw the kids out of the house?!" Kyle asked. "What are you thinking?!"

He walked over towards him slowly and cupped his chin. "I'm thinking that I have been engaged to a certain boy for a week and we haven't had the time to really celebrate that in private."

"So you throw the kids out of the house?" he repeats. "To go with 'Uncle' Stan?"

"Ky," he sighed. "Come on. I have a surprise," he moved his coat and pulled a bottle from the waistline and shook it in front of him.

"What is that?" he cocked his head.

"Raspberry vodka, compliments of Mr. Eric Theodore "Fatass" Cartman," he grinned.

"You kicked the kids out so we could drink?!"

Ken put his forehead onto the neck of the the bottle and sighed more heavily. "No, Kyle. I 'kicked the kids out' because I love you and I want some private time with you. I mean, come on, is one night so bad?"

Kyle blinked before breaking out into snickers. "We sound like we've been married for ten years already," he shook his head.

"See?" he smiled. He placed the bottle back in his waistline and reached under Kyle, swooping him into his arms. Kyle grasped around his neck and smiled, pecking his lips softly.

"You're sure Stan can handle it?"

"I think Stanny can take care of two kids who can't get hurt, okay? Now, how about we have one night of fun to ourselves, hm? Please?"

"I guess I can give you just one night," he sighed with a smile.

"Awesome," he smiled, twirling him around the room a bit. "All night?"

"Ken, we have to have some sleep, kinda a big day tomorrow," he shrugged.

"Okay, but how about throughout most of the night?"

"I suppose so," he sighed dramatically.

"Cool," he grinned, pecking his lips and sitting down on the couch with him in his lap. He pulled out the bottle and set it on the table, leaning forward and attacking Kyle's neck. Kyle leaned back his head and gasped as Kenny bit down on him.

They heard a soft meowing and looked over, seeing Snickers staring at them. Kyle chuckled and leaned backwards, pulling her over to them and into his lap. "I think we have a visitor," he smiled. Kenny reached over and scratched at her head.

"As adorable as she is, I am much more interested in your cuteness, hmm?" he gently licked the underside of his earlobe.

"Dude...," he said in a shuddery breath, "What about Sn-snickers?"

He broke away and looked down at her with a small smirk. "We did buy a crate."

"Well, that's hardly fair," Kyle frowned.

"How is it not? She should be in a nice warm bed where the prospect of getting hit with sticky fluids isn't a concern."

Kyle nodded. "Okay, good point," he hopped off of his lap and went to place Snickers in her bed. Ken ran into the kitchen and grabbed two glasses, practically skipping back and filling them with the fruity beverage.

"I have to ask," Kyle said, walking back over and sitting next to him. "How the fuck did you manage to swipe this from Cartman?"

Kenny snickered. "Stan paid him off plus some."

He raised his brow. "Stan paid Cartman to make me drunk for you?"

"Yup, so get drunk for me," he smiled, waving his glass. Kyle sighed and grasped the cup, sniffing at it.

"Smells different, that's for sure," he commented.

"Yeah, I think that you'll like it. Strong, but tastes really good. Take a sip."

He shrugged, and did so, swallowing and shrugging once more. "Not too bad," he smiled, leaning into him and sighing contently. Kenny threw his arm over his shoulders and they kicked their shoes off. Ken put his feet on the table and Kyle curled up beside him, snuggling into him further.

"So, how was the dinner?"

"Delicious, thank you," he turned and kissed his cheek. "Still think you chose a bit of an overpriced restaurant just to endure hours of squealing on one side and really awkward congratulations on the other."

Ken snickered, "nothing is too overpriced for you, my love. Admit it, it was kinda cute when the girls all attacked you."

"I don't understand why they didn't attack you, too," he pouted, taking a large drink.

"Because my dear, you're the cute one. No one wants to attack the manly one."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Not what you're interpreting it as, that's for sure," he shook his head. "I mean I'm the rugged idiot with the short temper. You're the cutie with the hot ass."

"Short temper my foot," he rolled his eyes. "You're the one always calming me down."

"Yeah, but I always got into more fights."

"No, yours just tended to be a bit longer than mine so they seemed like more. Mine always ended with me getting smashed into the fucking ground in like two seconds," he chuckled.

"Dude, you beat your share of asses," he shrugged. "You wailed on Cartman over and over."

"Mm, yeah, but that's Cartman. He's a fucking weakling."

"And four times bigger than you. Only reason I stop you from fighting is I don't want you caught in his fat folds. I love you too much," he kissed his head.

Kyle chuckled and nuzzled into him. They sat and listened to the quiet for a while, just relishing in each other's company. After awhile, Kyle sighed and leaned his head further into him, swishing what little was left of his drink around in his glass. "Dude, I feel warm," he commented.

"That's the al-cee-hol working it's way through," Kenny grinned. Kyle giggled a bit and Ken raised his brow amusedly. "You're a bit of a lightweight. You're already drunk," he chuckled.

"I am not drunk, I think I'm just working on buzzed," he cuddled into him. Ken quickly gulped down the last of his drink and slammed his glass on the table. He toyed with the button on Kyle's shirt and raised his glass up to his lips.

"Finish...," he drawled out as Kyle swallowed it down. "Good," he smiled, setting the glass on the table.

"Ken...are you trying to make me drunk or something?" he laughed softly.

"Nah, I can work with buzzed. I want you to remember everything," he purred seductively. He popped the first few buttons off his shirt and lightly traced his collarbone. He started rubbing his shoulders and Kyle moaned softly.

"I don't think I can forget anything you do," he sighed.

"Good," he kissed his ear lightly, trailing kisses around his cheek and neck. He popped a few more buttons and slid his shirt down past his shoulders, lightly tickling the pale skin. Kyle giggled more and leaned further into him.

"Dude, stop," he laughed.

"Stop what?" he grinned, speeding up his fingers.

"Ah! Stop!" he pled, swatting at his hands.

"Tell me why," he smirked.

"Because I said so!" he chortled.

"But you're so adorable like this," he stuck his tongue out. Kyle smirked and lunged up, biting his tongue and sucking it into his own mouth. Kenny pressed back forcefully, unbuttoning the rest of his shirt. He trailed his fingers up and down Kyle's firm abs.

"Stop tickling me, Dude!" he broke away a bit and laughed.

"You're not this ticklish when you're sober," he chuckled.

"I'm not this willing when I'm sober either, so don't spoil it," he grinned up at him. Ken looked back on him and smirked.

"Willing? Well, well, well. That makes me a happy little boy."

"Mm...I can think of a few ways to make you a happy little boy," he raised his brow.

"That's it, we're drinking more often," he growled, grabbing him and turning him on the couch. Kyle just laughed a bit and allowed him to push his shirt off his arms and fling it onto the floor. They pressed into each other and battled tongues as Kyle began undoing Kenny's dress shirt, letting his fingers brush the skin of the larger boy's torso every so often, giving him shivers. He finished and Kenny sat up and slid the shirt off, watching Kyle's expression change into the hungry stare he loved. "I'm curious," he purred, tracing his abs softly. "Just how coherent are your thoughts right now?"

"Whaddya mean?" he cocked his head.

He laughed softly. "I mean how well are you able to make your brain function?"

"Why?"

"I wanna know if I'm doing you or if it's just your dick I'm talking to because you're tipsy."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "For one thing, my brain isn't necessary for this."

"Sure it is...," he traced his collarbone repeatedly. "I mean...," he trailed off and looked to the side of them. He felt Kyle's hand clasp his fingers and he looked back down on him, seeing his eyes, dulled into a saddened expression. The boy sat up and pulled his legs out from under Kenny, leaning up and kissing his cheek.

"Come with me," he said softly. He threw his shirt back on and tossed Kenny his. He pulled his clothing back on as well, following Kyle out the front door.

"Where're we going?" he asked.

"A walk," he smiled, turning back and grasping his hand, leading him down the steps.

"B-but...s-sexy..."

"Sexy Jew time will come later," he rolled his eyes. "Come on, I wanna talk. We've got the night to ourselves and it is still fairly young. Now let's go."

He obliged, following him out into the brisk air and onto the sidewalk. "Kyle...did I upset you?"

"The only thing that upset me is seeing you looking so broken like that."

"Whaddya mean?"

"I mean what you were just talking about there," he said softly. "I can read between the lines, Ken and I know exactly where your mind was."

"You do?"

"No offense, but you're not the most subtle person I know. Now talk to me."

"About what?"

He sighed and leaned into his arm. "You still think about what Craig did to you. How often?"

Ken looked down at him before turning back towards their front and sighing. "I...I dunno. More than I'd like to."

"Do you think about him when we have sex?"

"You think I'm imagining him instead?" Ken blinked.

"No, I mean does the memory kinda...flash through your mind or anything?"

"I don't remember any of it, Kyle."

"You remember the aftermath though," he said softly. "I know you don't recall the actual events, but you know that they happened. Does it pass through your head when me and you are together?"

"Only in the sense of me realizing that doing what I did with Craig was a mistake," he shrugged. "All those people...they never meant anything to me. And I think how lucky I am that I got you. That I stopped doing that and became such a better person. I guess I have to thank the asshole in a way, for reenforcing the fact that you're nothing but good for me," he smiled at him. Kyle smiled back and leaned up, kissing him square on the lips and pulling away slowly. Ken let a few moments of silence pass before he sighed. "Can I...can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"What about you?" he looked over at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Cartman...I remember how he said that you wouldn't be able to have sex without those images sprinting around in your head...without your memories flooding back...Kyle, how much do you remember?" he asked.

He was silent for a moment. "I...I remember just about everything. There were a few points where either my brain wasn't cooperating or I was unconscious, but I remember a lot."

Ken furrowed his brows. "Mitch said you never passed out."

"He also said we were there only four hours," he muttered.

"How...how long..."

"I got there at about 9:30. By the time I called Stan...it was about four in the morning."

"Holy...holy shit...," he gaped. "They raped you for seven hours?!"

"No. They spent most of the time smacking me around and taunting me. They did...do that to me a lot, but it wasn't the entire duration of my...visit."

"What did they do to you?" he asked softly.

"I just told you...smacked me around, called me stuff and raped me. Oh, and they threatened you a few times, too."

"Why the fuck did he say they never made you go unconscious?"

"I went down once," he said softly. "His head wasn't all there at the time. I was back up in about five minutes."

Kenny bit his lip. This was more than anything he'd heard in the past few months from the little redhead. Time to try for more.

"Kyle, you're not gonna share everything that happened tomorrow, I know that," he stated. "Will you give me some details?"

He looked up in contemplation and back down towards the ground, letting out a heavy sigh. "What do you wanna know?"

"What went on after I was out? What did they do to you?"

"I've answered this."

"Kyle, I want details. I want to know why you were reduced to tears so often and I wanna know why you still have occasional nightmares."

"I'm not telling you that in particular," he muttered. "There are some things that I would just rather not revisit until it's absolutely necessary, okay?"

"Alright," he sighed. "How many times did they rape you?"

"I lost count after two. Honestly, I didn't even know that much time had passed until I looked at your cellphone to call Stan. My head was swimming the whole damn time and I forced my mind to just stop for a bit. I had to try to not think about the situation or I was gonna be worse off. I just made my body cope with the pain and just endured it," he shrugged. "They gave me these occasional...breaks, I guess I can call them. I spent my time on them just trying to convince myself that things could be worse."

"Breaks?" he repeated.

He sighed. "After awhile of them doing what they were doing at first, they untied me and took off the blindfold so I could see what they were going to do to me. I think the first break came about two hours into it. They got distracted and they tied my hands back up and gagged me and threw me into a corner. It was really the only time I allowed my mind to actually comprehend what the hell was happening. They did it a few times to rest and drink and talk about what to do with me next."

"Why did they beat you?" he asked softly.

"Because. I wasn't as into it as they were," he rolled his eyes.

"What?" he raised his brow.

"Well fucking obviously I wasn't turned on or anything. They actually yelled that I was emasculating them and beat me to declare their dominance. Don't know why they needed to do that," he shrugged. "I was the one on the floor covered in cum and blood and god knows what else."

"You were still resisting them in a way," Ken said blankly.

"I guess so. They wanted every part of me for themselves."

"What...how...," he stopped and sighed heavily. "What did they make you do, Kyle?"

"Blowjobs and the like," he shrugged. "Basically, they took what you and I do when we have sex and escalated it about seven times."

"Whaddya mean?"

"They most obviously had a dominance fetish. They made me call them master every now and then and made me thank them for hitting me and all that shit."

"Jesus Christ," he bit his lip and averted his eyes in shame.

"Stop feeling guilty," Kyle said, watching their feet walk the sidewalk in sync.

"But I do that kind of stuff, too...I...I didn't know..."

"Ken, obviously I enjoy what you and I do," he smirked at him. "Otherwise, I wouldn't let you. I've been taking it as a sort of...therapeutic session type thing," he smiled gently at him.

"How?"

"Remember our first time after all of this happened? You tied my wrists up and blindfolded me like you saw them do to me?"

"Yeah," he nodded.

"You were doing that so I'd feel better about what happened, so I wouldn't fear similar situations so much. It worked," he laughed softly. "I mean, how many times have I let you tie my wrists together since then?"

"A lot..."

"Exactly," he nodded sharply. "You have no idea how closely you've hit to what they did to me."

"Example?" he raised his brow.

"You've put me on a leash, you've nailed me into a wall, you've burnt me, you've had me look at you as you went, you've made me bleed, you've disabled my movements, and overall you've put me completely under your control," he shrugged. "All stuff they did to me."

"Oh God..."

"Ken, I told you, I'm taking it as a way for me to get better," he smiled at him. "I know you would never hurt me and that helps me out a lot. I feel a lot better about anything we do now because I know you're not doing anything with the intention of harming me."

"Seven hours...," he repeated softly, shaking his head. "I couldn't get up...for seven hours..."

"I'm glad you didn't," he murmured, tightening the grasp on his hand. "They would've hurt you more if you had."

"Not like they did to you."

"They threatened to," he sighed, leaning on his shoulder. "I got rebellious and they said they would do that to you, unconscious or not."

"How'd you get rebellious?"

Kyle was silent for a moment before sighing again. "I didn't want to swallow," he muttered. Kenny tightened his grasp back on his hand.

"Why didn't you let them?"

"That's a fucking stupid question and you know it. I got them distracted from you, and that's all that matters."

"How?" he asked shakily.

He sniffed lightly. "I...I gave myself to them."

"You already had...," he raised his brow.

"I essentially begged them to fuck me," he mumbled in shame. "I...I told them they could do whatever to me...and they took me up on my offer. Before I was still pretty tense, I promised them that I would serve them better if they didn't threaten you anymore. That made them fairly happy, so you just stayed in the chair."

"I would have preferred for them to leave you alone."

"Ken, they would've gone right back to me. I was still emotional, I still had fear and anger and pain and I showed it. They liked it. They just wanted me to be more submissive since you were unable to defend yourself and I sure as hell couldn't take them on. I figured the more I give myself over to them, the quicker the whole damn thing would be."

"What do you mean serve them better?" he questioned.

"After you were out, I changed a bit. I told you I made my body accept the pain and it did. I stopped screaming and they were practically fucking a doll. To appease them, I let my mind work again. I screamed and I cried and I begged them to stop because I began to realize that this was really happening. This wasn't some fucked up dream I was having...it took everything I had to keep me from going hysterical."

"When...when did they finally stop?" he asked softly.

"They passed out," he shrugged. "I got the keys for your cuffs, called Stan, dragged you out of the place, and just waited."

"They...they just passed out?" he repeated. "What if they'd woken up?"

"They probably would've dragged me back in," he sighed. "I dunno Ken...it's hard, isn't it?"

"What?"

"Knowing that someone used your body like it was...it was..."

"A toy," he finished gently.

"Right," he nodded. "We all look so hard for the good in people. Everyone's a potential friend, we just have to look for the traits that we can relate on and that we can admire. But then you find people like...Barney or Craig...it's really hard to convince yourself that everyone has some good side about them."

"The only good thing about Craig is that he didn't come after you after I was passed out," he sighed.

"Not really. From what you've told me about that night, I'm thinking he just wanted to rape me to try to push you even further away from me. But once he realized that that had already happened, he decided that he wanted a different approach to the situation, so he went after you for a multitude of reasons."

"Yeah, A: he's fucking insane and B: he's fucking insane."

"He wanted you and saw his only opportunity since you and I have proven time and time again that we're pretty much inseparable by means of an outside force," he corrected.

"He threatened to hurt you...," he bit his lip angrily.

"I know," he said softly. "But don't feel so obligated to protect me, alright?"

"I want to protect you."

"I know you do," he smiled at him. "And you do. You protect me from myself. I need that more than I need a bodyguard. If it wasn't for you, all this crap piling itself on top of me would've driven me to the breaking point again. But it hasn't," he shrugged.

"I cause you most of your stress," he argued. "I constantly embarrass you and stress you out around the house and don't listen and I've been on your back about telling me what happened that night...," he looked up at the night sky and sighed. "I honestly don't get it. Why do you love me, Kyle?" he looked back into his emerald eyes sadly.

"Why?" he repeated. "Why wouldn't I? Ken, you embarrass me by telling the world how proud you are to have me. You stress me out around the house because I'm a fucking annoying prick about housework and you're trying to make me relax a bit. You don't listen when I'm being stupid and telling you to shut up just because I'm too easily flustered. You've been trying to get me to talk because you want to help me through it...Ken, I can't think of anything you do that doesn't prove to me how much you care about me."

"I...I just don't feel..."

Kyle stopped and yanked him around to stare up at him. "Listen to me," he said softly. "I love you. You know that. I wouldn't have slept with someone I didn't love. I wouldn't have acted like my true self around someone I was just cool with. I wouldn't have thrown myself to Barney and Mitch like that if I didn't love you...and I wouldn't be wearing an engagement ring if I didn't." he paused and looked up into Kenny's shining oceanic eyes. "Ken....," he continued slowly. "I don't get you. You still don't think you're good enough for me. Why is that?"

"You sacrificed yourself for me," he replied softly.

"Is that your reason?" he shook his head at him. "Kenny, who went down in Hell to get me out? Who's spent half of their paycheck on taking me to therapy? Who's spent God knows how many nights comforting me when I was crying? Who went and got beat up for me time and again just so they could try to make it so I didn't get hurt? Who's giving up their bachelorhood just for me?" he smirked lightly. "I sacrificed my body, but you've given me everything else. I'm not the only one who's made changes for the benefit of this relationship. We're both different people than when we started, we've influenced each other for the better. We're the same basic people, just with a bit more now."

Kenny wrapped his arms around him and snuggled into his hair. "I don't know what the fuck I did to deserve you."

"You were just you," he replied, clasping him back. Kenny kissed his head and looked over at the side of the street, staring at a streetlight flickering lightly. He saw the ring on his finger flashing along with its glow and couldn't help but smile and feel a stray tear stream warmly down his face.

"I love you, Kyle," he whispered, holding him tighter.

"I love you, too, Ken," he responded softly, nuzzling into his chest.

"That you or the vodka talking?" he smirked.

Kyle looked up at him and laughed. "I dunno. I'm feeling pretty good right now. Could be either."

"Hm...you seem to be thinking pretty well," he commented, swaying him back and forth.

He snickered. "I'm speaking philosophically if anything. After all, 'a drunk man's word is a sober man's thought.'"

"You think about this type of stuff?" he raised his brow.

"Do I think about how fucking lucky I am? Well duh, idiot," he rolled his eyes at him. "Don't you?"

Ken paused and looked up at the stars hidden in the sky before looking back at him and smiling. "Only every moment of every day," he replied, leaning forward and pressing lips with the little Jew.

Cheesy in words yes, but nonetheless true. He knew that his life now revolved around the redhead clasped into his frame. Time without him seemed to be wasted, time with him seemed all but too good to be reality. But it was. He knew it was. The warmth of his skin, the scent of his hair, the feeling of their lips meeting as their fingers intertwined. It was too real for it to be but a beautiful dream. The prospect of tomorrow, the wanting for answers, it would have to wait. There was far too much at work in that one moment to be weighed down with the knowledge of the impending moment of Kyle's truths.

Time with him was far too precious. The only thing that the tall blonde could do was live for the moment, caressing the ring of his beloved in the pale moonlight.

* * *

_A/N: And they went home and had hot smex._

_Sorry, ran out of room for the lovin' scene XD_

_Anyways. __**Next time is the trial**__, I swear to whatever deity you may worship!...or if you're like me, I swear to the Origin of Species!_

_I've been doing some thinking and the trial may actually span three chapters. We'll honestly just have to see how it goes. I have a lot in mind and it'll take a lot to get them out. _

_Don't expect it too quickly though. Aside from school starting back tomorrow (ick) these chapters will have to be scrutinized by both you and me. Subtle hints, huge revelations, and some stupid banter is bound to find its way in there. I have to research a bit, too. So this won't just fly out of left field. Sorry =/_

_Purpose for this chapter? Get Kayla and Jacob in there. Get Snickers in there. And get Kyle to reveal just a bit to Kenny. I had to get this all out there in one chapter. I couldn't do it last one and things would have been far too sloppy to fade into the trial in this one. I promise. We're getting to the end._

_Sorry for the false hope ~_~'_

_But thanks for the reviews. We're gonna hit 300, baby!...I would hope._


	46. Ridiculous

_A/N: Sorry for the wait...I've been having some serious issues._

_You really don't even need to read this. It's really getting basic shit out of the way. -shrug-_

_Well...enjoy I guess. Though you probably won't._

_[Can you tell my bipolar's kickin' in?]_

* * *

He bit his tongue in concentration, looking down at his opponent. He gave it a good tug, trying desperately to tighten it up. "Come on...," he told it. "We can do it..." Five minutes into this war and nothing seemed to be happening. "Goddammit, come on!" he yelled at it.

"Problems?" a voice called from the other room.

"Get in here and help me please!" he called back.

"You come out here! I'm feeding the damn cat!"

He sighed and walked out of their bedroom. "Dude, how do you work this thing?" he asked the redhead, approaching him in the kitchen.

Kyle looked up at him and raised his brow. "You can't tie a tie?"

"Kyle, when the hell have I ever worn a tie before?" he asked monotonously.

"You have to be smarter than the fabric," another voice taunted.

He looked over and scowled at him. "Fuck off, Damien," he muttered. "You help me if you're so damn smart."

"I will," Kyle said. "Just let me finish with Snickers and I'll take care of it."

He crossed his arms and hmmphed. "Why do we need to wear suits anyway?"

"It's professional looking," Oliver came up and stood beside him. "We need to look like one: we are aware of the importance of the situation, and two: we have respect for the bastard we're about to take down. Speaking of which, you need to refer to him as Mr. Derrick."

"I was planning on calling him the Fucknut. Will that work?" Ken asked.

"No. I don't think so," he smirked. "Your attitude can also be a swaying factor for the jury. Don't think that this case is in the bag. We still don't know the defense's side on this. For all we know, they're either going for insanity or just pleading guilty to accept lesser charges."

"Can't you look at that?" Ken asked Damien. "I mean, you have been about most of this stuff."

"My father wouldn't allow it," he shrugged. "Something about justice prevailing or some romantic bullshit," he rolled his eyes.

"Great," Kyle sighed. "Knowing my father, he's denying the whole thing altogether."

"Now I wouldn't say that," Oliver argued. "I don't think he's that foolish."

"You don't know my father," he argued back, walking over to work on Ken's tie. "He usually goes for the farthest out approach to knock the other side off its feet. I've been to a lot of his cases."

"You don't care about law," Damien raised his brow.

"No, but I was being trained to be my father's heir to the firm," he rolled his eyes, finishing on Kenny's attire. "All done," he smiled at him.

"Thank you love," he leaned down and pecked his lips briskly. He felt a rubbing against his foot, looking down to find Snickers brushing up against him. He chuckled and leaned down, picking her up and holding her between the two of them. "Can I help you?" he asked sillily. She leaned back and nipped at Kyle's hair.

"Why does she keep eating me?" he blinked.

"Because you taste so good," he purred.

"Okay, before you go further, put the cat away and let's get out, hm?" Damien interjected. "This thing starts fairly soon."

"Oh fine," he stuck his tongue out at him. "Bedtime, Snicks."

"Snicks?" the demon raised his brow amusedly.

"Shut up. It's a kitten, okay?" he retorted, walking over to place her in her crate.

"Here," Kyle called after him, tossing him a small stuffed mouse with a bell on the tail. "Give her something to keep her preoccupied." He nodded and tossed it in with her.

"She's good on water and stuff," he commented. He backed up and closed the cage door. "Alright, we ready?"

"No. Give me another seven years and we'll talk," Kyle muttered. Ken sighed and walked over, clasping him in his arms.

"It'll be all right."

"He's right," Oliver nodded. "All we need is for you to be honest with us, okay? Your father included."

"I can think of quite a few things I want to be honest about to that man," he mumbled.

Damien chuckled and shook his head. "Broflovski, you're a member of the staff of Hell. You can say whatever the fuck you want to him and you won't have any repercussions."

"Don't tempt me," he smirked lightly.

"We ready?" Damien echoed Ken.

"Let's kick it," Ken nodded. Damien grasped onto the two immortals and they faded away with the other two. Ken opened his eyes and found himself staring at the side of a building.

"Come on," Damien motioned, leading away with Oliver. Kyle and Ken followed him out of an alleyway and onto the sidewalk. "I figure walking up is a bit less suspicious than randomly popping up," he shrugged.

"Kyle! Ken!" a voice called, they turned, seeing Stan and Cartman walking with the kids in tow.

"Hi!" Kayla shouted, running up and grasping Kyle around the waist. Jacob mimicked the gesture with Ken.

"Hey. You have fun at Stan's?" Kyle smiled, patting the girl's head.

"Mhm," she nodded. "He told lots of stories and made us popped corn!"

"I keep telling her it's popcorn, but she won't listen," he smiled sheepishly.

"Did you have fun last night?" Jacob asked.

Kyle and Ken smirked at each other. "Oh tons," Ken nodded. "Kyle's one of the funnest guys around," he trailed his fingertips up and down Kyle's spine.

"Stop," he warned with a raised brow.

"Heh, sorry," he winked, leaning over and kissing his cheek.

"Icky," Kayla stuck out her tongue.

"Very," Cartman mused. "Kahl's also rather disgusting."

"Fuck you," he mouthed, his brows furrowed.

"No thanks."

"Ugh," he rolled his eyes.

"Come on, kids," Oliver beckoned. "We only have a few minutes before this thing starts."

Stan came up and clapped Kyle's shoulder. "How you holding up, Ky?"

"I'm...living," he shrugged. "I mean, not much I can do about it now, is there?"

"You're the one who asked for it, Jew." Cartman stated.

"Are you fucking stupid? I've been against this stupid thing since the beginning, Cartman!"

"Well, you're the one who kept choosing to get hurt, so it's your own damn fault."

"Fuck off, you asswipe!"

"Come on," Ken groaned, pulling Kyle alongside him and following Oliver. The kids crowded around the two, grasping their free hands tightly. They approached the courthouse, looking around and seeing a good deal of reporters crowded around outside.

"What the hell is this?" Stan asked.

"Dunno, keep walking," Damien told them. They did so, walking right up to the throng of newscasters and trying to pass through them before one of them spoke up.

"You," he held his hand out and pointed to the young Jew. "Are you Kyle Broflovski?"

"Uh...y-yeah?"

Cameras shot off and questions were thrown as they each tried to grab the attention of the Semite.

"What are you people doing?!" Kenny demanded, shielding Kyle under his arm. Cartman, Stan, and Damien each gathered around the redhead as well, blocking their view.

"A son versus his father in court. It's news gold," one of the reporters responded.

"Kyle, how do you feel knowing your own father is against you?" another asked.

"Is this a large rivalry battle between you two?"

"Were you not supposed to be the one to inherit his firm?"

"Let's get the fuck out of here," Ken murmured, pulling Kyle along with him, still under his grasp. The others moved in time with them, hiding the boy from the cameras. They sped into the courthouse and slammed the door shut.

"Jesus Christ...," Kyle breathed shakily. "What the hell was that?!"

"Paparazzi," Oliver muttered. "Trust me kid, it happens, especially in a controversial case like this one."

"That's fucking wonderful," he rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry, no cameras are allowed in the room," Damien reminded him. "They'll be in there with their notebooks and all that, but they can't legally take your picture or anything."

"Isn't there any way for you to keep them out altogether?" he pled.

"Sorry, Kid, I don't have the time or the willingness to give the effort."

"Lazy bastard," he muttered.

"You know it," he nodded. They headed into the courtroom together clustered in their group. As they entered, Bebe, Red, and Wendy came running up towards them, their high heels clacking against the cold hardwood floor.

"We started to get worried you bailed or something," Bebe commented.

"I wish," Kyle sighed. She smiled at him reassuringly, walking up in front of him and straightening out his tie.

"Don't worry, Hon. We're gonna be right here for you."

"Thanks," he smiled weakly.

"Who are you?" Wendy raised her brow at Damien. Kenny turned to look at him, seeing his eyes changed from their usual ruby tone into a soft chocolate brown.

"Damien," he answered. "I'm a friend of Kyle and Ken."

"Oh," she smiled. "Nice to meet you."

He nodded curtly, "likewise."

Ken looked back over towards Kyle, who was scanning the room anxiously. "They're not here yet," Red told him.

"Oh...thanks," he mumbled.

Ken pulled him in close and kissed his head. "It'll be alright," he assured him. He looked up at him and smiled, leaning in and pecking his lips.

"I trust you," he whispered with his small smile still prominent. They looked down at Kayla and Jacob, who were staring at the huge room in awe.

"Is this church?" Kayla asked. They shook their heads at her softly, watching as her face dropped into disappointment. They glanced back at each other and raised their brows in confusion.

"Come on," Oliver motioned. "We should get situated." They nodded and followed him over to the side of the prosecution. Stan, Wendy, Cartman, Red, Bebe, Damien, and the kids went and sat right behind their table. Oliver led Kyle and Kenny to sit at their table and began pulling papers out of his briefcase.

"So, can I ask a question?" Ken blinked.

"Go ahead," he nodded.

"What are our odds of doing this bastard some damage?"

"I can't tell the future, Ken. I think that our odds are very high, but I could just as easily be wrong. We don't know just how long this will be or what they're using against us or anything of that nature. We just have to play it by the book and hope for the best."

"What if playing by the book isn't in our best interest?" Kyle asked.

"What do you mean?"

"My dad's game is to take his cases and take a twist on them. It usually helps him in most of his stuff."

"We'll see how it goes. Let's just hope for a normal trial and hope that it's simple and swift."

"Not with our luck," Ken muttered, leaning his chin into his palm.

Kyle sighed and leaned into him. "We just have to hope." They heard the doors open and looked back towards them, seeing the Broflovskis walking through. "Why is Ike here?" Kyle whispered desperately, looking at the blonde.

"Apparently Bebe and Wendy couldn't convince him otherwise," Kenny grasped his hand underneath the table.

They watched from the corner of their eyes as Gerald made his way to the defense's table and began pulling papers from his case. Kyle gulped and shook a bit, seeing note after note being yanked from out the sack.

"Don't let him see your fear," Oliver whispered. "Trust me when I say this: Lawyers are sharks. They'll feast on your blood if they catch a whiff."

"Kyle?"

They turned to see Ike staring down on them sadly. Kyle got to his feet and they embraced tightly. "Why are you here?" he asked.

"It seems to be a family affair," he smiled at him grimly. "I'm family, aren't I?"

He chuckled shortly and then sniffed. "I'm surprised they're letting you over here."

"Well, I kinda broke away," he grinned sheepishly. "And they probably won't come get me."

"You been okay?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I've been pretty good. Had to take on all your chores, but other than that things have been nothin' but kosher."

"Well, that's good," he smiled at him.

"How about you?" he asked. "You two been okay?"

"Never been better," he grinned wider.

"Awesome," he chuckled. They looked over and saw Sheila staring at them, her gaze set in stone. Ike awkwardly cleared his throat. "I...I should probably go back..."

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, you don't want her using her Harpy magic on you."

He laughed and hugged him once more. "I'm rooting for you, just so you know," he winked, pulling away and walking back over towards their mother. Kyle turned and looked at Ken, who offered him a smile and his hand. Kyle accepted, sitting down and letting their hands rest on the table together.

"Ah, Mr. Broflovski," Oliver spoke up. They looked up to see Gerald looming above their table. Kenny felt Kyle's grip growing a lot stronger.

"Mr....Dodson, if I recall?" he asked.

"Yes, Sir," he held out his hand and they shook. "Good to meet you."

"Same," he nodded curtly. "I'm hoping you're as good as I've heard through the grapevine," he smiled.

"I hope so, too," he smirked. "Best of luck to you."

"And to you as well," he nodded. "Ah, here comes my client," he announced. "May the best man win."

"Right," he mused. Gerald turned to walk back to his table as they turned to watch as Mitch came into the room, escorted by a cop. He wore a dark brown suit and seemed eerily calm. Kenny couldn't help but feel a shiver. That shiver dissipated into a scowl as the man looked over at Kyle and licked his lips hungrily. Ken growled and held on tightly to the redhead as he felt him tremble slightly. Mitch walked over and talked to Gerald as they sat down together.

"You okay, Kyle?" Stan asked, leaning between the two of them.

"Would you be?" he replied softly.

"Hang tough, Kid," he said. "You'll be okay."

Kyle just sighed and leaned back in his chair, his hand still linked with Kenny's.

The bailiff walked to the front of the room and stood in front of the spectators. "All rise for the honorable Ruth Michaels." He directed. Ken squeezed Kyle's hand reassuringly as they got to their feet. They turned to watch as a short woman with a brown bob cut approached her seat. She shot the nerve-wrecked teens a gentle smile as she passed. She stepped up to her seat and looked out upon the crowd.

"You may be seated," she nodded. Everyone fell back into their places watching the woman, aside from Kenny, who shot his eyes over towards Mr. Broflovski, finding him smiling at Mitch. He didn't like the look of that.

Ruth sighed and placed reading glasses upon her nose. "This court is now in session," she stated. "Mr. Mitchell Derrick, will you please stand?" She watched him carefully as he slid to his feet. "Mr. Derrick, you are being charged with the abduction and assault of one Kenneth McCormick, is this correct?"

"Yes," he nodded curtly.

"How do you plead?"

"Not guilty."

"Alright, you are also here by charges of two incidences of assault and the rape of one Kyle Broflovski, is this also correct?"

"Yes."

"How do you plead?"

"Not guilty," he repeated. Kenny scowled at him; figures he'd just make this harder on everyone.

"Alright," she nodded. "Then this case of the state of Colorado versus Mitchell Derrick is now in session." She turned to the jurors and stared at each of them. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you have been brought here with the intention of serving justice. You will listen to each side present their case and make a judgement based on your hearings and the evidence presented for you. I encourage you to dedicate your full attention to each person speaking as this court proceeds, as each speaker may have the potential to sway your opinions."

Ken's vision swept to the redhead beside him, stroking his hand with his thumb as an attempt to calm his stressed expression. He looked back at him, his eyes marred with worry.

"I'm here," he mouthed. Kyle broke into a small smile for him.

"If that is all, I'm opening the floor for this case," Ruth continued. "Prosecution, if you'd give your opening statement, please."

Oliver stood from the seat and gave the boys a confident smile. He walked out to the center of the floor and took a deep breath.

"Your honor, ladies and gentlemen of the jury...think. That's all I'm asking from you today. Listen and think," he paused and walked around a bit. "We are here today with the belief that justice will prevail. We stand before you, secure in the knowledge that we have the opportunity to right a great wrong," he looked at the jury steadily. "Ladies and gentlemen, Mitchell Derrick is a man who's brushed up against the law more that once, I assure you. We will today provide evidence of this claim....but until then, allow me to redirect your attention to my clients," he walked back in front of the two boys. "Here," he gestured to the blonde, "is a young man who's of course made bad choices as we all have at one time or another. However, he's a good kid. One almost incapable of harming another by any means other than protecting. And here," he changed directions towards the Semite, "is a boy we all know. He's a moral kid, never straying far from the boundaries which he's set for himself." He put his hands behind his back and paced a bit. "Two bright, well-behaved boys; two boys caught in the grasp of a man with ill intentions. My peers, we are here to prove that Mitchell Derrick was indeed responsible for the heinous crime for which he's been accused. For the detrimental effects that these boys have suffered, for the horrors they endured."

"Ladies and gentlemen, I implore you; listen. Help these two bring their attacker to justice. Help them be able to feel safe in their home again. We have the opportunity to protect this community from another offender walking the streets' It's an opportunity we all need to seize. Thank you," he nodded before turning and walking back to his seat by the boys. The room was silent aside from the clapping of little hands as Kayla and Jacob cheered for Oliver's speech. Kyle and Ken couldn't help but smile softly at each other over their antics.

As they turned away from each other, Ken bit the knuckle of his free hand, his brows burrowed in thought. Pretty words. Nothing but silken phrases rolling off of his half-living tongue. Was this merely a case for poetics to get them their way?

"Thank you, Mr. Dodson," the judge nodded. "Mr. Broflovski, if you would present the defense's opening statement, please."

"Of course, your honor," he stood and sighed. Ken felt Kyle's grip tighten and he squeezed back reassuringly.

Gerald looked slowly at each juror before starting softly, "Kids. We know them. We were all one at one time or another. Who can forget the invincibility that we felt? That feeling of immortality surging through our young veins? The idea of living our lives without fear of repercussion? It was true in each of our generations and this one is not exception to that trend. But when does this short-sightedness get taken too far?" He paused and paced around the floor a bit. "When these feelings fall into the hands of those capable of prettily-spun words, disaster can ensue. "He looked back towards the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen,we are here accusing an innocent man of a horrid crime. MItchell Derrick is nothing more than a man trying to keep his head above water, and yet he stands blamed of abduction, assault, and even going as far as rape? It's scary isn't it? It can happen to any one of us."

He walked around a bit once more before pausing. His hazel eyes flickered to his eldest son, who went rigid in Kenny's grasp. "Aside from just the pure nativity of boys, another factor plays into the accusation of this man. After all, it's a common lesson learned: Those who hurt in turn hurt others. Compensation for emotion. Ladies and gentlemen, have any of us considered the possibility that this finger pointing is derived from some desperate attempt to see someone in worse pain than themselves? Here today, we can prove to you that one Kyle Broflovski is a child with issues all his own. That his mind can go off and make stories all his own that can deeply impact his and other's lives. Perhaps this is all just derived from an overactive imagination of a child in pain..." he looked into his son's eyes and Kenny could practically feel the tension built between the two of them. The man turned away and sighed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today is a simple request on our side: consider your source. Two boys at the peak of their teenage years, pointing fingers at a man they'd never before met, saying he hurt them so?" He chuckled almost humorlessly. "Ladies and gentlemen, you're smart enough to see the glaring issues in this. Today, our goal is to prove to you the innocence of this man, this everyday walker of the streets. This isn't just a fight for the rights of him, but for the rights of all men. Just think. If it happened to Mitchell Derrick...it could just as easily happen to you. Let's not let the childish dreams of invincibility be an obstructor of justice, hm? Please, listen to us and make your decision based on solid judgements and some degree of personal experience. A man is at stake here, don't let us all down. Thank you," he smiled, turning and walking back to his seat.

Ken looked after him and sneered. Oliver shot a warning glance over at him and Kyle squeezed his fingers lightly. He gave them both an apologetic gaze, but on the inside, he was burning with absolute fury. He almost couldn't believe it. Teen angst is his entire argument? His eyes flickered towards the remaining two Broflovskis. Sheila was sitting with her hands clasped in her lap, her face expressionless. However, a glance to her left gave him a large surge of delight as the youngest of the family stared at his father in what seemed to be absolute disgust. He had been right the whole time; no one was as smart as the Broflovski boys.

Judge Michaels nodded, scanning over her notes. "Alright, thank you, Mr. Broflovski. Mr. Dodson has input a request asking for the defense to present their case first. Would you object to this?"

"No your Honor, that'd be just fine."

"Alrighty then, the floor is yours," she peered down on him. "Call your first witness."

Ken grabbed a piece of paper from in front of him and jotted down a note, handing it over to Oliver.

'_Why do you want them to go first?'_

Oliver scanned it before scrawling down his response: _'I need to see what we're dealing with here. Don't worry. We'll cross-examine them into a corner and when it's our turn, we'll pull out the stops that we have."_

Ken and Kyle looked at him and nodded softly. He smiled reassuringly, watching as Gerald took a place up at the front once again.

"I'd like to call a Mrs. Alexia Troyer to the stand, please."

The boys looked at each in confusion before turning to watch their teacher walking down the aisle towards the witness stand. She shot them both a small smile as she passed and made her way to her place. The bailiff held out a bible and she raised her right hand.

"Do you swear to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"Yes," she nodded curtly before taking her seat.

"Hello, Ma'am," Gerald nodded. She smiled and nodded back softly. "Well, let's get started, hm?"

"Sure."

"What is your relationship to Kyle Broflovski and Kenneth McCormick?"

"I was their English teacher last year."

"What can you tell me about them?"

"Well, they're both very bright boys...both of them were hard workers, at least Kenny was once he actually put his mind to it. They never gave me any troubles aside from Ken's atrocious attendance record," she shrugged. "Kyle was the brightest student I've ever had before. I honestly can't think of anything bad about them."

"Did they ever demonstrate unusual behaviors?" he asked.

"Define unusual," she raised her brow.

"Did they ever do something that made you question them? Anything...what's the word I'm looking for?..."

"Well, they never posed any kind of destructive appearance if that's what you're getting at," she said. "I only considered them to be normal seventeen year old boys."

"Destructive isn't quite the word I was looking for," he stroked his chin in contemplation. "Maybe...self-destructive?"

"Not...not that I can think of," she shook her head slowly.

He walked back over to their table and grabbed a piece of paper, scanning over it quickly. "Can I ask you to identify this paper?" he asked, walking over and handing off the piece to her. She looked over it quickly and realization struck her features.

"This was Kyle's poetry assignment," she said softly.

"When was this from?"

"We did it as a midterm assignment for our finals...so sometime in December."

"What was the assignment, exactly, Mrs. Troyer?"

"Well, we were reading a short story that dealt with the conflicts of interest in the main character's relationship with her husband. I asked them to take their lives and to apply the same problem to them in the form of poetry."

"Did you find anything unusual about this particular piece?"

She shrugged, "Not really. I thought it was beautiful."

"Would you mind reading it aloud for us, please?"

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. Kyle shrunk down slowly and Ken watched their teacher with some degree of apprehension.

_I found the words inscribed on_

_the back of my eyelids._

_Life._

_Death._

_So seemingly opposite,_

_so eerily synonymous._

_Together they bring peace._

_Together they bring fear._

_Perhaps we are them._

_We stand together,_

_We fall together._

_We'll live together._

_And in the end, we'll die together._

_My memory may be all that remains,_

_but it remains nonetheless._

_My life may have been meaningless,_

_but I live with my own purpose._

_I live for you._

_I'd die for you._

_But would you do the same?_

_Perhaps I'll never know._

_But maybe it's better that way._

_Maybe I can just wait._

_Wait to be that message_

_on the back of your eyelids._

_The one piece of me you_

_may still hold._

_The part that'll die with you _

_as you breathe your last breath._

_The part of me that I leave to you_

_and you alone._

_I give you my mind._

_I give you my heart._

_I give it all._

_But you may never know it. _

_I give you all I can,_

_but I know you don't return it._

_That's alright with me;_

_I've learned to be myself._

_My secrets are not for you to know,_

_My tale is not to be told._

_I leave you the memory of me._

_I leave you the image_

_you've painted for yourself._

_Maybe it's better that way._

_You would probably like that image better._

_I leave to you who I am_

_Who I was_

_Who I may or may not become._

_Remember me as life_

_Think of me as death._

_Remember me for a brief moment,_

_before it all ends._

_I'll remember you for every moment_

_until then._

She looked up and sniffled a bit. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Ken stroked his hand and gave him a smile.

"_It was,"_ he mouthed.

Kyle blushed lightly. "_Thanks,_" he mouthed back.

Gerald nodded. "Certainly. Spun together very well. However, can you read that without a bit of...concern flashing through your mind?"

"Why would I be concerned?"

"Well, think about the depressing undertones of that poem."

"The assignment was on conflicts, Mr. Broflovski. He wasn't supposed to write about kittens and sunshine," she said dryly. "Ken himself wrote on his bad luck, and usually I find his papers to be the funniest of the bunch." Kenny beamed a bit.

"Don't you think that this could have a deeper meaning to it?"

"Of course," she nodded. "Everything has deep meaning, Sir. You just have to look for it."

"What do you think the meaning of this poem is, Mrs. Troyer?"

"Kyle felt left out of someone's life in its entirety. He painted himself to be their ideal image so a part of him would leave some sort of an impact on their life."

"Mr. Broflovski, is there a point to this?" the judge asked.

"Yes, of course, your Honor," he nodded. "I explained that we were going to show that perhaps a look into the troubled lives of these two could lead to this whole scenario. I'm painting my picture, you see."

"Alright, continue," she leaned back.

He looked back at Mrs. Troyer. "So, would you consider this healthy of him?"

"He's seventeen," she shrugged. "I have a lot of papers like that."

"Have any of them hit you so hard?"

"Well...no...but Kyle tends to have a way with his words. I mean, he's just phrasing what a lot of people feel in a more lovely way."

"Do you really think that? Do you think that he's not the only one going through this type of emotion?"

"Yes, I do feel that. I mean, I've watched a ton of kids battle peer pressure...Kyle's no different, I assure you."

"How many of your valedictorian students have been like this?"

Her face darkened. "Smarts don't equal happiness, Mr. Broflovski."

"You're right, but they tend to get more attention, correct?"

"Define attention."

"They catch people's eye easier," he shrugged. "They hold that attention."

"Kyle was too quiet for him to stand out, Sir. He did his work and only participated when he saw fit."

"What should that tell you?"

"He's a shy boy," she replied.

"Shy or secretive?"

"We all have our secrets."

"But how far do you think his went?"

"Far enough to make him quiet," she shrugged. "I know a lot of quiet students."

"Are they all as upset sounding as Kyle?"

"Not all of them, no..."

"Tell me, how many papers did Kyle write that concerned you in some way?"

"A...a few..."

"Example?"

Kyle tensed lightly and Ken did with him. She sighed and looked at the redhead apologetically. "We...we had an assignment, asking what made them the happiest...Kyle wrote about not talking. He wrote about hiding away and not seeing or speaking to anyone. I was a bit...thrown to say the least."

"So, what kind of behavior could you associate that with?"

"What do you mean?"

"Would you consider this type of response out of a happy boy?"

"Well...no...but I mean, he never seemed depressed or anything," she shrugged. "He was just quiet."

"Isn't it the quiet ones that you need to look out for, Mrs. Troyer?"

"Objection," Oliver interjected. "He's leading the witness."

"Sustained," Michaels nodded.

Gerald sighed softly. "Okay, but Mrs. Troyer, did these concern you to the extent you almost considered going for help for him?"

"Kyle's a strong kid," she stated firmly. "I wasn't about to go committing him when he may have just been having an off day at the time."

"So it did flash through your mind?"

She sighed in irritation. "Yes, Sir. But I care about all my students, that's the only reason."

"And that's good," he nodded. "Teachers should have a good level of concern for their kids. You said he was quiet in class, did that concern you?"

"Not in the least. He was quiet, but he participated and he talked when asked questions or whatever. He just wasn't disruptive."

"Good," he nodded again. "Well, I suppose that's all for me, thank you, Ma'am. Defense rests," he stated, turning and walking back towards his seat.

Oliver stood from his seat and made his way over to the woman, smiling at her gently. "Hello, Mrs. Troyer," he nodded.

"Hello."

"Ma'am, you told us that you found these boys to be well behaved, to be 'normal' as you put it. Can you explain why?"

"Well, they really just sat and did their work. Sure, they'd pass notes every now and then, but they usually did their work, so I didn't really think much of it."

"Did you ever confiscate one of these notes, Ma'am?"

"Never confiscated, no. I found one that Ken dropped out of his binder once..." she trailed off.

"I see. Did you read it?"

"Only the first few lines. I thought it may have been an assignment until I saw it was just the two of them bantering a bit."

"Did anything strike you as odd about it?"

"Not at all," she shook her head. "They basically said hi, made fun of each other, and Kyle told him the assignment because Kenny had fallen asleep. I passed worse notes when I was a kid," she shrugged.

"We've discussed Kyle's ability as a student and as a kid, but can we take a moment and discuss Kenny for a bit?"

"Ken was very bright," she nodded. "He didn't always fully apply himself, but when he did, he could write papers that even Kyle would want to read again."

"So, a good kid?"

"Very. He slacked some and slept in class...but he didn't snore or anything," she chuckled. "He missed a lot of school due to his...incidents, but he usually seemed fairly up to par with the rest of the students."

"We've covered the good of both of them...is there anything off about them that you can think about?" he asked.

"Aside from Kyle being abnormally quiet and shy and Ken's attendance, I can honestly say no. Well behaved and hard triers...a teacher can't ask for much more."

"Thank you, no further questions," he smiled stepping back to his seat. Kyle and Ken stared at him as he sat down. Kyle grabbed a piece of paper and jotted down a question:

_'What the hell did that accomplish?!'_

_'We're building your reputations first. Trust me. This witness probably helped us more than she helped them.'_

The boys looked at each other and shrugged, watching Mrs. Troyer as she returned to the benches behind them.

"Alright, thank you, Mrs. Troyer," Judge Michaels nodded. "Defense, proceed."

Gerald stood once again and cleared his throat. "I'd like to call Rabbi Joshua Wertheimer to the stand, please." Ken watched as Kyle's pupils violently shrunk. Oliver patted his shoulder, watching the man walk up and take his vow.

_'It'll be okay.' _ he wrote.

Kyle stared at the words for a moment before grabbing his own pen. _'Have you ever spoken to a rabbi?'_

_'Not really, no.'_

_'Well, you're in for a treat, then.'_

Oliver blinked at him before redirecting his attention to the old man on the stand.

"Hello, Rabbi," Gerald nodded respectfully.

"Hello, Sir."

"Rabbi, how long have you been a member of our synagogue?"

"Well, since I was born. I became the rabbi when I was about 40."

"I see. You've seen a lot happen in those years, hm?"

"Much more than any one man should probably ever see."

"Tell me about Kyle Broflovski, Rabbi."

"A very nice child," he nodded. "Very bright, very quick on his actions, always good on his word."

"Did he ever pose a problem in the midst of the synagogue?"

"In the midst of? No. He was attentive and he knew the stories nearly as well as I did. Very scholarly. I was considering asking him to look into joining the synagogue, but I very well know he wouldn't bite."

"Can you explain why?"

Wertheimer sighed. "He's a bit of a skeptic. He believed, but he'd always question why things happen as opposed to looking into the heart of God as he was taught to do."

"Why do you think that is, Rabbi?"

"As I said, he was scholarly. I see this in quite a few kids, but none seemed quite as hard hit by the questions as Kyle."

"How was it harder for him?"

"Just being who he was," he shrugged. "He felt as though he were constantly contradicting our faith and he struggled quite a bit to come to qualms with himself."

"Did he ever talk to you about it?"

The rabbi looked over towards the small redhead, who merely shrugged at him. The man sighed and looked back over towards Gerald. "Actually, yes. He would come talk to me quite often."

"Really?" Gerald blinked.

He nodded. "Yes. You and the rest of the family were usually talking or you had already left. He'd tell you he was going to a friend's house for a project but he'd come to my office and we'd talk."

"And...what exactly did you talk about?"

"A lot," he shrugged. "His home life, school, and his own problems."

"Can you tell us about some of these problems?"

"He was a bit depressed about something for quite some time, it took me nearly two years to get him to open up to me about it."

He raised his brow, "and...this problem was..."

He leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands. "Kyle told me that he was gay," he shrugged simply.

This seems to throw the eldest Broflovski completely off balance. "He...came out to you?" he said lowly.

"Yes. He did," he nodded curtly. "Kyle was concerned about what would happen in the end. He had been told time and time again how wrong it was to be homosexual and he thought something was wrong with him."

"I...I see...," Gerald nodded slowly.

"I told him that the synagogue loved him no matter how he felt about this. He had some trouble accepting it still, but he was happy to hear from me, nonetheless."

"What other problems did you two discuss?"

"Well, to be quite blunt, he was ashamed because he hated you and Sheila," the man replied bitterly.

"Hated us? What for?"

"Well, driving him into a corner and making him curl into himself time and time again may have played part in it," he replied smoothly.

Oliver laughed softly and grabbed the paper. '_This is amazing. He's almost destroying Gerald's case all on his own.'_

Ken replied, _'how?'_

'_Just hang tight. And watch how Gerald is practically sweating.'_

The boys looked up and low and behold, Gerald seemed a bit thrown by the rabbi's revelations.

"So," the man continued, "you're saying that Kyle was....struggling, hm?"

"As we all do from time to time," he nodded. "But he was seeking counsel from someone he trusted and that's all we can hope for."

"But why was this not divulged to the community?"

Wertheimer cocked his brow. "Why were his secrets not divulged? Mr. Broflovski, you and I both know that that's a foolish question."

"Why was it not divulged to the parents then?" he asked almost angrily.

"Because Kyle didn't want this to turn into a courtroom ordeal," he responded smartly. "He knew that things would be blown out of proportion and he didn't want that. Kyle came to me seeking spiritual advice for him and him alone. I wasn't about to betray the trust he finally instilled into me after years of questioning himself and our faith. I'm not a foolish man, Mr. Broflovski."

"I never said you were, Sir. What other issues did you discuss with him?"

"Aside from his homosexuality and the issues with yourself and Sheila? A few things," he shrugged. "School and his problems with the kids there, some tension with his best friend, some kid he kept calling 'fatass'...just life, Mr. Broflovski. He was struggling."

"He said a bad word!" Jacob pointed at him. Ken and Kyle snickered silently with each other.

"Did you ever consider calling for him a professional counselor?"

"I did," he nodded. "But Kyle insisted that what we were doing was just enough to get him by and that's all he needed. He couldn't afford therapy on his own and he wasn't about to talk to his parents about it."

"I see...," he nodded to himself. "No further questions, thank you, Rabbi." he nodded. "Defense rests."

"Alright, go ahead, Mr. Dodson," the judge motioned.

Oliver got to his feet and smiled at the rabbi. "Sir, hello," he nodded.

"Hello to you as well," he grinned back.

"Rabbi, I have very few questions for you to be honest. You've given us a lot to think about," he stated. "How was Kyle's behavior during your sessions?"

"Very calm for the most part. He'd have a bit of a panic attack every now and then, but we got it back under control rather quickly. His self-control is strong."

"So...not a...rash decision maker? He's someone who thinks things through before he breaks or anything?"

"Very much so," he nodded. "He's one of those people that reviews options and thinks throughly before jumping into anything, emotions or otherwise."

"Rabbi Wertheimer, would you ever think that Kyle would be capable of causing extreme harm to another person?"

"Physical or emotional?"

He looked up in thought for a moment. "All of the above," he smiled.

"Physical maybe in defense or protection, but not much. He's kinda small," he gestured towards him. Kyle looked down at his scrawny wrist and pouted slightly before grabbing the paper and jotting something down for Ken.

'_You know it's bad when a rabbi of all people calls you weak.' _Kenny snorted a bit in laughter and looked at him amusedly. The young Semite returned his expression before looking back towards the man.

"...However," he continued. "The emotional...I really don't think so."

"Why?"

"He cares about other people's feelings," he shrugged. "He's brash, but not to the extent that he'd send someone falling down in tears or ruin them or something."

"He thinks about other people is what you're saying?"

"Yes," he nodded. "He's a cautious person around other people's emotions. I haven't heard of him willingly hurting someone except for that 'Fatass' we mentioned earlier." Both Kyle and Ken stole a glance back towards Cartman, who was tapping his finger against his arm and raising his brow at the redhead. Kyle just shrugged and they turned back around.

"So is it safe to say that rash decisions aren't his nature?"

"He's quick on his feet, but not rash. Life altering decisions take him a good deal of time to work through." Ken looked down and saw Kyle's ring glimmering in the softened courtroom lights and nodded softly in agreement with the man.

"Thank you, Sir, I believe that's all," Oliver smiled. "Prosecution rests."

"Thank you, Dodson. Rabbi, you may step down," Ruth nodded. The rabbi stood from his seat and walked back towards the rows, smiling at Kyle as he passed. Kyle smiled back and nodded. "Mr. Broflovski. Your next witness," the judge declared.

"I'd like a Mrs. Carol Drayden to take the stand please."

"Who?" Kyle raised his brow at Ken, who shrugged back. He looked up and his jaw dropped as he watched a woman with bright red hair approaching the bench.

"Oh my god...," Kyle shook his head.

"What?" Oliver blinked.

"Mrs. Drayden," Gerald nodded. "Thank you for coming in."

"Sure," she shrugged.

"What is your relationship to Kenneth McCormick?"

"I'm his mother. But don't call him Kenneth or he'll blow up at you," she rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair. Oliver's expression dropped a bit as well as the boys'.

"Describe your son for me, Mrs. Mc-ahem, Drayden."

"Loud-mouthed, insensitive, overreactive, and none to bright. That enough for ya?"

Kenny gritted his teeth, but relaxed as he felt Kyle's thumb gently stroking his hand.

"Overreactive," Gerald repeated. "Explain why you say that."

"He's had a tendency for exploding in simple situations. He's loses his temper and acts and speaks on a whim."

"Example?"

"I told him I got divorced and he just blew up at me," she said with a sigh. "It's not the first time he's done it."

"I see," he nodded. He walked over and grabbed a file folder off the table and handed it off to her. "This is a record of the times that Kenny has been requested for removal from your home, is that correct?"

"Yes," she said softly with a nod.

"Why would child services have wanted him out of there?"

"Stuart, his father, was a drunkard. His brother and sister are both in prison," she shrugged. "Stuart would beat him and he'd get into trouble a whole bunch."

"Under that record sheet is another piece of paper. Can you tell us what it is?"

She looked down and narrowed her eyes. "De...detainment records?" she looked up at her son with shock glazing her eyes. He stared down at the table, ignoring both hers and Kyle's gazes.

"There are a list of crimes there, could you please list them for us?"

"Drinking, drugs...stealing...loitering...assault of an officer...pros...prostit...oh my god...," she shook her head softly.

Ken flickered his eyes up towards his Jew, who was staring back with wide eyes. He sighed and grabbed a piece of paper. _'I had to pay the bills, Ky.'_

'_So you sold yourself?!'_

'_Blowjobs and nothing more, I swear to god.'_

Kyle looked at him with sadness outlining his eyes. He brought their hands up and lightly kissed the larger boy's. Ken smiled at him softly and squeezed his fingers before his gaze fell back to the table in shame.

"So you had no idea about your son involved in this behavior?"

"N-no," she shook her head. Ken gritted his teeth again and held his head up with his free palm.

"So...deceitful?"

"I suppose so, yes," she nodded curtly. "I of all people should have known about it."

"You did, you fucking bitch," Kenny growled under his breath.

"Mrs. Drayden, did you know that your son got into any kinds of trouble?"

"Well I certainly knew he wasn't the brightest of the bunch and he made stupid mistakes almost nonstop," she drawled out. "He lectures me about his brother and sister but I certainly didn't see him stepping in to reprimand them, either. He isn't that great of a kid."

Ken looked over at Kyle, who was staring daggers into his mother's eyes. He squeezed his hand reassuringly and flashed him a smile. Not like he wasn't used to this kind of shit from her.

"So, do these detainments surprise you in any way?"

"Now that the initial shock is over, not really," she shrugged. "As I said, he ain't too great of a kid. He was always pickin' fights with somebody. Always cheatin' through stuff, always bein' stubborn. I can't say that I'm too shocked by it. I'm surprised he ain't in the fed with his brother and sister."

"Thank you, Mrs. Drayden, I think the defense will rest," he stated, walking back over to his chair and smiling at Mitch.

Oliver glared at him before standing up and sighing. He walked to the middle of the floor and nodded at Carol. "Ma'am," he addressed her.

"Yes?"

"You said that he blew up at you for getting a divorce. Does this incident perhaps play into your judgement of Ken's character?"

"Objection," Gerald called out. "He's leading her emotionally, your honor."

"Overruled," she stated. "Continue, Mr. Dodson."

"Thank you," he nodded. "Please answer the question, Mrs. Drayden."

She sighed. "It was a good glimpse of his character, Sir."

"Ma'am, how much time did you really spend time with Kenny as he was growing up?"

"Our children learned to be independent at a young age," she replied stiffly.

"You've never witnessed him actually committing a felony of any sort though, have you?"

"Not personally, no."

"Have you ever seen him...act out or anything of the sort aside from the argument you had?"

"No..."

"Let's pretend for a moment that that never happened. What's your perspective on him now."

"I...I guess..." she stammered.

"You have no idea, do you?" he asked softly.

"He's my child."

Oliver sighed and took off his glasses to rub his eyes. "He had a guinea pig when he was a young teen. Tell me, do you remember his name?"

She stared at him. "What?"

"He considered it his closest friend," he elaborated. "How well do you know your son, Mrs. Drayden?"

"Well enough."

"Then please, what was the guinea pig's name?"

"Objection," Gerald tried again. "Your honor, this is completely irrelevant to the case!"

She folded her hands and sighed. "Mr. Broflovski, your entire argument is nearly irrelevant. All we've learned is that they're teenagers with some basic problems. I think I can allow him to pursue a test of a witness' character. Now then," she leaned back, "overruled. Answer the question, Mrs. Drayden."

"I...I don't know!" she exclaimed. "It was a stupid rat!"

"That 'stupid rat' was nearly Ken's only source of comfort for nearly five years. You really think that it's unimportant?"

"Rats don't compensate for family, Sir."

"Then where were you when he was stealing? Where were you when he drank or smoked or did whatever? How did you not notice he had just a bit more money at night, hm?"

She blinked slowly at him. "I respect his privacy."

"You can't completely shove someone out of your life and call it privacy, Mrs. Drayden. That's just pure neglect."

"Objection!"

"Mr. Broflovski, you are not to speak for the rest of this witness, am I clear?" Ruth stared him down. "If I see a violation, I will call it. We sat through your mindless banter and we can sit through his. Now calm down. Overruled and proceed, Mr. Dodson."

"Thank you," he smiled. "Mrs. Drayden. You say his father beat him, did you as well?"

"Of course not," she replied curtly.

He walked over to the table and grabbed a file, walking back over to a small projector. He flipped it on, revealing a picture of Ken against a height-wall, battered and bruised. "This was taken as Kenny was 15 years of age," he explained. "When questioned by Protective Services, he told them that he had broken his mother's favorite vase."

"Why was she not charged?" Michaels raised her brow at the boy, who sunk lower into his seat.

"Ken told the police that he 'didn't care because his mother would be too high to remember anything anyways.'" Oliver quoted from the file. "He gave them a fake address, saying he'd ran from Washington. Turns out the address he chose was in fact real, and was an empty trailer. So no action was taken."

"W-well...that's a lie!" Carol stuttered.

Oliver sighed. "Your honor, I move that Mrs. Drayden be stricken from the record as she clearly doesn't know her son enough to give a concise testament."

Judge Michaels placed her chin in her palm and stroked thoughtfully. "Mrs. Drayden will not be stricken, however, if you are done, Dodson, we'll move on to someone more helpful to either of you. Alright?"

He nodded, "Prosecution rests then," he turned on his heel and strode back over to his seat. He watched as Kyle soothingly rubbed Kenny's back as he hid his face in embarrassment. When Carol passed them to go sit down, Kyle shot her a fearsome scowl and Ken could swear he heard the boy growl possessively at her.

"Defense, your witness," Michaels stated.

The elder Broflovski stood and sighed. "Alright. I'd like a Mrs. Jayne Schmidt to take the stand please."

Kyle's hand stopped and clenched into a fist. Ken looked up from his wallowing to see Kyle biting his lip at the table. He grabbed the paper and wrote, '_what's wrong?'"_

'_I do NOT want this bitch here.'_

'_Who is she?'_

'_You'll see.'_

They looked into each other's eyes, Ken noticing the worry passing over his emerald gaze. He reclaimed the boys hand and stroked it reassuringly. They looked back up as a short woman with gray hair pulled tightly back in a bun finished her vows and took her place.

"Mrs. Schmidt, hello," he nodded.

"Hello, Mr. Broflovski," she nodded back.

"Ma'am, can you please tell this courtroom what your relationship is to Kyle Broflovski?"

"He was my patient on three separate occasions." Ken looked over and stared at the Semite. No wonder he wasn't liking her too much.

"Patient for what, Ma'am?"

"Kyle had attempted suicide three times and needed immediate medical care. I took care of him the first time and told your family that should it happen again, you could go for me and I would help all over again."

"How did he attempt suicide?"

"Well, twice he fell into comas from neglecting his insulin and then from over-drinking. The third time, he overdosed on depressive medications."

"Right," he nodded. "Now, Kyle was under your watch as he underwent treatment, correct?"

"Yes," she replied.

"What behavior did he exhibit towards you as you cared for him?"

"For the most part, he'd just lie there and not say a word. No one would be able to reach out to him, even when he was undergoing recovery and had his ability of speech back. He'd just lie and stare at the wall or ceiling. Then if he did say anything, he'd basically say to get away from him because he didn't want saved; that we ruined everything, etcetera, etcetera," she shrugged.

"So, very...dark behavior, wouldn't you say?"

"I would," she nodded. "Quite a few people bounce back after attempting once. But he was just furious with us because we got in his way and he kept trying."

"Did he ask for any kind of help?"

"I suggested it to him once, but even after discussing it with his family, he refused. He told me that they were paid hundreds for just asking how he felt and he might as well pay a supermarket clerk for the same thing."

"Mrs. Schimdt," Judge Michaels started, "are you aware that in this state, suicide attempters are _required_ to go to counseling?"

She nodded. "Yes. I set up the appointment for him anyways."

"Did he go?" Gerald asked.

She shook her head. "You told me that he'd run away." Ken looked over at the redhead, who was glaring at his father. He looked back over to Ken and sighed.

'_I didn't 'run away'. My mother locked me in the attic with some textbooks. Trust me, I much rather would've went,' _he wrote. Oliver waited for Ken to read before grabbing and skimming it himself. He bit his knuckle in thought, watching as Gerald continued.

"So, Kyle isn't necessarily in the...best of mental states, is he?"

She sighed. "I guess you can phrase it as that."

"Depressive people tend to act on a whim, don't they?"

"Occasionally, it really all depends on the person and the severity of their depression."

"I'd say his was pretty severe if he attempted three times, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, I would," she agreed.

"Did Kyle do anything while under your care that very well could have been harmful to himself or others?"

"Once he got up...and walked to his window. He sat on the ledge and just stared down...he was about four stories up," she shrugged. "He told us that if he tried to get him down, he'd have no problems with just falling out. We had to get a fire department with a cherry picker to talk to him. Though it was really just the fireman talking and Kyle flipping him off."

"Did he ever pose a threat to anyone else?"

"He punched my assistant in the face and made his nose bleed, but that's about it," she shrugged. "And it was out of shock. He'd just jumped out of his coma and suddenly a stranger was staring at him. I would've panicked, too."

"Did he ever do or say anything that made him seem...unstable?"

"He was fascinated with death," she replied. "I don't mean he was like, performing rituals or anything...but he was very much a philosopher. He wanted to know what was on the other side. He just wanted something better for himself, so he just stared off and thought because we wouldn't allow him to read any books on the subject."

"What did he think was on the other side?"

"He wanted a life outside of the one he had now. One where...rules could be broken. Where he could be himself, and not live in fear of being persecuted for what he was."

Ken's stomach churned uneasily as Gerald smiled a bit.

"So...is it possible that he could live out these dreams in the real world?"

"It's always a possibility," she nodded. "I mean, I myself would doubt it, but I only saw him under hospital surveillance as he was pump-full of morphine. I'm by no means a reputable judge of his character."

"But you are a doctor," he stated. "Did Kyle ever say something that worried you?"

"Only that he'd much rather be dead and buried than live where he was then," she said. "It was...scary," she sighed. "You really don't want kids to be thinking like that."

"But they sometimes do," he shrugged. "Would you ever have considered Kyle to be a threat once he was released from the hospital?"

"No," she said firmly. "He still wasn't happy, but he never seemed to type to want to hurt."

"A few people here today said he was also not seemingly the type to hurt himself," Gerald pointed out. "What do you think about that?"

"As I said, I'm not the person to be asking," she shook her head.

"Alright then. Defense rests," Gerald stated. Oliver got to his feet and rubbed his neck tiredly.

"Hello, Dr. Schimdt," he nodded at the woman.

"Hello."

"Tell me, when Kyle supposedly ran away from his therapy, were you told only by his parents?"

"He left a note," she said softly.

"Ah. I'm going to suppose you don't have this note as of today?"

"I do not."

"Mr. Broflovski?" Judge Michaels asked.

He nodded. "I do." he fished a piece of paper out of his sack and handed it to Oliver.

"Thank you very much, Sir," he nodded before strolling back onto the floor. "When was this written?"

"Um...October...when Kyle was fifteen," she replied thoughtfully.

"Excellent." He walked over to his table and took out a sheet of paper of his own. "I have here an assignment written by Kyle in the fall of his fifteenth year," he stated. He walked back over to the projector and held the papers up side by side on the display. "Now. I'm not a master of graphology, but I think we can all see glaring differences in this," he smirked. "See how straight and legible Kyle's paper is compared to this sloppy work?" he asked. "Dr. Schmidt, did this letter seem very like him to you?"

"Well...as I said...I don't really know the kid," she stated.

"Perhaps not. But would a fifteen year old use terms like 'disgraceful' and 'foolish' to describe their situation?"

"Well, maybe a few...but probably not Kyle," she nodded. "He called things he disagreed with bullshit," she chuckled. "I can't imagine him sounding quite so...mature about it."

"Mr. Dodson, what are you trying to prove here?" the judge asked exhaustedly.

"That Kyle isn't so messed up as the defense is portraying him, your honor," he responded. "This note that Kyle and Ken were passing back and forth...Kyle told him that his mother made him hide away to escape the therapy. Kyle wanted the help to an extent, but he was told that he wasn't allowed and that it would only worsen his situation. Your honor, this is ridiculous, don't you agree?"

"Elaborate."

"You said yourself, all we've proven today is that these two are teenagers with normal teenage problems. This is more a trial on them and their lifestyles than the true matter of this case: Mitchell Derrick and the crime he was accused of!"

"I would definitely agree with that," she nodded curtly. "I don't quite understand your mission, Mr. Broflovski," she looked down at Gerald. "Now, I'm a patient woman, but I have my limits. Please explain your motives."

"I think that the depression that Kyle and Ken both experienced pushed them to falsely accuse my client as a means of living in a world that doesn't play by the rules," he replied.

Ruth sighed and removed her glasses, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Mr. Dodson, do you have any other questions for Dr. Schmidt?"

"Not particularly, your honor."

"Good. Dr. Schmidt, please step down." She did so, briskly walking past Oliver and making way back to her seat. "Mr. Broflovski, please stand." He did as told, both he and Oliver staring at the judge with the rest of the courtroom.

"Now," she started. "I am well aware of the ways you win your cases, Mr. Broflovski. I will hand it to you, you have a knack for it. However, that does not work in my courtroom. I want straight facts from you. From both of you," she looked at Oliver, who nodded to her in agreement. "Now. I think we've heard enough for today. Tomorrow, I want facts. I want real witnesses. I want real testimony from reliable sources. Not doctors unless they were involved with this particular crime, and not far off references for a time gone by. Am I clear?"

"Yes Ma'am," they both nodded.

"I expect better from you both," she said firmly. "Court is adjourned until tomorrow at noon," she declared, banging her gavel and stepping down from her bench, walking towards the side room. Mitch's escort led him back out the front door as everyone waited for him to leave. Ken and Kyle looked at each other and sighed, leaning into one another.

"This bites," Ken muttered.

"No kidding," Kyle replied. "This is fucking ridiculous. Shouldn't my father have realized that this was a long shot?"

"He did. He just didn't expect the judge to not be interested in your dossier," Oliver interjected. They looked up and stared at him tiredly. "Now he's stuck," he shrugged. "He has to find a way to live out his plea without those outside people."

"Good luck to him," Ken rolled his eyes.

"Bye, Ky," a voice came. They turned and saw Ike waving at him timidly. Kyle smiled softly and waved back before the young boy was yanked away by his parents and led out the courtroom into the thralls of reporters stationed outside.

The boys stood as Oliver gathered his papers and shut off the projector, looking at the kids in the front row. Stan looked at the boys and smirked as he served a pillow for the two of them.

"Girls, Butters, can you do us a favor?" Ken asked.

"Hm?" Wendy cocked her head.

"We're gonna sneak out back. Can you go out front so our crowd isn't so noticeable?"

"Yeah," they nodded, getting to their feet. "We'll see you later boys," Red nodded before kissing Cartman's cheek and heading towards the exit with Butters, Wendy and Bebe.

"Hey, hold up!" Kyle shouted towards the side of the room, his brows furrowed angrily. Ken followed his gaze and found himself staring at his mother.

"Ky...don't...," he shook his head.

"Don't what?" he growled. "I'll be fucking damned if she's getting away with what she did!"

"You're already damned," Damien smirked.

"Shut up, Devil-boy," he rolled his eyes. "Come here!" he shouted at the retreating woman before he tore off from the group and stormed over to her.

"Oh god." Stan shook his head. "Carol's in for somethin' now."

Ken sighed. "Can't make things much worse than they already are," he shrugged, watching as the two of them bantered angrily. He looked down at the kids and leaned over, shaking them gently.

"Hi...," Kayla smiled as she opened her eyes. Jacob waved at him sleepily.

"Hey. You bored, huh?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Too much big words."

He laughed softly. "Yeah, I agree," he stated. "We're gonna go home, okay?"

"Okay," Kayla smiled again before getting off of Stan and climbing over the bench to clasp him briefly. Ken patted her head as Jacob joined her and grinned wider. They looked over as Kyle made his way back and the kids broke off, running to him to embrace him as well.

"Hey there," he smiled, ruffling their hair.

"What'd Carol say?" Stan asked.

"Ken may be getting a call sometime soon," he said softly, looking at the blonde. Ken smiled and leaned forward, brushing his lips.

"Thanks," he whispered. "And I'm sorry."

"For what?" he raised his brow.

He sighed and leaned their foreheads together, resting his hands on each of the kid's heads with Kyle's. "I should've told you about the whole...you know...thing."

"Oh Ken," he said softly. "I...I don't blame you. You do what you have to to get by. We've both figured that out."

"I should've at least told you..."

"I should've told you a lot, too. But I didn't. I haven't. Look, it'll be okay," he assured him with his most genuine smile. "All we can do is hang tough, okay?"

"Okay." he smiled crookedly, meeting their lips softly.

"Eww...cooties...," Kayla giggled. They broke apart and looked around briefly before each reaching down and swooping a kid into their arms.

"Cooties, huh?" Kyle cocked his brow.

"Yeah," she laughed.

"Only cooties Kahl has is the deadly Jew cootie. Or the Jootie as many people call it," Cartman smirked.

"You think you're big enough to count as more than one person, too?" Kyle asked.

"Shut up, Fag."

"Fuck off, Fatass!"

"Guys, do you ever stop?" Stan pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Seventeen years and you still haven't learned?" Kyle smirked.

"Yeah, really. Catch up, Marsh," Ken snickered.

"Okay, who's for going home?" Damien asked.

"Please," Kyle nodded. "This is fucking insane."

"Agreed," Oliver inputted. "Let's go."

"We'll see ya around," Ken nodded at Stan and Cartman.

"Later," Cartman saluted.

"See ya tomorrow," Stan added.

"Yeah. Lucky us," Kyle muttered as Damien grasped his and Ken's arms and sent them back into their apartment. They opened their eyes, finding their couch in front of them and they sighed.

"Did...did we accomplish anything today?" Ken asked.

"Other than our humiliation, of course," Kyle commented.

"In a way, yes," Oliver stated. "We've brought up the possibility that you two are reckless. That you've been hurt. But we've also shown you're intelligent and capable of sound decisions."

"But...my record...," Ken said softly, falling into the seat with Jacob still in his grip.

"Is almost irrelevant. I mean, nothing too serious. Nothing that would so deeply affect another's life. Don't worry. I wouldn't be surprised if the judge struck the entire day from the record. Gerald's technique is a bit..."

"Crazy," Kyle finished.

"Stretching it," he corrected. "I mean, your rabbi helped immensely."

"I didn't want him to take the stand," Kyle groaned. "Why can't we just say that Mitch did it and that be the end of it?"

"Because you and I both know that the story is a lot more complex than that," he lectured. "Kyle, we're in this with his fate on the line. This isn't just open and shut and you know it."

"A kid can hope," he shrugged, playing a bit with Kayla's chocolate hair.

"Hope is the foolish man's lifesaver," Damien rolled his eyes. "Look. Just be cool, alright? We have a lot more shit to go through and you both need to just stick it out. It's only a matter of time before you both have to take the stand."

"That instills so much happiness," Ken rolled his eyes back. "Because everyone thinks just so fucking high of us as is."

"Well, fix it," Oliver shrugged.

"Not possible," Kyle mumbled, looking at the floor sadly. Damien sighed and shook his head.

"You two have your little emo-fest. We'll see you tomorrow."

"Fine," Ken muttered, leaning against Kyle with the kids.

"Bye, Boys. Get some rest. You're gonna need it," Oliver advised before he and Damien vanished.

A few moments of silence passed before Ken sighed. "Cat," he muttered to himself. He set Jacob down and went over to the crate, releasing Snickers back into the open space. She happily trotted out, prancing around and finding a loose thread off the couch to bat at. He sat back down and they all four watched her for a few minutes.

"What should we do for dinner?" Kyle asked, leaning his head back.

"I vote Chinese," he suggested.

"Works for me," he smiled.

"I'll go order," he said, standing once more and stretching. "Usual?"

"Yeah," he nodded. Ken leaned back down and pecked his lips before retreating into the kitchen and pulling out the menu. He dialed the number, impatiently tapping his finger on the countertop, his mind racing. All this tension he and Kyle had felt, for nothing but humiliation.

"City Wok."

"I have an order for delivery please."

"You hold?"

"Yeah, yeah," he nodded tiredly before elevator music started ringing in his ears. He paced around a bit, stopping by the inlet and looking towards the group on the couch. Jacob was sitting on the arm, looking at one of Kyle's books while the redhead lied back staring at the ceiling with Kayla on top of him.

"Kyle?" she asked softly.

"Hm?"

"What's Heaven like?"

He looked down at her a moment. "Why?"

"When we were s-stealing...somebody told us that Heaven didn't like that...and...and we have to go to church or they wouldn't let us in."

He sighed and sat up, bringing him with her and balancing her on his legs. "Heaven...can't be described," he said softly.

"Why?" she asked. Jacob put down the book and stared at him intently.

"Because it's whatever you want it to be," he smiled.

"Whaddya mean?" the young boy cocked his head.

"Heaven...is where...," he looked up thoughtfully. "It's where what you want...is. If you love kittens," he gestured towards Snickers, now curled up in Jacob's arms, "then Heaven has a bunch of cats lying around."

"What if you don't know what you love?" Kayla asked.

"Aw, everybody knows something that they love," he stated. "You love Snickers, dontcha?"

"Yeah..."

"And ice cream."

"Yeah," Jacob nodded with his sister.

"You love it when the TVs on, right?"

"Uh huh," Kayla smiled softly at him.

"See? Everyone has something. That's what's in their heaven," he declared.

"What's in yours?" Jacob asked.

Kyle paused and looked at him for a moment before smiling. "Not a what. A who," he looked over towards Kenny's stare and smiled softly at him. Ken smiled back, hearing a voice finally chime back on his other line. He stepped away from the inlet and began placing his order. As he finished, he hung up the phone and sighed gently.

Not the most ideal day of his life, but something seemed to make it all worth it. He heard Kyle's quiet voice laughing with the kids and he couldn't help but break into a wide smile. Their problems weren't over by a long shot, but maybe it wasn't so bad. Maybe it was what fate had planned for them all along; a long list of constant battles. A tedious struggle against not only outside forces but themselves, only to find themselves able to run into the other's arms. Fate most certainly was a cruel mistress, but one that played right into the palms of the young boys' hands.

* * *

_A/N: So...I've come to the conclusion that you're getting more chapters._

_I SERIOUSLY underestimated here. We're gonna finish before sixty, but I have no idea what number. I have a lot of witnesses to get through O_O_

_Um...and another problem is the ending. I totally had this dream and it gave me another ending scenario. So I'm currently battling between THREE separate endings. UGH!_

_Anyways, apologies for the lateness and the shitiness. I had SO much trouble shoveling this out. The next trial ones will be better, I swear. And more fun, I'm hoping =/_

_Thanks for everything, guys!_


	47. Repetitive

_A/N: Hey, did you know that Possession chapter 47 kinda rhymes?! xDD_

_...this is the type of thing I think about when I'm at work. _

_That and different ways to rape people xD...namely Kyle._

_Awesome._

_And a personal response to FireworkDarlink: I know literally nada about lawyers. I've been in court, but I kept fading in and out. I'm just hoping this is what they sound like xDD_

_And yes, I have considered being a pro author before reality set in and I realized that I can't get along with deadlines xD_

_Anyways, enjoy =)_

* * *

He blinked. Again and again. He turned his head, finding a glowing red 4:26 staring back at him in the darkness surrounding them. He groaned softly and shifted, facing his back towards the daunting number, changing his gaze to the boy beside him. He watched as his chest rose and fell a few times, his face contorted into a peaceful expression. He reached forward and played with one of the copper strands of hair sticking up from the pillow. The boy groaned and slowly opened his eyes.

"You okay?" he whispered.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Can't sleep."

"Same here," he nodded. "Tryin' like hell though." He sighed and curled in closer to Ken, resting his forehead into the larger boy's chest. "Dude, I hate this," he mumbled.

Ken draped his arm around the smaller form and kissed his head. "Me, too," he agreed.

"I...I just don't fucking get any of this, ya know?"

"Get what?"

Kyle leaned back and stared up at him. "Our parents, Dude. I don't understand what the fuck we did for them to treat us like they do."

"We don't bow to their will," he shrugged. "We're too independent for their tastes and they get angry because they know that we're the better people."

"It's fucking stupid," he rolled his eyes. "Aren't they supposed to be the smart ones?"

"Hey, we're the ones with more knowledge of the afterlife than them. I'd say that puts us at the top, wouldn't you?" he winked.

He laughed softly. "Yeah. I guess. I guess that I just never thought this kind of shit would happen to us."

"I'd be highly concerned if your imagination put us in this position," he smirked.

"Heh, well I always had an overactive mind," he smiled.

"Yeah, but your overactive mind allows me to do dirty things to you without you getting too freaked," he chuckled.

He laughed a bit, "I suppose so. That and a bit of dementia."

He smirked, kissing the top of his head once more. "I'm getting a drink, you want something?"

"Sure. What do we have?"

"We still have vodka," he smirked. "Helped us sleep last time."

Kyle looked thoughtful for a moment before sighing. "Alright, just don't wake the kids," he warned. Ken nodded and threw the covers off, walking out their door into the darkness of the living room. He tiptoed past the folded out sofa, watching the kids carefully as he passed. He snuck into the kitchen and poured two glasses of the alcohol before turning on his heel and walking back. He softly shut the door behind him again and flipped on the light, finding Kyle twisted around using the bedpost as his support.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to crack my back," he replied. "It's locked up."

Kenny laughed softly and walked over to him, setting the glasses on the nightstand. "Come here," he curled his index finger. Kyle blinked and stepped over a bit to him.

"What?"

He grasped his arms and led him towards the bed. "Lay down on the bed," he said.

"Why?"

"Because I said so," he smirked, giving him a gentle push. "Come on, on your stomach." Kyle looked at him questionably before doing as told. Ken smiled and got up on the bed beside him, stroking his bare back softly. Kyle just stared up at him, confused. Ken grasped under him and pulled him more towards the center of the bed before working his fingers under the boy's waistband. He gently tore off Kyle's boxers before flinging them down onto the ground.

"Dude. It's four in the morning," Kyle raised his brow.

"Good a time as any," he smiled, tearing off his own underwear and throwing them down. He sat up on his knees and moved to straddle Kyle's small body, sitting on his trimmed thighs.

"What the hell are you doing?" Kyle asked.

"Shh...," he said softly. "Just stay still and relax. Let me do everything."

"That'd be a first," Kyle smirked playfully.

"So let me have my moment," he chuckled. He took the heels of his hands and pressed into the dip of Kyle's back with force. He kneaded at the skin, delighted in the soft moans that elicited from the boy beneath him.

"You should be a masseuse," Kyle purred.

"Why thank you," he leaned down and kissed the silky skin. He felt himself growing harder, laughing as Kyle noticed as well.

"That something to help my back or are you just happy to see me?" he looked back at him amusedly.

"Little bit of A, little bit of B," he winked. He continued applying pressure into Kyle's back, each moan escaping from the boy's lips traveling straight down to his nether regions. He felt a pop under his palms and watched as Kyle gasped.

"Oh my god, thank you," he breathed.

"Feel better?"

"So much," he sighed contently.

"I can think of way to make it even better," he growled, sitting and moving his hands under the boy's hips. "Turn over," he commanded. Kyle did so, turning and staring up into his hungry blue eyes. Kenny leaned down and nipped at his lips, slowly grinding their exposed cocks together. Kyle pulled back a bit and laughed softly. "What's so funny?" he cocked his head.

Kyle reached up and gently placed his finger under his pendent dangling from his neck. "I think I give you too much jewelry," he smiled.

Ken looked from the pendent to his ring and back into his eyes. "Nah, you're just pimpin' me out, yo," he smirked back.

Kyle's face dropped. "Never talk like that again."

"Aww, how come?"

"Because you sound fucking retarded, that's how come."

"I have some ways to make you sound pretty damn stupid, too," he smiled devilishly before roughly brushing his cock against Kyle's, gaining a husky little moan from the form beneath him. "See?"

"Shut up," he blushed lightly. Ken snickered, leaning down and claiming his lips again.

"I love your stupid little noises," he purred, rubbing his nose against Kyle's playfully. Kyle just pushed their lips back together, bringing his arms around to pull the blonde in closer. Kenny continued rocking their hips together, their panting increasing steadily. Ken broke off a bit, reaching over into his nightstand and pulling out some lube and a small box. Kyle raised his brow at the box and Ken chuckled lightly. "I really doubt you want another shower," he smiled.

"Whatever you say," he shrugged lightly. Ken just chuckled and squirted some lube onto his fingertips before reconnecting their mouths. He lightly poked around at Kyle's entrance, pushing only slightly into him and receding just as playfully. Kyle broke off after a few times and looked at him with a small glare.

"Stop teasing me, goddammit!"

Kenny snickered. "How come?"

"Because I freaking said not to," he pouted. "Don't?"

"Oh, just spoil my fun, why dontcha?" he smirked. "I guess you've been good enough that I can show some mercy."

"Oh thank you kind and generous master," he rolled his eyes.

"Ooh, now I'm master," he winked. "Me likey that. Me likey that very much."

"Don't get used to it."

"Awwwww....," he stuck out his lower lip before smiling again. "Oh well. You're far too pretty to be a slave anyways," he leaned back down and brushed his lips a few times. He slid his index and middle finger into Kyle, rubbing back and forth and making the boy shudder beneath him. "Better?"

"Uh huh," he half muttered, his fingernails clawing into Kenny's back.

"Good," he chuckled. He finished prepping him and sat back atop his thighs. He reached over and secured a small black band from his nightstand and looked down at Kyle mischievously. "Do you know what this is?" he asked.

"No, but I have a feeling it came from that bag of yours," he raised his brow.

Ken laughed and nodded. "Very good. It's a cockring," he smiled wider.

"A cockring?" he repeated. "What the fuck is it for?"

"Your cock."

"Well obviously, you asshole," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, you'll just have to find out, huh?" he smirked. He secured it over the Jew's manhood and smiled at him sweetly. "You'll find out soon enough," he assured him. He took a condom from the small box and tore apart the wrapper with his teeth. He rolled it over his member as he watched Kyle's face contort just slightly in discomfort. "Feelin' it?" he asked.

"I...I dunno," he blinked confusedly. "I feel weird."

"Oh, it'll get weirder," he smirked. He leaned over him and grasped his wrists, holding them down above his head. He positioned himself at the edge of him before pecking his forehead and driving straight into him. Kyle gasped and arched up a bit, his torso knocking into Ken's just slightly.

"Fuck...," he breathed.

"Mmm yeah," Ken mumbled as he licked his lips. "Fuck...," he repeated before beginning to thrust in and out of him. Kyle moaned almost inaudibly, his head lolling back and forth a bit as he was planted down in his position. Ken nipped at his exposed throat, tracing small patterns along the skin with his tongue as he gently increased his pace.

"Nngh...," Kyle moaned.

"Still not gonna call me master?" Ken panted jokingly.

"Not...not on your life...," he breathed back, looking up into his darkened cerulean stare.

"Damn...," he laughed brokenly. "How...how come?"

"Just...ah, god," he hissed as Ken sped up. "Just shut up, Dude."

"M-make me."

Kyle lunged up and captured his mouth, suckling gently on his bottom lip and bringing them both back down to the bed. Kenny pressed his wrists down harder as he dove his tongue deep back into Kyle's mouth, running it around his teeth and dancing around his comrade muscle. He increased his pace more, listening as Kyle's breathing became more hollow and rapid. A few gasps and squeaks escaped his hostage mouth as Ken pounded him into their mattress with increased vigor.

"Ah....ah, fuck, Ken," he purred deliciously into Kenny's mouth. Kenny smiled and hit against him harder. "O-ow...," he muttered softly. The blonde pulled back and looked on as his face changed into a discomforted expression.

"Problems?"

"What...what the fuck is this thing?" he blinked down at his now vibrant-red member.

"Cockring."

"I know th-ooh!" He tried to spit out before Ken roughly slammed onto his prostate. "Why....why does it...ow....," he groaned, leaning his head back again and panting. Kenny just chuckled, continuing to thrust rapidly, perfectly content in this feeling of warmth and pleasure.

"How ya holding up, K-Ky?" he panted as he tensed up after a few minutes.

"Ow..." was the only response he got from the boy. "Let....lemme...oh god..."

Ken laughed at him as he edged onto the brink of his climax, lunging down and taking his lips once more before exploding into the plastic wrapper secured around his throbbing member. He continued to drive into him throughout his orgasm, listening as Kyle's whines increased.

He pulled back and licked his lips. "Something the matter?"

"Dammit, get this thing off of me!"

"Nah...this is fun."

"Ken, come on!" he pled, slamming his head into the pillow. "I...I...oh god, take it off!"

Ken pulled out of him and smiled sweetly. He grasped Kyle's wrists with one hand, using the other to take his condom off, tying the end and throwing it into the wastebasket near the wall. He took Kyle's arms and moved them down, separating them once more to either side of his waist. He flicked his tongue out at the engorged flesh in front of him, lightly trailing around the veins. "You taste so good," he purred.

"K-Ken...ow...," he sniffed. "Take it off...please..."

Kenny ignored him, taking the head of his cock and suckling sweetly, letting his tongue flitter around the skin. Kyle panted and whimpered all the while, trying to free his arms from the blonde's tight grasp. "Beg me for it," he growled huskily, removing his mouth for only a moment before delving back and sucking in earnest on the Jew's cock.

"Please, please, please," he begged. "Please take it off!"

"Take it off...?"

"M-master?" he guessed.

"Good. Say it again."

"Please, Master? Let me? Please?!" he pled in a suppressed screech. Kenny could practically hear the smaller boy's teeth grinding together in agony. He smiled warmly before taking his lips from the blazing skin to rip off the ring and plunge back onto him, generously taking in the full length of the Jew, his cock pressing against his throat. Kyle panted a bit more before his hips jerked up and the larger male could feel the steaming release burning the back of his throat. He milked him, swallowing all that Kyle gave before sitting up and looking over him.

"Better?" he smiled as he licked his lips, throwing his supplies back into the drawer. Kyle merely curled his index finger, telling him to come closer to him. Ken did so, leaning over him slowly. "Yes?" He yelped softly as a hand slapped over the back of his head.

"You're an asshole," Kyle muttered, turning on his side and sighing. Ken rubbed his head and smirked.

"Don't deny that you enjoyed that, Kyle."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Make me call you master again and I'll murder you."

"You wouldn't do that. You're too sweet for murder," he smiled, leaning down and kissing the nape of his neck. Kyle tensed lightly and he backed up. "You okay?"

"Hm? Yeah. I'm...I'm fine," he sighed, turning back over and facing him. "Just...I dunno. I guess I'm tired or...or something."

"Something's on your mind," he observed. "You gonna be alright?"

"I'll live," he shrugged. "I guess this whole thing is just stressful as hell, ya know?"

"Don't I." He nodded. He laid down beside him and flipped off the lamp, pulling their covers over them. "Damn it," he groaned.

"What?"

"We didn't drink the goddamn vodka," he complained. Kyle laughed lightly and sighed.

"Oh well," he murmured as Ken pulled him into his chest. "We'll deal with it in the morning," he yawned.

"It is the morning."

"The later morning, you ass," he muttered, flicking his stomach.

A few moments of silence passed between them, a few random chirps from morning birds could be heard through the glass pane of their door. Ken absentmindedly stroked Kyle's hair and sighed softly, "Hey Ky?"

"Hm?"

"I've been wondering..." he trailed off and sighed again.

Kyle sat up and looked down at him, his eyes glimmering in the darkness. "What's wrong?"

"Do you think I'm...do you look at me different now?"

"Why?" he blinked.

"The whole...ya know...selling thing...," he mumbled. "I mean...I never even told you about that and I always told you everything, even before all this."

Kyle sighed. "Ken, why would I look at you differently? You're still you. I mean...how differently did you look at me when I killed myself? I was still Kyle, right?"

"But...I mean...you're sleeping with a whore."

"No, I'm sleeping with my fiance," he leaned down and gathered Kenny into his arms, resting his head on his lap. "Look. The past is the past, alright? I said this yesterday. Sometimes we have to do things that we're not proud of in order to make it. I'm not going to just throw you off and call you a slut or something. I know what your home life was like, I'm not going to start pointing fingers at you for something when I know that you didn't really have many options to run to."

"It's just so...wrong of me." he stated. "I never...I never even thought about the repercussions. I just went and got on my fucking knees...," his voice trembled lightly. Kyle ran his fingers through his blonde hair lovingly.

"Sometimes that happens," he whispered. "Sometimes we're put into a position where it's do or die, and we do. It's survival of the fittest at its peak. We do what we can to get out of a situation, regardless of what the consequences may be in the end. We can't always think straight when we're up against a wall, Kenny."

"I should have been able to," he sighed. "I should have...tried for a job or something."

"With the way you kept dying? No fucking way you'd be able to hold a steady job, Ken."

"There had to have been a better way," he replied. "I'm sure I could've found something."

"Ken, it's not like you took the easy way out or something," he played with his blonde strands gently. "You took your only option other than starve to death. It's not easy giving your body to someone else when you don't want to," he whispered softly. Kenny froze slightly in his lap, looking up and seeing his emerald eyes shining somberly. He reached up and played with a scarlet curl.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. Kyle smiled at him softly, turning his head a bit and kissing his hand.

"There's no reason for you to be," he replied almost mutely. "None of that matters anymore. What matters is here and now. Now it's you and me, alright? No selling yourself. And once we're all done with this damn trial, it'll be no Barney and no Mitch. Just you and me."

"And Kayla, Jacob, and Snickers," he smirked.

He chuckled and nodded. "Them too. But they're just add-ons," he smiled.

"Yeah...," Ken took his hand and caressed his ring finger lovingly. "For forever and ever," he smiled softly.

"Forever and ever," Kyle repeated with a nod, leaning down and pecking his forehead. They stayed as such for a long time, simply breathing and melding their forms together, watching as Kenny's fingers lightly caressed the ring upon Kyle's hand. The blonde couldn't help but feel a small spark every time his calloused fingerprint brushed over the glittering gem; the memory of what once was seemed to fade altogether into the blue and green stone, a sign of new beginnings to come, of old battles to face and conquer, of a life all their own starting anew with the simplicity of two young boys holding hands in the quiet darkness of dawn.

* * *

Quiet murmurings could be heard behind them, but they paid little mind as their group made its way to the front of the courtroom. Kenny, Kyle, and Oliver walked together past the benches, making way for their seats at their table. Stan, Cartman, the kids, and the rest of the gang followed closely behind, their expressions set in stone. The rest of the group broke off at the first row of benches as the three front-runners took their places at their table. They sat down, Ken and Kyle gulping down their thermoses of coffee vigorously. Oliver observed them a bit and smirked.

"Ya know, I told you boys to get some rest."

"Yeah. How about you become us for a day and then you tell us just how willing you are to sleep," Kyle rolled his reddened eyes.

"Yeah," Ken nodded in agreement. He eyed a coffee pot in the corner of the room and sighed. "Please tell me that that coffee over there is free."

"It's probably a year old," Oliver raised his brow.

"If the caffeine's still good, we don't care," Kyle muttered.

"Why didn't you two sleep?" Stan walked up behind them and leaned on the back of their chairs.

"We were too busy having sex," Kyle sighed. Stan blinked at him and Kenny broke into sniggers.

"Dude. You're way too much like Ken now," the raven-haired boy smirked.

"Mmm...yeah," he shrugged. "A few months of living with him will do that to a guy," he smiled softly.

"My personality's addicting," Ken added playfully.

"More like repulsing," Stan rolled his eyes.

"You get used to it," Kyle smirked. They all turned their heads as the door opened and they watched as the Broflovskis were led in behind Mitch and his escort. Kyle turned back and sighed. The others looked down at him sympathetically.

Stan placed his hands on each of his shoulders and shook him softly. "It'll be okay, Dude."

"Thank you, Stan. I wasn't aware that you were psychic."

"I'm not. I'm an optimist," he smirked.

"Well, I envy that," he sighed. "Even though it's not true in the least."

"Whaddya mean by that?" he asked.

Kyle tilted his head back and looked up into his blue eyes with a cocked brow. "Says Raven."

"Oh shut up, it was a phase!"

"A phase that will haunt you for as long as I live."

"Well that's hardly fair. Why can't it be till I die?" he pouted.

"Because it's more fun if I keep it going," he smiled.

Stan removed one of his hands and slapped his head playfully. "Nobody asked you, Smartass." They watched as the bailiff stepped towards the front of your room and Stan patted his shoulders a few times. "Looks like we're about to start."

"Stan, do me a favor," he said softly.

"What's up, Dude?"

"If things get...bad...can you take Jacob and Kayla out of here?" he asked in a hushed tone.

"Bad? Bad how?"

"As in...just...bad, Stan. Look, I don't know what the fucks gonna happen, but I just don't think they're old enough for this shit."

He nodded a bit. "Yeah, I promise."

"Thanks, Dude," Ken nodded at him gratefully. Stan shot him a smile before giving Kyle's small shoulders a final pat and walking back to his seat.

"All rise for the honorable Judge Ruth Michaels," the bailiff ordered. Everyone slid to their feet as the woman came sauntering back past the rows. She nodded towards both of the lawyers as she made her way up to her bench.

"You may be seated," she gestured. They all did so and looked up at her. "Well gentlemen," she looked between Gerald and Oliver, "I hope that today is a bit more progressive than yesterday?"

"Yes, your honor," Gerald nodded.

"Excellent. If that's all for the formalities, let's just get this going, shall we? This second day of the case of Mitchell Derrick vs the state of Colorado is now in session," she banged her gavel. "Defense, you may call your first witness."

"Thank you, your honor," Gerald nodded, standing from his seat. "I'd like to call to the stand a Mr. Benjamin Mager, please." All heads turned as the tall police sergeant made his way towards the front of the room to take his vows. He nodded at the bailiff and sat down at the bench, looking out towards the audience with a set expression upon his face.

"Hello, Sir," he nodded at him.

"Hello."

"Please state your name for the record."

"Benjamin Mager."

"Thank you. Mr. Mager, can you tell us of any encounters you've had with Kyle Broflovski and Kenneth McCormick?"

"Kenneth came to myself and my partner one day asking us to apprehend a suspect that he claimed attacked him and raped Kyle."

"I see. Did you actually see this alleged raping or anything that would indicate that this event had indeed taken place as he claimed?"

"Well, we went to go apprehend Derrick, but he escaped us and went to Kyle and Ken's house. By the time we got there, he had a hold of Kyle, threatening to hurt him."

"But did he actually directly say that he committed the first crime?"

"No, but his actions were enough to at least hint that he had done something similar in the past."

"Actions?" he repeated. "Can you elaborate a bit?"

"Well, he was on top of him on the bed when we got there, holding him down. He groped him when we were telling him to get off of Kyle, indicating to us that he had done something like that before."

"But do you have actual proof of that?"

"Not hard evidence, no," he shook his head. "We merely apprehended the suspect and gave minimal questioning to the victims."

Ken and Kyle shot a glance back towards Damien who smirked and gave them a subtle thumbs up. _"You're covered," _he mouthed. They smiled gratefully at him before turning back around and watching the man on the stand.

"And what did said victims tell you?"

"That he was coming back to hurt Kyle once again, that he was borderline obsessed..., at least that's what Ken told us."

"What did Kyle tell you?"

"He was in a state of shock at the time, we couldn't get a straight response out of him. Any slight movement would send him into a cower, so we didn't keep prodding him, we just sent the boys home to try to calm down."

"Did you ever follow up on this with them?"

"No sir," he shook his head. "We had more than enough witnessed evidence to keep him in prison. Any further action was going to have to come from the boys themselves."

"So what was he kept in prison for at first?"

"He was charged with breaking and entering and emotional blackmail on Ken's account. He paid the fines for those, but this trial kept him under our lock and key under the suspicion of his previous actions."

"But not initially? You never heard of the raping and assault accusations until Ken called you, right?"

"That's correct," he nodded bluntly.

"So you kept him in pure suspicion?"

"As I said, his earlier actions threatening Kyle placed him under heavy suspicion. His tone when he was holding him hostage told us a lot about what kind of person he was. He had absolutely no qualms with hurting him so it seemed."

"So it seemed," he repeated. "That's not too sure-fire of an opinion, hm?"

"Well, all I saw was him holding a young boy, molesting him and threatening to throw him from two stories up down onto the pavement. I had every reason that I personally needed to hold the man in jail."

"So all strictly interpretation?"

He sighed irritably, "yes, Mr. Broflovski, I suppose you could say that. Though I believe that anyone in this room would agree that my observations were a pretty good cause for alarm."

"Do you know of any reason that my client would attack Kyle in his home?"

"No I do not," he shook his head.

"Do you think that revenge could perhaps be a motivation?"

The officer blinked at him slowly. "Revenge?" he repeated.

"Yes. Do you think that could have been a form of incentive for him to do something like that?"

"I...I suppose," he shrugged. "I'm not exactly someone bent on revenge right now, so I can't say I can relate to that kind of behavior."

"But can you say that there's a possibility of it?"

"Objection, your honor," Oliver called out. "He's trying to sway his opinion."

"I'm going to allow it," she ruled. "Continue."

"Please answer the question, Officer."

He sighed. "Yes. Yes I guess that it could be some form, yes."

"Let's role play for a moment," he suggested. "If you were told that you were accused of a horrible crime, would you be happy with the accuser just walking around and tarnishing your name?"

"Mr. Broflovski, I believe that's stepping over the line a bit, don't you?" Judge Michaels asked.

"I personally don't believe so, your honor," he shrugged.

She sighed. "Alright. Answer the question, Mr. Mager."

"I suppose that I would have an issue with that, yes," he nodded. "Would I personally carry out vengeance? No. But I can imagine that some people would."

"Thank you, Officer. Defense rests."

Gerald and Oliver traded spots, giving each other evil little glares as they passed by. "Good day, Officer," Oliver nodded.

"Hello, Sir," he nodded back.

"You've basically covered my questions," he admitted. "What kind of behavior did Mr. Derrick exhibit as he was in holding?"

"He was calm, fairly polite," he shrugged. "Can't say the worst inmate by a mile."

"Did you interrogate him at all?"

"The standard operating procedure, yes," he nodded.

"What did he say his reason was for going into Kyle and Ken's home?"

"He said that he had to get Kyle."

"Why?"

"I don't know," he sighed. "We tried on that question for about an hour and a half, but all he would do is shrug and mumble."

"So he admitted that this attack was premeditated?"

"Not really," he said. "We asked how long he had been planning on going after him, but it ended in a result similar to the last question."

"Did he say anything that you could interpret as his reasons for making Kyle his target?"

He leaned back and nodded a bit. "He called him pretty. Multiple times. That's really the only explanation we got from him. He just kept repeating how he had to get him over and over."

"So, lust?" he smiled a bit.

"I suppose so, yes."

"What about during the attack? Did you see anything aside from Mr. Derrick grabbing him that would lead you to question him?"

"He licked Kyle's cheek as he was holding him," he stated. "I can't remember it all too vividly, but I do somewhat recall that."

"It'd be safe to say that Mr. Derrick had had some encounter with him in the past, yes?"

"Well, as I told Mr. Broflovski, everything I saw could indicate towards it. However, I've also seen different scenarios revolving around this type of thing."

"Can you please elaborate on that a bit?"

"Well, Mr. Derrick could easily have just been after money or something of the sort," he explained. "He could have went after Kyle in an attempt to get Ken to hand over what he had."

"But you said that he threatened to throw him off of a balcony."

"He could have seen that he was out of options," he shrugged. "He gave Ken choices before we were able to apprehend him."

"What were these choices, Mr. Mager?"

"To either let him go free, to give Kyle to him, or to kill Kyle."

"So if taking Kyle was one of his options, that doesn't seem very viable for just a mere burglary, does it?"

"It very easily could have been something else," he shrugged.

"Such as?"

"He could have seen the only thing that he could possibly have to gain from this attempt, the only victory that he would have had. Or he could have just been trying to get Ken to back into a corner for him. I really can't say that I know for sure, Mr. Dodson."

"You really think that a 25 year old man would consider raping a young boy to be his only chance of a victory in a robbery attempt?" he raised his brow.

"Remember that I also told you that Mr. Derrick referred to Kyle as pretty, Sir," he reminded him. "He could have broken in, seen him, been struck with some sort of crazed lust, and focused on that after we came and thwarted his original plan."

"You said that he was holding Kyle down on the bed," he stated.

"That's correct, Sir."

"Why would he be doing that if he had the option of breaking in and threatening him for money?"

"Perhaps Kyle refused to cooperate. It's actually more common than you seem to think. We usually encourage people not to go against them for fear of their safety, but many people just refuse to go along with crooks even at the risk of their health. Mr. Derrick could easily have snuck up on him in the bedroom and held him down and threatened him for refusing to go along with him."

Kyle looked at Ken and frowned sadly, grabbing a clean sheet of paper. _'I don't think this is working.'_

'_Yeah...I think Oliver's getting pushed into the corner.'_

'_I don't like the look that my father has...' _Ken looked past him towards Gerald, who was sitting highly and smiling smugly.

'_I think that yesterday was more in our favor.'_

'_Yeah, really,' _he agreed.

"I see...," Oliver nodded slowly. "Let me ask you, were you the only officer at the scene?"

"No, my partner, Larry Bostic was on duty with me. He and I both pursued and apprehended the suspect."

"Is he with us today?"

"I wish he was," he said lowly. "He was injured in the line of duty last week and is currently in the hospital recovering. But I can personally guarantee that he would second everything that I've told you today."

"But the majority of what you've told us as you said isn't hard evidence, it's merely the observations of a longtime cop, correct?"

"Yes, Sir," he nodded. "The only thing about this case that I can tell you for sure is that he broke into Mr. McCormick's and Mr. Broflovski's home. He threatened Kyle and tried to emotionally blackmail Ken into giving him what he wanted. What that thing was, I haven't the idea. Myself and Officer Bostic arrested him on these charges and these alone. I'm sorry I can't be more of assistance, but I'm only one man with limited information."

"No, no, you've been a great help to everyone in this room," he smiled. "Thank you for your time, Sir. Prosecution rests," he turned on his heel and headed back to his seat, falling into it slowly and sighing heavily as the judge dismissed Mager from his position.

Ken took the paper and scrawled out, _'are we fucked?'_

'_Doubt it,' _he replied. _'This makes things tougher for sure, but it's something that we'll just have to deal with. Don't worry.'_

'_We can't help it. We seem royally screwed here,' _Kyle commented.

'_Thanks for the faith.'_

'_Can't blame us, Dude,' _Ken responded.

They shot their heads up as Judge Michaels started to speak once again, "Mr. Broflovski, your witness."

He stood and cleared his throat, "I'd like to call to the stand please, Mr. Eric Cartman."

Kyle and Ken shot their heads back towards the boy, who blinked confusedly. "Me?" he asked.

"Yes, Eric, you," Gerald nodded. "Please take the stand." He slowly got to his feet, still looking taking aback and made his way towards the front. Ken and Kyle watched him as he went, worry passing over their features as Eric took his vows and took his seat.

"State your name for the record."

"Why? You already said it."

Gerald sighed. "Please state your name," he repeated.

"Answer me first!"

"Please do it," the judge looked down on him. "We need it for the records of this case."

He rolled his eyes and leaned back. "Eric Cartman."

"Thank you, Eric," Gerald said. "What is your relationship to Ken and Kyle?"

"They're the pains in my ass, Gerald."

Kyle, Ken, and Oliver slapped their foreheads into their palm. Only he would be such an idiot at a time like this.

"How so, Eric?"

"Well, Kenneh's a perverted little poor boy who won't stop dragging on about his adventures in the bedroom. Kahl's just an annoying pussy Jew."

"Strike that from the record," Ruth directed at the stenographer. She looked over at Cartman and narrowed her eyes. "Mr. Cartman, you are in a court of law. I will not tolerate such attitude. We are here on the charges of a very serious matter, are you aware of that?"

He shrugged, "I guess."

"Behave yourself or you will be escorted out of here. Forcefully. Am I clear?"

"Crystal, Ma'am," he rolled his eyes.

"Continue, Mr. Broflovski," she nodded.

"Thank you, your honor. Now, please answer the first question, Eric."

He sighed irritably. "They're my kinda-sorta-not really friends."

"Alright," he nodded. "Fair enough. Eric, have Ken and Kyle ever been known to be deceptive towards you?"

Cartman eyed the two of them and viewed their pleading expressions, heaving another heavy sigh. "In what way?"

"Have they ever lied to you to get out of trouble?"

He scoffed, "them? They don't get into trouble. I'm the one who causes shit."

"Mr. Cartman, please watch your language," the judge warned.

"Sorry, your honor," he muttered. "Anyways, no, I can't say that they lie very often. Especially Kahl and his obsession with making sure all's good and moral and all that."

"Have you ever known them to do things on the wrong side of the law?"

"What part of 'they don't get into trouble' did you not understand?"

"You were here yesterday, correct?"

"Yes," he nodded curtly.

"Then you're aware of Ken's detainment records, are you not?"

"That was a slap in the face to everyone in this room," Cartman said firmly. "Stupid petty crimes like that don't count, especially when the only way you learn about them is from someone else's mouth."

"This means he lied to you, does it not?"

"I never asked him if he did drugs or any of that," he shrugged. "I'm sure if I had asked him, he would have told me and then offered to sell me some."

"_Oh goddamn it," _Ken sighed and shook his head.

"He hid the truth, though."

"It's not lying if they don't ask, Mr. Broflovski," he replied.

"Fair enough. Now, Eric, you were there on the night of the alleged abduction and raping, correct?"

"Yes," he nodded.

"Explain that night to us."

"I don't know what happened exactly," he said bitterly. "All I know is around...five or something in the morning, Stan's shaking the hell out of me and telling me that Kenny's hurt and we had to get to him and Kahl and get to the hospital."

"So, you were called about their situation?"

"Kahl called and left a message, Stan couldn't answer it in time. I listened to it on the way there and it was fucking weird."

"Language."

"Sorry, Judge."

"How was it weird, Eric?" Gerald asked.

"He was...dead."

"Dead?" he repeated with a raised brow.

"I...I dunno," he shrugged. "It didn't sound like him at all. He was completely monotone. It was just...strange."

"He wasn't panicking?"

"No. Completely flat."

"What did he say?"

"Basically he just said Kenny was hurt and gave the address, telling him to hurry."

"But he didn't tell him to hurry in a hurrying tone?"

"No. I told you he didn't do anything with his voice. Is that clear enough for you yet?"

He nodded, "I suppose so. After the call, what happened?"

"We got in Stan's car and sped down there," he replied.

"And what did you find?"

"Kahl and Ken," he shrugged. "Kahl was just standing outside, staring off into freaking nothing."

"And what of Kenny?"

"He was unconscious. Kahl had drug him outside."

"What did you do then?"

"Stan grabbed Kenny from him and put him in the car. Kahl just stood there."

"Why did he just stand there?" he pushed.

He narrowed his eyes. "He couldn't walk."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. Why don't we ask the blood stains on the back of his pants?" he growled.

"You saw them yourself?"

"I picked him up and carried him to the damn car. I could feel it. I saw it once we got to the hospital."

"When you got to the hospital, what did you tell them had happened?"

"Kyle said that Ken was in a fight."

"And what did he say of his own injuries?"

He sighed, "nothing. He wouldn't spill anything."

"And why do you think that, Eric?"

"He was embarrassed. I don't blame him, I would be too if I'd just been deflowered by a couple of freaks, too."

Ken looked over at Kyle, who had placed his head on the table, his cheeks burning rouge. His hand found the boy's again and squeezed gently. Kyle looked up at him with a sad tinge in his eyes, prompting Ken to lift their hands and kiss his softly. Kyle gave him a small smile before frowning again and averting his gaze.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Kahl begged us not to," he shrugged. "He said that he wasn't that hurt so it wasn't that big of a deal. We still told police, though."

"And how far did that take you?"

"No where fast. He absolutely refused to speak to them or to let a doctor use a rape kit on him. He told them all that his injuries were from being clumsy and that it was nothing to be concerned with, that the major concern was Kenny."

"Did you believe him?"

"Of course I didn't, I'm not an idiot."

"I didn't say you were."

"Yeah, but you meant it," he rolled his eyes. "Look, I've known that Jewrat for most of our lives. I know him when he's lying about something big."

"How do you know?"

"His voice goes flat," he growled. "He becomes near-despondent. I've also come to find that he gets teary-eyed and angry as hell when you call him out." Kyle's eyes flickered up to the larger boy in shock along with Ken's. Cartman's chocolate eyes fell onto their gaze and he smirked. "I'm more observant than they seem to think."

"Alright, you don't believe him. Has he demonstrated anything in the past few months that one could interpret as a reaction to this attack?"

"You mean aside from his countless breakdowns and how he became paranoid to the slightest bit of anything? Well nothing that I can think of," he scoffed. "Look, he was raped. Ken was taken. I guarantee it. Book this guy and let us all go home."

"Do you have solid evidence, Eric?" he raised his brow. "Do you have any shred of anything to possibly convict my client besides your 'observations'?

Cartman's eyes darkened. "No. No I guess I don't."

"Could this possibly be because there was no evidence to begin with?"

"No," he shook his head. "Kyle hid. He just didn't want this to happen."

"And if this is true, why didn't you try to reprimand him and make him do the smart thing? We all know that you're a manipulator of sorts, correct?"

"Sure."

"Well, why didn't you get Kyle to talk?"

He rubbed his forehead in irritation before meeting glares with the man staring him down. "Why? Because he wasn't in any position to be pushed. If me or Stan tried to push him, he would've lost it completely in the middle of that hospital. We decided that it was just best for him to stay with Kenny like he wanted to."

"I thought you hated Kyle," he quirked an amused brow.

"I do. I hate him. I hate the way he is, how he acts, and how annoying he is all the time. However, even I have some degree of compassion, Gerald."

"Really? The boy who wanted to eradicate the Jewish community has compassion?"

"He was hurt. He still is. If you wouldn't have pushed him away, maybe you would have actually seen that. You could have prevented the whole thing, Gerald. Awesome job."

"This isn't a trial about me, Mr. Cartman."

"No...it's all _on_ you, Mr. Broflovski," he retorted slyly.

"Mr. Cartman," Ruth interrupted, "please stay on topic."

"How am I not?" he asked.

"Do you have proof of this crime?"

"I said no," he told her. "I don't have anything physical. All we have are Kahl's goddamn mental scars. Those should be proof enough."

"I think that the defense will rest," Gerald smirked, heading back to his table.

"Mr. Dodson, your witness," Judge Michaels sighed tiredly.

He got to his face and walked up to the end of the courtroom. "Eric," he nodded.

"Sup."

"Eric, you've been beside these boys all these months. What can you tell us?"

"That no one could hold up a lie like Gerald's trying to say they are when it's like this."

"What of their personalities? Do you think of them as threats to others?"

"No," he said firmly. "They don't hurt people because they're too busy being in each other's pants."

"Goddamn it, Fatass," Kyle hissed under his breath. Ken smirked and squeezed his fingers.

"So you have no doubts about this crime taking place?"

"I told you, I carried Kyle's bloody ass to the car. I was there as they operated on Kenny. I was there when they got out and Mitch's freaking partner in crime tried to take him again. I-"

"Stop there for a moment," he interrupted. "Tell us about that. About when his partner had him once more."

"This guy, Barney, we went after him because me and Stan had seen him before. So we got police to follow us and get him...but things kinda got out of hand. We went to him on our own and he got the better of us."

"How?"

"Had me and Ken chained to a file cabinet bolted to the floor. Then he got Stan with a gun to his head."

"What then?"

"He told Kyle to take off his shirt and go over to him. He turned the gun on him and made Stan go sit down by us."

"Did he?"

"The Jew had a gun in his cheek. No way in hell Stan would tell him to fuck off or something."

"Good point," he nodded. "What happened then, Eric?"

"He made him get on his knees and suck him off." Most heads looked over at the small boy who sunk lower in his seat, staring at his lap.

"Did he?"

"Yeah. For the most part, until he got smart about it."

"Elaborate."

"He kept sucking him off, but he grabbed the gun and got away from him."

"Did he use said gun?"

"Yup. Shot the fucker in the knee when he wouldn't get on the ground."

"Would Kyle use a gun on anyone that wasn't threatening in his eyes do you think?"

"Doubt it. He's one of those damn peace-loving hippies," he rolled his eyes. "He always tries the talking route first. I think someone would seriously have to piss him off or scare him to make him go all out on them."

'_See?' _Kenny wrote. _'He knows you pretty damn well.'_

'_It's a bit creepy in a way.'_

'_So long as he's not stealing and sniffing locks of your hair, I think we can tolerate it.'_

'_Oh god...now I'm paranoid about him being around my brush.'_

'_Better than him being around your bush =)'_

Kyle hit his thigh under the table and he snickered to himself, winking at the flustered boy.

"So this situation is just a complete shock to you?"

"Who isn't this a shock to?" Cartman raised his brow. "I mean, fucked up shit happens in this town, but not like this."

"What happened between you all and Barney Johanson?" he asked.

He sighed. "After Kahl shot him, he fell on the ground. The police got there, but the freak grabbed him again and held him down on the floor. Kenny got the gun."

"And?"

"...And he shot him."

"Shot him dead?"

"No. He was in intensive care for a few hours."

"Why did Kenny shoot him, Eric?" he asked gently.

"Because he had the Jew," he responded. "He just wanted to get Kahl away from him."

"What happened after that attack?"

"Me and Stan went in for questioning."

"What of Kyle and Kenny?"

"They stayed at the hospital...they were seeing what would happen to him."

"So, they were concerned about his well being?"

"I think Kahl was...Ken was just in pure shock that he'd actually shot somebody."

"What then, Mr. Cartman? What happened after Mr. Johanson passed?"

"Life resumed," he replied quietly. "Me and Stan focused on getting this guy," he nodded towards Mitch, "and getting him put in jail while those two tried to get themselves healthy again."

"Eric, you've said you have no physical evidence of anything of the attacks. You have your own experiences involving them, but nothing directly related to the first assault. What do you think though? Based on everything that you've seen, what do you think?"

"I_ know_ what happened," he growled. "Kenny was hurt. Kyle was worse off. Look, I don't understand why people think that we're making this up. I mean, if _I_ of all people am speaking up for _Kahl_ of all people, you'd think it'd be fucking easy to see that this isn't just one of our stupid ideas to get something out of it. Hell, Kahl didn't want this fucking thing at all and he's the person who's been hurt the most," he narrowed his gaze. "This is just a waste of all of our time."

"Mr. Cartman, justice is never a waste of time," Judge Michaels stated.

"This is," he retorted. "I mean, this is just freaking ridiculous, Dude!"

"Mr. Dodson, are you through?"

He looked up at the woman on the bench slowly. "Yes. Yes, I guess that I am."

"Good. Mr. Cartman, you may step down."

"Good," he scoffed. "Maybe you can get some real freaking information," he rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms and hopped off the stand. Kyle and Ken eyed him tiredly and he simply shrugged at them, making his way back to his seat. They watched him, their eyes landing on the kids, once again curled up and sleeping on either side of Stan.

'_The kids have the right idea,' _Kyle wrote to him.

'_Totally.' _he agreed.

Judge Michaels sighed and removed her glasses from her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Is the defense prepared to move on?"

"Always, your honor."

"Then proceed, Mr. Broflovski."

"As you wish. I'd like a Doctor Joseph Lincoln to approach the bench."

Oliver sighed and massaged his forehead. He shot a gaze to the boys and just shook his head softly.

'_You okay?' _Kyle asked.

'_I told you that this wasn't cut and dry, unfortunately. We'll find some way to get out of this.'_

'_How?' _Ken asked.

'_No idea. Gerald's really trying for this.'_

'_I told you my dad isn't your average freaking lawyer.'_

'_I know. I just didn't think it was quite so true.'_

'_Well next time, you'll listen to him, won't you?'_

'_I suppose.' _he smirked at them lightly before turning his attention along with them to the man on the bench.

"Good afternoon, Doctor."

"Hello."

"What is your relationship to the boys?"

"I'm Kyle's psychiatrist and Kenny's boss."

"Alright. Kyle came to you seeking help I'm guessing?"

"Yes," he nodded sharply.

"With what, pray tell?"

"Well, we've already discussed his suicidal tendencies and his depression. He's came to me on that accord and he was also developing post-traumatic stresses that he and Kenny both wanted remedied."

"Post traumatic stress?" he repeated.

He nodded, "yes. He was experiencing nightmares...and hearing voices yelling at him about his self-worth."

"Voices?"

"It's quite common in depressed and nervous people," he explained. "He was very terrified of quite a few things and these voices stemmed from those fears."

"What causes them exactly?" he asked.

"No one really knows for sure," he said. "It's like asking where dreams come from. It's all in the brain, but no one knows how or why they happen."

"Now, what events did he tell you about that could have led to these voices of his?"

"Well, his suicide for one. He was constantly attacked by his peers. And he told me that he had been raped. That above all seemed to really hit him when we hit the topic."

"How did it seem so?"

"On our second session, I tried to get he and Kenny to lead me through the scene. We didn't get very far before they both lost it."

"Really?"

"Yes really," he sighed. "It was traumatizing for both of them, Mr. Broflovski."

"I'm going to suppose that you had no proof of this?"

"How would I have proof, Sir? They came to me months afterwards. But what Kyle told me and what his nightmares were...they led me to see that this had indeed happened."

"Explain these nightmares for us if you please?"

"Well, we had a variety, mostly revolving around the same principals," he leaned back in his chair. "Pain. Fear. Grief. Shame. Guilt. A lot of different emotions that were shown."

"Guilt?"

"Perhaps stemming from Kenny getting hurt on his account. Or maybe from Mr. Johanson's death. It could be from a number of factors, Sir."

"Can you please tell us in what ways these were represented through these dreams?"

"Well, a dream is very symbolic," he started. "Certain items, certain colors and moods can represent a lot about one's outside life. They're extraordinarily symbolic like that."

"What symbols appeared in his dreams?"

"Well there were several different dreams that he experienced," he stated.

"What was the worst that you and he discussed? Or perhaps the most telling?"

He sighed and took a small notebook from out his pocket, flipping a few pages until he found what he was looking for. "He had one a few months back that really put him on edge for a bit. He told me that it was completely shaded in a dark red, that his hands were stained the color. He was walking down a dark road when he saw a creature on said road. He didn't know what it was, but it attacked him. He fought back, but it won and he was practically gutted. He told me that he was bleeding all over, and the creature blindfolded him and stitched his mouth shut. The blindfold was fairly sheen though, so he could see a glowing golden and green light from beyond it and he heard the monster scream, apparently dying. However, the ghost haunted him, it kept coming back and coming back until he was driven to the brink of insanity. He woke up then as he felt the creature clawing at him in his sleep," he shrugged.

Gerald blinked a few times. "What on Earth does any of that mean?"

"Dark red can symbolize a number of things. But I believe that it was relatable to a strong feeling of shame, guilt, sorrow. The red on his hands could be synonymous to the phrase 'blood on his hands'."

"How would guilt like that relate if he'd been raped? The shame and sorrow, I can understand, but what of the guilt?"

He shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. Kyle could very well have been blaming himself for Ken getting involved in something in which he was the target. He actually told me that once during one of our sessions.

Ken turned to the redhead and raised his brow, grabbing the paper. _'I don't remember that.'_

Kyle cleared his throat awkwardly and slowly wrote his response. _'Joe said I needed private sessions, too. I went to like three of 'em. He told me that he knew I wouldn't say too much in front of you.'_

'_Oh, okay,' _he smiled at him. Kyle smiled back gently, obviously relieved that Ken didn't hold that against him in any way.

"Continue with the analysis if you please," he nodded.

"Right," he looked down. "Um, the road," he looked back up at the man. "Dark roads often reflect the minds judgement on choices that one has made. My guess is that this is the mind weighing itself on Kyle's decision to hand his body over to the men."

"Go on."

"The creature could represent any type of hostile person or situation in one's life. I think it would be rather easy to guess where this would stem from, hm?"

"It could," he nodded slowly.

"Now, the attack could mean that this situation or person is indeed physically assaulting him from the inside out. It very well could have to do with the spills that he's taken every now and then and he's just brushed them aside as troubles with his blood sugar."

"What of the blindfold and stitches, Dr. Lincoln?"

"Well, a blindfold usually represents dishonesty. As in, you're trying to lie to others." Ken gulped as the words passed through his lips and he saw Gerald nodding to himself happily. "And the stitches usually indicate that there is a situation in the person's life that needs to be mended, that it's falling apart and only they can fix it. Now considering that it was his mouth that was stitched, I can almost safely say that it was his need to let the truth out about this whole scenario."

"How accurate are these analysis', Dr. Lincoln?"

"Well, they're obviously not perfect," he shrugged. "But if you take an average dreamer and analyze them, 98% of the time, you hit some scenario in their life dead-on."

How many ways can a dream be interpreted, though?"

"Several depending on a person's viewpoint."

"Would it be safe to say that this dream could have to do with him lying and putting an innocent man in jail? The blood on the hands? The need to tell the truth?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes, I suppose that one could view it as such if one so chose."

He nodded and paced a bit. "Dr. Lincoln, aside from the dreams, is there anything else telling about Kyle's behavioral patterns or anything like that? Anything suspicious at all?"

He shook his head. "Kyle was suicidal and depressed for years, Mr. Broflovski. His attitude and behavior, however, was exceptional. He was willing to receive the help that I offered him. He was always courteous, very cooperative. Don't try to peg him as just another nutcase because I assure you that you would be mistaken."

"I never said that."

"But you've been trying like hell to make me imply it," he leaned back and smirked. "I will tell you this, he was indeed pessimistic about many things. He has a very dark and brooding mind if he hits one of his moods. However, he tried like crazy...he _is_ trying like crazy to get healthy and to get back to how he was before all of this started happening."

"I see," he nodded. "You can't exactly claim that he's..."

"He's perfectly normal, Mr. Broflovski," he finished dryly. "Nightmares are quite common."

"What of the voices?"

He nodded, "Them as well. You'd be amazed at how many people's conscious' become louder and more deafening if they hit a certain point of fear or depression. Kyle has perhaps been mentally scarred by this whole ordeal. However, he's gotten to a point where the nightmares are much less frequent. He's able to walk outside alone now without a constant fear of what's around the corner in the alleyway. The voices are finally hushing down more and more. And above all, he's just able to finally live, Mr. Broflovski. He's on a road to recovery from a traumatic ordeal."

"That can't be proven," he added with a raised brow.

He sighed and shook his head. "Look, I can't give you all the answers."

"No one expects you to."

"However," he continued firmly. "I can tell you this: I highly doubt that either Kyle nor Ken is capable of what you're accusing them of doing. It's only been a few months but I've been working very closely with these boys and they care too much about the well-being of others to allow themselves to be so cruel as you've so many times implied."

"Well, that's coming from you who's only known them a few months. I've known them for seventeen years," he smirked.

"Mr. Broflovski..." the judge warned.

"Don't worry, your honor," he nodded at her. "Defense rests."

"Mr. Dodson," she motioned for him.

"Prosecution rests."

She raised her brow at him. "Are you positive?"

"He's already proven my points, your honor. That things are up to interpretation and his personal opinion is that the boys could not create such a heinous story. He also proved that Kyle's ordeals are quite normal within the depressed population. So, Prosecution rests."

She nodded slowly. "Alright then. Dr. Lincoln, go ahead and step down." He nodded and hopped off the bench, throwing his notebook back into his pocket as he made his way back to his seat behind Sheila and Ike's row.

'_You seriously had nothing else for him?' _Kyle wrote.

'_Trust me.'_

"I'd like to call Mr. Stanley Marsh to the stand," Gerald continued on.

'_Why didn't he call him up with Cartman?' _Ken asked

'_Your friends are less credible sources than the doctor on our part. He figured that he'd go weak, strong, weak.'_

'_Well that sucks,' _Kyle wrote with a sigh.

'_We'll be fine,' _he assured them as Stan made his way to the front.

"Do you swear to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"Yeah," he nodded sharply before taking his seat.

Gerald walked up to him and nodded. "Stanley."

"Gerald," he nodded back.

"Stanley..."

"Stan," he interrupted.

"Stan," he corrected. "What is your relationship to Kyle and Ken?"

"They're my best friends," he shrugged.

"Now, April second. What significance does that date hold?"

"That's Kyle's birthday," he shrugged.

"Right. Now, what's April fourth? Does that hold anything to you?"

His face fell slightly. "That was the day he cut his wrists."

"Right. Who found him, Stan?"

"I did because you abandoned him," he spat angrily.

"Mr. Marsh, please watch your accusations," Judge Michaels warned gently.

"Sorry."

"Were you expecting this from him at all?"

"Of course I wasn't! I would've dragged him somewhere to get him help if I'd thought that something that bad was gonna happen!"

"You make it sound like an accident."

"It was!" he scowled.

"How so? Did he just trip and drag the knife up his forearms on accident and carve the words miraculously?"

"No," he frowned deeper. "It was an accident that none of us were able to see the signs soon enough to be able to get to him on time."

"So, totally out of left field?"

"I just said that!"

"Calm down, Mr. Marsh," the judge warned again with a tenser voice.

"Sorry," he growled before looking back at Gerald. "Yes. It was completely unexpected for all of us."

"What about his accusation of the rape? Would you say that that came unexpectedly as well?"

"Well, duh," he rolled his eyes. "No one just sits by a phone and waits for their best friend to call and say that he and your other friend have been attacked."

"So you weren't there at the time of the alleged raping?"

"Cartman already told you all of this," he sighed. "I was asleep and so was he. We didn't know anything until we grabbed them and got them to the hospital."

"So you hold no proof either?"

His azure eyes darkened. "Gerald. Listen to me. No one has the physical proof. You've asked every. fucking. witness the same question and we've all told you the same damn thing: No. But we all know Ken and Ky. They of all people would not lie about something like this."

"How do you know?"

"I know them better than just about anybody."

"But you had no idea that Kyle was in such a detrimental state. You had no inkling as to Ken's criminal record. How on Earth can you tell us that you know them?"

He sighed. "Kyle is my best friend. He doesn't tell me everything, but I know him well enough. I know him well enough to know that he doesn't hurt other people."

"He's hurt Eric."

"Er-ugh, Cartman is a different story," he retorted. "He's a total asshole to Kyle and always rags on your religion and stuff. But Ky defends himself. However, he would never just randomly point at some guys and say 'let's say that they raped me!', okay?"

"How do you know?" he repeated.

"I just do."

"How about Ken? Could he come up with this?"

"Could he? Yes. Would he? Never."

"And you know this because...?"

"Because he's Kenny. He doesn't hurt other people. Never has, never will."

"He's gotten into quite a few fights, Stanley."

"Stan," he replied dryly. "Now. It's the same as Kyle. Someone hurts him, he'll hurt back. But he doesn't just randomly go after people, got it?"

"How do you know that, Stan?"

"They're my best friends for the last freaking time, Gerald!"

"Mr. Marsh, watch your temper!"

"Sorry again, Judge. But he's getting repetitive!"

She nodded. "Yes, I agree. Mr. Broflovski, stop repeating yourself."

"Yes, your honor," he looked back at him. "Stan, have you ever questioned this so-called attack?"

"Not for a minute," he stated firmly. "Look, they were fucking hurt, alright? Just ask Dr. Richards!"

"Dr. Richards couldn't make it," he replied. "He had his own affairs to deal with. But I do have his notes," he replied, grabbing a paper from his folder from off their table and flipping through them. "According to this, Kyle never asked for any kind of medical treatment. How on Earth could we be sure that he was actually hurt?"

"Because I'm telling you, Gerald," he responded. "Ky was embarrassed. He wasn't about to just go around proclaiming that some random guys grabbed him and shoved a dick up his ass!" He looked towards the Jew quickly, seeing him hiding his face in his hands and Ken soothingly rubbing his back. "S-sorry, Kyle..." He looked up and smiled meekly at him before hiding his face again. He sighed softly. "Look, Kyle couldn't walk. He...he was hurt, Dude," he said gently. "He was so...freaked out...I've never seen him like that. He just wouldn't move from beside Ken. He had trouble sitting and lying down...if I so much as touched him he jumped or yelped in pain. Gerald, there's no way that he was faking or something like that."

"I never said he was."

"Yes, you did," he narrowed his eyes. "You think that Ky and Ken are making it up for some reason. I really wish that you could understand how much shit these two have gone through. Ken's driven himself insane trying to make sure that Ky didn't get hurt again and Kyle's just suffering some severe mental trauma. You should know your own son well enough to know that he doesn't do crap like this."

He sighed softly. "I'm not the one on trial here, Stan."

"Neither am I and neither are Ken or Kyle. _He_ is," he pointed towards the man sitting at the Defense's table. "And yet we haven't touched him as of yet."

"He'll come soon enough," he said. "But Stan, I'm simply asking for some form of proof of this accusation."

He groaned. "I don't have any. My main concern was making sure that Kyle was safe at the time and his was that Ken was gonna be alright. The only thing on my mind was staying by Kyle at all times to make sure that someone didn't come hunting him down."

"Why didn't you think of taking evidence?"

"Kyle hid it."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed loudly. "Ky...changed clothes...and threw them away...he was trying to get rid of the memories. He told me that if he didn't do that, the blood was gonna haunt him for forever."

"So...he completely destroyed anything that could have aided his cause."

"This isn't his cause!" he retorted. "Kyle didn't want this! He just wanted to move on and forget! But because me, Ken, and Cartman had the brilliant idea of vengeance, here we are now."

"So, he had no part in this trial taking place?"

"He's the heart of it all, but he didn't want it," he shrugged. "We went after Mitch, he threw us three in a basement and hunted down Kyle and attacked him."

"Do you know how he attacked him?"

"He broke into the apartment and grabbed him and threw him in the bedroom. Then he scratched his back with a hanger and fucked him with a gun. We finally got to him after that."

Gerald blinked at him. "With a gun?" he repeated.

He nodded. "Yeah. Still think that he's making it up?"

"Well it certainly doesn't seem too convincing of a claim," he shrugged. "Would you believe it?"

"Would you willingly tell a group of your guy friends that someone just shoved a pistol up your ass not too long after the same guy had completely degraded you?!"

"Mr. Marsh..."

"No, your honor, it's quite alright," Gerald stopped her with his hand before looking back at Stan. "I suppose I would not. But then again I would have nothing to gain from such an accusation."

"Oh. But Kyle has so much to gain from his humiliation, right?"

"Stan, you'd be amazed at what people try to do for money."

"Yeah, like putting their own son on trial."

An awkward silence filled the room for a few moments before Judge Michaels cleared her throat. "Proceed, Mr. Broflovski."

"Look, Stan," he sighed. "Did you or did you not actually pay witness to the original so-called crime?"

"No, I did not."

"And all the evidence is erased?"

"Yes. Kyle didn't want it to haunt him, so he got rid of it."

"No further questions," he nodded, heading back to his seat. Oliver stood and switched spots with him.

"Stan," he smiled.

"Hey."

"Alright. Let's ignore Kyle's suicide and Ken's crimes for a moment, can we?"

"Gladly."

"What do you think of them now?"

"Ken's an idiot, but an honest and good person. Ky's still just Mr. Quiet. He never gets into trouble or does anything to hurt anyone."

"Put them back into the current situation. Do your views change in the slightest?"

"Not at all," he declared. "If I had my doubts, I wouldn't still call them my best friends, I'd be a lot more wary of them."

"Do you think that they're capable of harming anyone physically?"

"Ken can throw some punches, I'll give him that. And Ky can if he needs to. But he's really small, so it's not always easy for him," he shrugged.

"Emotionally?" he pressed.

"They've both been known to break some hearts," he shrugged. "Just like the rest of us. It's never intentional though."

"How good of liars would you say they are?"

"Not very," he smirked. "Ken has a big mouth and like Cartman said, Kyle's a telltale when it comes to makin' stuff up. He gets too easily flustered and stutters a lot. Plus he can't keep eye contact and his pupils shrink." Kyle looked up at him and smiled softly. Ken looked between the two of them and couldn't help but grin at their secret moment. He squeezed Kyle's hand, prompting him to send his emerald gaze towards him briefly and share his smile.

"What do you trust Kyle and Ken with, Stan?"

"Everything," he shrugged. "I'd trust them with my life if it came down to it."

"You never doubt them?"

"Not really," he shook his head. "Not for the big stuff. I mean, we have the miniscule friend banters, but nothing too deep and emotional or anything like that."

"Have the boys changed any since the assault?"

He nodded softly. "Ken...became a lot more protective of Kyle. He would do absolutely everything to make sure he was safe and happy when before you wouldn't have expected him to do something like that. Then Ky...Ky became a lot more...secretive I suppose," he shrugged. "I mean, he still talked like Dr. Lincoln said, but he was just really introverted. Or maybe I just finally started seeing it more after his suicide...." he paused briefly before nodding. "Yeah, I guess he's just as quiet as he ever was, it was just a lot more apparent to me now."

"Kyle's your best friend, right?"

"My Super Best," he nodded.

"So you know him if something's on his mind."

"He's been really tense since the assault. It's been...pretty difficult on him."

"How tense?"

"Well, I've never seen him fall over and cry and scream in fear when I come through his door. He's been doing that...well, let me correct that, he _was_ doing that. He's gotten a lot better now, though."

"It's been apparent?"

"Very," he nodded sharply. "He's finally gotten to a point where he doesn't freak out if the lights go out or if someone sneaks up and surprises him. Not nearly as bad, that's for sure."

He nodded with a soft smile. "Good."

"You have no idea," he smiled back.

"We've established that there's no physical evidence. But can you tell these people anything that may aid them in their judgements?"

He sighed. "Kyle and Ken are my best friends. I love 'em like they're my brothers. But I know what's right and wrong. If they were lying, I wouldn't be able to sit here and tell you that they weren't. Kyle can't lie. Ken doesn't lie when it's something so severe. This isn't some stupid get-rich-quick scheme. They're just trying to make it so their attacker doesn't get to walk the streets. Kyle can't handle the idea of someone being able to know how to hurt him if they get Ken. And Ken can't handle the idea that someone could have the opportunity to grab Kyle and have their way with him again. This trial is ridiculous for these two to have to go through."

"I don't think that I would call such a serious matter 'ridiculous' Mr. Marsh," the judge commented.

He sighed heavily. "Believe what you want. I just think this is silly."

"That's understandable coming from you as their best friend," she nodded.

"Prosecution rests," Oliver nodded, stepping back from them.

"Alright. Mr. Marsh, you may step down." He hopped off his seat and strode back to the front row, shooting Ken and Kyle his patented smile before disappearing behind them. Kyle sighed and leaned on Kenny's arm.

"This is getting ridiculously repetitive."

"We're trying to emphasize our points," Oliver explained softly. "We don't have much to work on here with no evidence."

"Mr. Broflovski, your witness," Ruth nodded.

Ken pecked the top of Kyle's head lightly. "It'll be okay, Dude. Just a few more people hopefully and we can go home and sleep, kay?"

He looked up at him and smiled softly. "I hope so."

Gerald stood from his seat and looked around the room. "I would like to call to the stand please...," his eyes landed on the table across from himself and Mitch. "Mr. Kenneth McCormick."

* * *

_A/N: Bad place to cut it, but we're on 12,500 words here. I need to stop xDD_

_Next time is Ken and Kyle's testimonies...and some other stuff too. I've decided that Ky's story will span two separate chapters with some somewhat filler in-between =)_

_(Probably not smex, so I gave you the beginning for this chapter for that xDD)_

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_(Btw, if you have any questions about this, don't hesitate to ask. I know it's a bit confusing and as Kyle said, very repetitive. Courtrooms tend to go like this, though xD)_


	48. We're Family

_A/N: So tired._

_Anyways. Ken and Ky and some other shtuff. Yayssss_

_And of course, kg947 my dear, I hope you had an amazing-cal-tastic birthday!!_

_What the hell are you doing reading this stuff? You're only fifteen!!!!_

_....who am I kidding? I was reading this stuff when I was ten xDDD_

_Seriously, I hope you had an awesome one, Love. And I tried to get this out by the actual date...but I fail at life xD_

_And to the rest of you, enjoy =D_

* * *

A brief pause of silence filled the courtroom as eyes slowly shifted over to the young blonde with his fingers intertwined with that of his small companion. Kenny looked over at Kyle, who tried to smile reassuringly, but couldn't really muster enough to do so. He smirked and squeezed his hand before standing and making his way towards the front, feeling everyone's stares boring into his back. He stepped up to the bailiff and they sharply nodded at each other.

"Do you swear to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"Yeah," he nodded before turning and taking his seat on the witness stand. He met eyes with Kyle and shot him a small smile. He shifted a bit in the plush green office chair before turning his head to direct his stare at the slowly approaching Gerald Broflovski.

"State your name for the record."

"Kenneth McCormick. Just don't call me Kenneth."

"Why not?" he raised his brow.

He smirked. "You're not Kyle, are you?"

"No. No I am not," he sighed. "Alright, what's your preferred name?"

"Ken's fine," he shrugged, leaning back and crossing his legs and arms.

"Ken," he repeated. "I think I can work with that."

"I would hope so. Lawyers shouldn't have trouble with three-letter names I would think," he smirked playfully.

He smirked right back. "Depends on your alma mater. Ken," he took a deep breath and sighed. "What is your relationship to Kyle Broflovski?"

Kenny looked over at his nervous green-eyed lover and smiled wider before looking back at the boy's father. "Why Mr. Broflovski," he started innocently. "Kyle's my fiance."

"Ye-WHAT?!" he blinked.

"WHAT WHAT WHAT?" a shrill voice piped up from the defense's side. All heads shot towards Sheila, who was out of her seat looking between the two boys with horror overshadowing her features. "He most certainly is not!" she argued.

"Order!" Michaels demanded.

"I believe that our rings say otherwise, Mrs. Broflovski," he wriggled his left hand fingers for display. Sheila looked slowly from him over to her son, who timidly raised his own hand and showed off the band. She swallowed and looked at her husband desperately.

"Gerald, do something!" she pleaded.

"Uh...," he looked between the boys himself.

"I've got an idea," Ken piped up. "How about we just accept the fact and keep moving on. Me and him gettin' hitched has little to nothing to do with this thing."

"Agreed," the Judge nodded. "Broflovski, keep going."

He blinked up at her slowly before nodding. He looked back at his wife, motioning for her to sit down. Ken watched as she slowly and grudgingly lowered herself. His eyes shifted to young Ike, who was giving him and Kyle both a thumbs-up. He couldn't help but smile. Ya gotta love the Brof boys.

"Uh...so, Ken," Gerald swallowed, obviously trying to recoil, "are you able to provide any ev-"

"No," he interrupted in aggravation. "Didn't Stan just tell you this, Dude? Nobody here has evidence, alright? But I was fucking there. I know the story...most of it."

"Right," he nodded. "Your medical record says you suffered a blow to the head."

"Yes."

"Do you think that it could have possibly impaired your judgement or your memories?"

"I remember everything I was conscious for very clearly, Mr. Broflovski," he muttered.

"And I believe you," he shrugged. "Now, you and Kyle and Mitch are the three here that really know the story behind the closed doors, correct?"

"Yeah. Except mine and Kyle's recollections are true."

"Mr. McCormick, refrain from those remarks, please," Judge Michaels advised.

"Sorry. But yes, we're the only ones who know what went down."

"For the sake of placing this story together, let's start at the beginning shall we? Obviously at some point in time, you had to have seen or come in contact with Mr. Derrick regardless of what followed. When was this?"

"The night or so after we got back from the hospital after Ky was released."

"How did you come across him?"

Kenny sighed. "Myself and Kyle were in the apartment talking and we heard someone scream or something. So we went outside, looking all over the place to investigate and we ran into him, Barney, and some other dude as they were coming out of a bar."

"I see, what happened upon your encounter?"

His face darkened. "They grabbed us and tried to rape us, that's what happened."

"And you managed to get out of there?"

"Kyle's a ninja if he wants to be," he smirked. "He beat the crap out of the three of them and we got away and went home."

"And you never reported this to police?" he raised his brow.

"Well, it was dark and they were drunk and other shit and we had other things on our mind at the time."

"So, planning on living together is more important to you than reporting an alleged rape attempt?"

"We didn't know what to do, Mr. Broflovski. We weren't physically hurt, so there was no real cause for alarm in our opinions. We didn't think that we'd see them again."

"You did though?"

He nodded. "The day afterwards, us, Stan, Cartman, and Butters all went to Barney's restaurant. We had no idea it was his until we got there. And once we did realize it, we had no intention of telling the other three about it because God knows what their reactions would have been."

"So no problems arose?"

"I didn't say that," he sighed. "After we'd been there for a bit, Ky went into the bathroom. Barney followed him and locked the door so we couldn't get to him."

"Did you get to him?"

"Yeah. We took the door off the hinges."

"And what did you find?"

"He had Ky tied to a coat hanger and gagged. This guy wanted him, Dude. And you should know about the attempted rape charges for Barney because that was what led to me shooting him eventually," he scowled. "Is it that hard to believe that Mitch is the same way?"

"When was the next time that you met Mitch?"

"When they kidnapped me and Kyle," he growled, annoyed that he had completely blown off his own question.

"Kidnapped Kyle?" he cocked his head.

"They locked him in a room and tied him up, Mr. Broflovski. He may have actually came to the place on his own, but it was kidnapping nonetheless."

"Ken, how much of this story have you told people in the past?"

"The whole nine yards," he shrugged. "I mean...not...excruciating detail or nothin'...but-"

"And why not?" He interrupted.

"Because to be honest, it's fairly embarrassing for me as well as Kyle," he replied. "I'm not too happy telling people that I was abducted like I was a kid, or that I couldn't protect my boyfriend. That's not exactly a boost to the ego there."

"Well, you need to put that embarrassment aside. Tell us your recollection of the evening of April 13th, Kenny. Put this whole allegation into perspective for the rest of us."

He sighed and leaned back further. "We came home from school and Ky was unconscious because some asshole had knocked him out at his track meet. So we took him home and laid him down and tried to wait for him to wake up."

"And did he?"

"After four hours, he still wasn't up," he stated. "I decided to go take a walk to chill down a little bit. So around...7:30 or thereabouts I left and started heading towards downtown."

"Alright. What then?"

"I hit this empty stretch of sidewalk, it was really dark and shadowy and stuff. The streetlamp that was there was burnt out. Next thing I know, someone says something like, 'hey there, Blondes,' and I turn around and someone's staring at me. I tried to back up but someone else walked up behind me and slammed chloroform over my face and out I went."

"Did you know who this assailant was?"

"Well, the two of them called me Blondes and Blondie and called Ky Red a shitload of times. Even before I woke up I knew it was those two. I just couldn't react quick enough to get away from them."

"Alright, what then?"

"I woke up and I was tied to a chair. My legs and arms had cuffs on 'em. Then they flipped on the lights and boom, there they were."

"Did they give you a reason for 'kidnapping' you?" he raised his brow.

Ken looked at Kyle and stole a glance towards Damien as well, who shrugged. He looked at the man and sighed. "Before Ky died, we'd been looking at an unsolved murder case in South Park out of pure curiosity," he started.

Gerald looked a bit taken aback before asking, "Why?"

"Curiosity," he repeated. "And we found that he was connected to it, so we went to ask him some questions. He told me that his reason for doing what he did to us was because we were too nosy, but I know better."

"How so?"

"He wanted Kyle. He didn't know that we knew about the murder charges when he tried to rape him in the alley and in the bathroom. The simple fact is he wanted Kyle."

"And why would he want him?"

He scoffed. "'Cause he's sexy." He looked past Gerald to see Kyle putting his forehead into his palm and shaking his head, his cheeks beginning to flame a bit.

"You think that's his entire motive?"

"Best one I can come up with," he shrugged. "I mean...I'm not exactly up to par with the mind of a rapist, Gerald. But I know what drew me in towards Kyle myself initially, so I have to draw my own conclusions from that."

"And why, if it's true, would Mr. Derrick want to go after Kyle?"

There were a few moments of silence. "He wanted him just as bad. He saw an opening towards him and he took it. He wanted an easy victim. Myself and Ky were both open targets."

"Alright, you woke up in a chair. Then what?"

"Well, they grabbed my cellphone and they called Kyle," he said lowly.

"Why?"

"To tell him that they were holding me for ransom," he rolled his eyes.

"Ransom for what?"

"For him, that's what."

"What did they tell him?"

"They told him that if he cooperated they wouldn't hurt me and told him where to come."

"And did they do so?"

He scoffed. "No, they beat the living hell out of me. There's a reason I was put in the hospital."

"And yet Kyle claimed that you were just in a fight?"

"Kyle was trying to protect his own dignity and mine."

"_Your_ dignity?" he questioned.

"I told you, the concept of being tied to a goddamn chair and beaten up isn't exactly something that everybody wants to go around flaunting."

"Then what?"

"Ky showed up in an hour...and they told him that he had to do what they said."

"What then?"

He shifted uncomfortably in his chair and sighed. "He...he said he would."

"Why?"

"Because unlike what you seem to think, he's human," he spit. "He cares about other people, that's why!"

"Watch it, Mr. McCormick," Michaels looked down on him overtop her glasses.

"What did they make him do?"

"They gagged me and they told him to get on his knees. He did and they tied his wrists together behind his back."

"Alright..."

"Then..." he paused. "Then they...ugh," he brought his hand up and massaged his temple.

"Then what, Ken?" he urged. "Or is the memory fuzzy?"

"No it's not fuzzy!" he yelled. His eyes darted around the room nervously, "They...They made Kyle suck me off! There I said it," he threw his hands up before leaning back again and crossing his arms.

Another awkward silence came and went. "Why would they do something like that, Ken?"

"Because," he growled through gritted teeth. "They got pleasure out of it."

"How?"

"They got to see me and Kyle both humiliated. They got to get ideas as to what to make Kyle do for them next. And of course, just the perverted pleasure of watching a hostage getting a blowjob from another!"

"I see. And did this event give _you_...pleasure?" he asked.

Ken and Kyle's jaws dropped. "Objection!" Oliver jumped. "Your honor, that's hardly appropriate!"

"Mr. Broflovski..."

"I have a valid reason for this question, your honor."

She sighed and shook her head. "Mr. McCormick, answer him."

"Uh...I...uh...," he fumbled.

"Well?" Gerald pressed.

"I...I did...um...but not....I mean I didn't want to..."

"You did experience pleasure then?"

"Not emotionally or mentally!"

"But this situation didn't prevent you from enjoying said moment, did it?"

Ken's eye twitched. "Well just because you've never gotten a blowjob doesn't mean that you have to act so high and mighty and say anyone who gets off on gettin' sucked off is 'enjoying the moment'!"

"Mr. McCormick!" the judge looked at him evilly. "That was highly inappropriate!"

"As was the question," he retorted angrily.

"I move that that be stricken from the record," Oliver interjected.

"On what grounds, Mr. Dodson?"

"On the grounds that Mr. Broflovski doesn't understand basic biology," he stated dryly.

She blinked at him before nodding. "Mr. Broflovski, that statement was a bit far-reaching. He's right about the biology of the situation. Mrs. Yola, strike that," she nodded towards the stenographer.

Gerald rolled his eyes and looked back at the now-fuming boy. "Alright, Ken. He performed oral sex on you. Then what?"

"They grabbed him and slammed him down on the floor...," he said softly. "They...they started...unbuttoning his shirt and stroking his cheek..."

"How was he reacting?"

"He just lied there...he was breathing really heavily and rapidly...he was scared out of his mind. He shut his eyes really tightly."

"But according to you, he willingly did this."

He blinked at him before breaking into a scowl. "**Are you stupid or something?!**"

"Mr. McCormick!" Ruth shouted at him.

"Your honor, that was probably the dumbest thing that we've heard in this thing!" he yelled back at her.

"Elaborate," Gerald asked.

Kenny shot his cerulean eyes at him, his face still twisted into a menacing grimace. "He 'willingly' gave himself to them for my sake, Gerald! He didn't fucking want to do it, but he wanted me to be safe!"

"But you weren't safe," he raised his brow. "How did he know that either of you would have made it out of there?"

"He didn't. But he knew the chances were increased that I would make it out if he did what they told him to do. Besides, they told him that they'd let us out."

"So, you're telling us that a boy considered the brightest of his class...would believe that kind of baloney?"

"When you're up against a wall, you find options, Gerald," he growled. "That was his option. Either that or just leave me with them."

"What of the police?"

"You've never been a hostage," he shook a bit, on the bridge of tears and laughter. "You...you do what you can. You make sure that you do everything in your power to make sure that the other person doesn't get hurt."

"And what did you do for his safety?"

He paused for a moment, his sparking eyes dimming down to a depressed gleam. "I yelled. And I tried to get out of my chair. I told him to leave...that's all I could do," he said softly, staring at his hands. "If I'd been able to get out of that fucking chair...I could've...I _would've_ saved him. I didn't want him there. I didn't want him hurt."

"But he was even though there's no evidence that proves it, right?"

He laughed in disbelief. "Yes. He was...he..." he stopped, looking to the side of the bench and just shaking his head.

"They started undressing him," Gerald said. "Then what?"

"They made him get on his knees again...after making him bleed."

"How?"

"I was yelling at them and Mitch picked up his head and slammed it into the concrete to get me to shut up. He started bleeding a bit."

"Alright. Then he got on his knees..."

"They blindfolded him," he said dully. "They unbuttoned his jeans. And Barney started stroking his...his chest," he gulped, feeling a shiver crawling up his spine. "He...he ripped off Ky's jeans and boxers...."

"And?"

Kenny looked up at him in a trance. "Fill in the blanks," he shook his head softly. "They...they turned him around and made him bend down...For God's sake, they raped him," he blinked back tears. "They...they didn't prep him or anything...just fucking...drove into him...he was bleeding and...," he started trembling. "God...," he croaked.

"Bleeding?" he repeated. "Ken, I'm going to ask you another personal question."

"Go ahead," he muttered.

He looked at him lowly. "Was Kyle a virgin at the time of the alleged assault?"

Ken's eyes flickered back to his fiance, who looked absolutely mortified. He looked back at the lawyer and sighed. "No. Luckily they didn't take that from him."

"And he still bled?"

He raised his brow. "Mr. Broflovski, I don't think I should be the one to explain sex to you."

"What are you talking about?" the judge asked.

"Are you serious?" he blinked. "I don't want to-"

"Make your case," Gerald challenged, crossing his arms.

He looked back at his young lover, who merely shrugged, his face fiercely lit aglow. He sighed again. "Regardless of the fact that Ky wasn't a virgin, he's...he wasn't...ugh," he massaged his forehead. "Look, he's a small kid. To be quite blunt, buttsex hurts. It hurts like a bitch unless you do it right. He's too small to just be..." he paused, holding his hands up in question. "To be...," he pushed forward with his hands symbolically. "Ya get me?"

"Not really," Gerald raised his brow.

"I'm lost, too," Ruth commented.

He groaned in frustration, "do you people ever get laid or what?!"

"Mr. McCormick. Watch it," Michaels warned.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Look, you can't just...go, okay? Otherwise you end up hurting the other person. You have to either prep 'em or you go really slow. You can't just dive in and expect them to just take it. It hurts too much, especially if they're as small as him," he gestured towards the boy trying to hide within the papers on the table. "When they did what they did to him, he bled. And it hurt like hell."

"How would you know?"

"I know a scream of pain when I hear one," he growled. "I watched, Gerald. God, you asshole, this was your son!"

"Exactly," he muttered.

"What?"

"Ken, what happened then?"

"They knocked me out and then I woke up in the hospital. Now what the hell did you mean 'exactly'?!"

"It seems you were hit on the back of your head, right?"

"Gerald, answer me!" he looked up at the judge. "Make him answer me!"

"He's under no obligation to answer your questions," she responded softly. He rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. Stupid ass justice system.

"Is that all you remember?"

"Yes," he nodded angrily. "I went out and woke up to find I was in a hospital and Kyle couldn't walk two days later."

"Ken...," he said slowly, pacing around. "What can you say to argue that this wasn't a set up?"

"How about the truth? How about my story that I just fucking told you? Huh?!"

"Just because you tell a story, it doesn't make it true. You could have easily came up with that."

Ken blinked at him. "Are you serious? I can't come up with shit like this...I'm too fucking uncreative."

"But Kyle?"

"Look, we aren't making this up, Gerald! Why on Earth would me and Kyle want to publicly humiliate ourselves like this?! Will you please just listen to me?!"

"Alright, Ken. Make your statement," he shrugged. "What can you say to make anyone believe that this isn't just a scheme?"

Kenny blinked at him, out towards the people of the courtroom, his gaze lingering on the Broflovskis, Mitch, their friends, and finally Kyle. He looked back at the man in front of him and just shook his head. "Really?" he asked softly. "You...raised Kyle. You really can lie to yourself like this? How the fuck do you sleep at night?" he questioned. "I'm not fucking perfect. I've done...things that I'm not proud of. But I did it for the mere purpose of having to try to make it. What are you doing though? Why...why would you put your son on a stage like this? Why are you being so...so...," he looked away and shook his head in disbelief. He looked back up and sighed. "I can't...show you anything to prove this to you. I can't make some amazing statement or tell you anything that will set my story in stone. You're gonna have to ask Kyle for that. All that I can tell you is that I love your son, Gerald. I just want him safe. I want him happy. I want the man who hurt him out of his life, Gerald!" he shouted, feeling his lip trembling.

Gerald stopped and stared at him for a few moments, his eyes softened if only slightly. "And what of you?" he asked quietly.

"What about me?"

"What do you want done about this should it be true?"

Ken froze before laughing to himself at the familiar ring of the words. "You know...Cartman asked me that a few months ago...before we went out and got him," he sniffed. "I told him...that I didn't want him dead. I just wanted him off the street. Then he got a hold on Kyle again...and I wanted him dead like I did the night of the rape...," he stared at the wooden bar in front of him before raising his eyes to meet the man's once more. "I don't know what I want anymore. I don't know....how far I want this to go. All I want is for Ky to be safe. And I know that should Derrick make it out of here...he's gonna go straight back for him. I...I can't let that happen. And I won't. If you don't take him off the streets...I'll find some other way to do it. I hate hurting other people unless I find it to be necessary. And the way he's treated Kyle...the way he's treated myself...I think that he definitely deserves it. I...I don't know what else to tell you. I've told you everything I know about him. About what happened. And there's a lot of fucking things that I am, but a liar isn't one of them," he stated firmly. "Just like Kyle. We're secretive. Not full out fibbers. You should know that."

Gerald blinked at him slowly for a bit before nodding softly. "Defense rests," he said quietly before turning and striding back over to his table. Ken let his eyes find Kyle's, and they looked their exhausted stares, small smiles playing across their lips.

"Dodson, your witness."

Oliver stood and walked out to the floor, eyeing the boy sympathetically. "Ken."

"Hey," he gave him a small, crooked grin.

"Kenny, on a scale of one to ten, how easily would you say that you lose your temper? One being you never do or ten being you lose it almost instantly."

He looked up thoughtfully. "I dunno...a three? I mean, it takes a hard hit to really get me pissy."

"What about Kyle?"

"What kind of temper are we talking? Like, just plain annoyance or real, 'I'm going to murder you' temper?"

"The real one," he shrugged.

"Probably a...five maybe?" he shrugged back. "I mean...maybe that's only with Cartman. Ky's always pretty on edge around him. But he's never lost his temper to such extremes like you're suggesting."

"Fair enough," he nodded. "You'd say that he's pretty...collected?"

"Yeah," he nodded confusedly. "He always keeps his head clear in some way so he can justify anything he says or does. He doesn't just...blow up. He's too smart for that."

"Alright. Ken, what do you believe happened in-between when you were knocked out and when you awoke two days later?"

"Objection," Gerald called. "This is an opinion question and not one of fact."

"Most of your questions are like that, Mr. Broflovski," Ruth shook her head. "Overruled. Continue, Mr. Dodson."

"Ken?"

The blonde blinked at him slowly. "They...they kept raping him," he shrugged. "Ky told me that...that they went for...for hours. He wasn't out of there until seven hours later....," his eyes flickered back towards Stan and Cartman, who were looking at the redhead in front of them in shock. "He...he told me," he swallowed, "that they kept...hitting him, smacking him around...making him into theirs," he spoke lowly. "Then they passed out and he was able to get me and himself out of there after he called Stan."

"But what do you think happened?" he repeated.

He looked from his side back up and sighed. "I...I don't know. I really just...can't think that people could actually do something like that for so long. I don't know how their conscious didn't set in...or how Kyle kept going without completely loosing his mind...," he looked towards the redhead, who was staring at the table intently with his hands clasped together in front of him. His view switched to Mitch, who was staring at the Jew, just blinking with a stony expression upon his cleanly shaven face. "Everyone...has some degree of humanity...right?" he looked back towards his lawyer with questioning eyes.

He nodded slowly. "Yes. Some much more than others. I don't know of many people who could willingly place someone through Hell for so long without finally breaking down and admitting their wrongs, right?" he winked subtly at him.

He had to smirk back. "Yeah. Facades are just too hard-pressing to keep bottled up. We all have to let go sometime."

"Thank you, Ken. No further questions...Prosecution rests," he stated, heading back to the table.

"You may step down, Mr. McCormick," Michaels instructed. Kenny hopped to his feet an ran his fingers through his hair as he strolled back to sit beside Kyle. The smaller boy gave him a bit of a tired smile and he returned it ten-fold, grasping his hand and bringing it to his lips. Kyle's smile faded a bit and he looked at the table in thought, methodically intertwining their fingers.

"You okay?" Ken whispered.

He shot his emerald eyes back up at him and his breath hitched. "Ken...I...I need to know something..." he whispered back.

"What?" he cocked his head.

"If...If...I..." he stammered.

"I'd like to call to the stand," Gerald's voice boomed in the acoustic room, "Mr. Kyle Broflovski." A harsh silence fell around the room, each person feeling the tension oozing from the scaffolding above. Ken and Kyle's eyes remained locked even as all others turned their attention towards them.

"If what?" Ken pressed.

"I...If I...," he breathed heavily, looking around for his words.

"Mr. Broflovski?" Ruth called. "Take the stand."

Kyle's eyes flickered towards her before settling back on Ken. He pulled him in close, his lips to the older boy's ear. "Do you love me?" he asked softly.

Kenny pulled back and blinked at him. "Of course I do," he said quietly.

"Mr. Broflovski..." the judge urged.

"I love you, Kyle," he said firmly.

"No matter what?" he squeaked out.

"No matter what," he assured him, kissing his hand again. Kyle turned his head to look up at the empty stand waiting for him and he sighed again.

"Just...keep that in mind," he muttered, pushing his chair out and slowly making his way over to his seat. Ken looked behind him into the crowd, seeing reporters grabbing their notebooks in earnest, practically on the edge of their seats. He could relate as he felt the tension building deep in his chest as he watched his fiance make perhaps the longest life of his life up to the bailiff.

"Do you swear to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God?"

A small pause filled the air before a quiet "yes" was murmured through the boy's lips. He went and sat on the plush chair set up for him. Ken watched as he squirmed a bit uncomfortably as all the eyes of the room fell unto his face as his father walked up in front of him.

"State your name for the record," he said after what seemed to eons of awkward silence.

"Kyle Broflovski," he replied quietly.

"How old are you, Kyle?"

"I'm seventeen."

"Ah, seventeen," Gerald said lightly. "Great age, isn't it?"

"I wouldn't know," he replied dryly. "I've spent most of the time either in the hospital or getting attacked."

"Well, that's not all someone else's fault, is it?" he retorted with a hint of venom lacing his words.

"No. No it's not."

"Kyle, we've discussed your suicide in this court, correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, let's hear that story from you," he urged. "What drove you to such extremes?"

"Life."

"How so?"

He let out an irritated sigh. "I was alone. I had absolutely no one anymore and I needed out."

"Why are all your answers so short, Kyle?"

"Because."

"Give a real answer, Kyle," the judge urged.

"I have no reason besides that I don't trust the majority of the people in this room," he glared at his father. "I'm well aware of the consequences that can follow should I say too much."

"Give us an example," he dared, looking back at his son with narrowed eyes.

"You and her," he motioned towards his mother. "Prime example is none other than the infamous Broflovski duo, hm?"

"Kyle...," Ruth said soothingly.

"Sorry."

"I'm dead serious, Kyle. What's your reasoning behind that?"

"Being kicked out of my home for coming out to you? You really want the town to know that you sent a minor packing just because his feelings didn't coincide with your beliefs?" he spat. "What of your precious reputation?!"

Ken leaned back in his chair and chewed on his thumbnail nervously. This was only going to get worse...he could just feel it.

"So you're saying that you were so emotionally unstable that you felt death was the only way to solve the problem?"

"Actually, no," he crossed his arms. "I believed that the way to 'solve my problem' was to tell you and to actually let you in for once. Sorry for the mistake. I should have known that it's every fag for himself in that house."

"Mr. Broflovski," Ruth started.

"What?" they both looked up at her.

"Sorry," she sighed, "Kyle. Please refrain from derogatory jargon."

He raised his brow. "How is it derogatory for a gay man to call himself a fag?"

"It just is," she shrugged. "I don't write the rules, I just enforce them."

"Fine," he sighed. "I still stand by it, though."

"What of your friends?" Gerald pressed.

"Stan left me. Ken told Butters who in turn told Cartman. And he of course was an asshole about it. I had no one."

"What of Rabbi Wertheimer?"

"My rabbi is not my best friend. He's not the person I'm currently engaged to. He was someone I could talk to, but not someone I could really go to in my times of need. Everyone needs someone to lean on, someone who knows them better than anyone else...I happened to lose those people."

"These people know you better than anyone, hm?"

"Yes."

"And yet...Stan found you hours later with words slashed all the way up your forearms. Surely if they knew you well enough, they would have came to your aide, yes?"

"Best friends doesn't automatically mean that they know every intimate detail about my life," he replied angrily. "After all, it was a heavily kept secret, was it not?"

"By you."

"By YOU," he emphasized before laughing lowly. "After all, Dad. No one else could afford to pay Dr. Schmidt to believe that letter 'from me' that Ma wrote but you."

The spectators all looked towards the doctor on the bench, who had blanched severely. "Excuse me?" Ruth blinked.

"Oh yeah," Kyle looked up at her and shrugged. "After the first time she treated me, they convinced her that money would make my problems disappear. They payed her to keep my treatment and my issues under wraps. You mean he didn't tell you?" he asked stupidly in a raised tone. "Well golly, that there's lying to the federal court, Dad. That isn't good for a lawyer to do."

Gerald stared back at his son with his mouth agape from shock. "You can't go making a-accusations like that without proof, Kyle."

"I have proof," he raised his brow.

"What?" Ruth leaned over to look down on him. "Where?"

"My wallet," he replied simply.

Ken blinked and looked down at Kyle's coat beside him. He dug into the pocket and pulled out the boy's wallet, looking at him confusedly. "It's behind my credit card, Ken," he directed. The blonde pulled out Kyle's Visa and found a folded piece of paper tucked in behind it.

He opened it up as Oliver came beside him and they stared at it. "It's an old check register page," Oliver blinked.

"Dad gave it to me four years ago," Kyle explained as Ken walked over to hand it to the judge. "He said to use it as an example for when I began having to support myself. I could never bring myself to get rid of it because it was the one useful thing that he ever told me. But then I realized that he made two checks to Schmidt. One for the actual hospital bill, and another for $1400. For her personal use, no less," he said. "Doesn't take a genius to figure out what the hell went on there."

Ruth looked at his father from beyond her reading glasses. "Mr. Broflovski?"

His mouth opened and closed a few times, searching for words. "I didn't bribe anybody!"

"Then she's an expensive prostitute," Ken rolled his eyes as he passed him to go back to his seat.

"Hey, this isn't on me," he glared at Kyle. "We're trying to figure out just what drove you to accuse Mitchell Derrick of raping you, Kyle!"

"Uh, geez, how about the fact that it happened, _Gerald_?" he spat. The son and father stayed locked in each other's furious gazes for a lengthy moment before Gerald finally took a large breath.

"Alright. You say he did. Fine. Tell us the story then, Kyle," he gestured towards the audience. "Tell these people what Mitchell Derrick did to you. After all, a smart sensible kid like you can tell a simple story, right?" he cocked his head mockingly.

"Don't insult my intelligence," he growled.

"I'm not. I'm insinuating that you lack good judgement," he glowered. "Wouldn't you have issues believing a suicidal patient's judgement?"

"No. But then again, I'm not a lawyer like Mommy and Daddy wanted me to be. I suppose I didn't finish my lessons of assholery."

"Kyle, calm down," Michaels said quietly. Ken couldn't help but smile at the woman. She knew just how much stress this was causing Kyle. No one could blame him for his quick snaps.

He looked down at his hands guiltily. "Sorry," he muttered, shame flickering over his soft features.

"Kyle," Gerald took a large breath and looked at him firmly. "I'm going to talk to you from both ends of the spectrum I am to you. Is that alright?"

"Go ahead," he shrugged.

"Ken was right. I raised you. I thought I knew you, Kyle. I really did. And I did to some extent. And from knowing you, I can say that this just doesn't suit your character at all."

"What do you mean?" he cocked his brow, watching as the man began pacing the floor in contemplation.

"I mean you, Kyle. Total submission? Now you can't tell me that you're that kind of person, You fight almost everything to some degree, correct?"

"I...I suppose..."

"So why would someone like you not fight back should these men be holding you against a wall?"

"Because fighting back would have gotten Ken hurt more and would have put me further into the line of fire," he glared. "It's not like I really had a choice in the matter."

"But did you fight back at all?" he pressed.

He took a deep breath, letting his jade eyes flutter back open. "Yes," he nodded briefly.

"How?"

"Wherever I could," he said softly. "I didn't...I didn't completely become what they wanted me to be."

"And what, pray tell, did they want you to be?"

"To be quite blunt, they told me that they wanted me to be their bitch," he sighed.

"How so?"

Ken could see the carmine creeping into Kyle's cheeks and neck. "They...um...they wanted me to...to make them feel like...they were, ya know...," he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly looking towards the ceiling.

"Come on, Kyle," Gerald pushed. "How did they want you to act like that?"

He sighed and dropped his gaze to the floor. "They wanted me to be someone...someone who basically reveled in their attention. They wanted me to make them feel like they were direct descendants of sex gods or something."

"Sex gods?" he quirked his brow.

"They said it, not me."

"They literally called themselves sex gods?" he cocked his head.

He sighed again. "No. But Barney called me Freyja once or twice...," he started tapping his fingers on the back of his other hand. "So it was implied in a way. They kept making me call them masters and all that other shit...," he trailed off.

"Freyja?" he repeated.

"Freyja was a Norse goddess," he explained, leaning back in his chair tiredly. "She was the goddess of love and war. She was also the major plot for many of the stories, often being offered as a trade off. Her beauty for peace...or Thor's hammer...or a lot of other major stories in the myths..." he cleared his throat awkwardly. "She was also considered a whore."

"How so?"

"She gave herself to three dwarves for three nights in order to get the necklace of Brisingamen," he said softly. "I suppose that's just how they looked at me."

"As a sexual beauty? Rather egotistical, don't you think?"

Kyle shot his eyes up into his father's with his face furiously glowing. "No. I mean as a whore!" he shouted. "They knew I would give myself to them in exchange for Kenny and they took full advantage of that fact and just of me in general!"

"Well why did you let them?" he asked. "Kyle, if this happened to you, if you were called an hour before this alleged assault, why didn't you call police? Why did you give yourself to them?"

"They had me in a corner," he growled. "They had Kenny tied up in a chair, Gerald! Look, I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to bend over for them. But it was either that or run the risk of Kenny being more severely hurt. I had a choice and I made mine. Neither was an ideal situation, but it had to be done."

"Why wouldn't you tell afterwards?" he questioned.

"Stan and Cartman spilled this out for you already," he groaned. "I...I was...humiliated. I just couldn't...you don't know what it's like," he shook his head. "To...know that your body was just being used for someone else's pleasure...," he blushed brighter and looked away. "I was ashamed. I still am. I'm happy that it got them away from Ken...but I still wish that there had been some other way."

"Like what?"

"Like...paying them off or something with money," he rolled his eyes. "I don't know. Something less personal and much less painful would have been awesome for me."

"How much pain are we talking here, Kyle?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Well. I know that you've never taken it up the ass, but as Ken so eloquently explained it, you can't just fucking drive into somebody without serious pain."

"But you weren't a virgin," he raised his brow.

His face start glowing more feverishly. "No, I wasn't, but that doesn't mean that I was completely immune to things being shoved up my ass!"

The judge placed her face into her palm and shook her head. "Only in South Park, I swear," she muttered. "Gerald and Kyle, stop," she ordered. All heads turned to her as she looked at her watch and sighed. "I have another case in an hour. Look, you two listen to me," she glowered at the two Broflovskis. "This has been a very very long day for all of us. We'll pick up here tomorrow. Kyle, step down." The redhead blinked up at her before nodding and stepping off the bench, shooting his father a glare as he passed. Ruth massaged her forehead and sighed again. "Well, I will say today is much more productive than yesterday. However, we need to start seeing some things to either convict or save Mr. Derrick. Both of you have examined the witnesses well, but you're both lacking in physical evidence, is that correct?"

"Yes," they nodded.

"Alright, then we'll make due," she stated. "This court is adjourned until tomorrow," she said before banging her gavel. "Mr. Broflovski?...Gerald, I mean."

"Yes?"

"I need to speak to you, please," she stated, curling her finger to the side room as she walked towards it. Gerald sighed, gathering his papers and following her. Everyone stayed seated until Mitch was escorted out once again and they all began standing and chattering.

Kyle slowly approached the table, standing opposite Kenny. The blonde got to his feet and they stared at each other for a long time before Kyle finally walked around and clasped his hand. "Can we go?" he whispered.

"Yeah," he nodded, kissing his head. He felt a small hand grab his and looked down to see the sleepy face of Kayla staring up at him.

"Are we going home?" she asked. He nodded softly for her, letting her grab at his fingers as Jacob did the same to Kyle.

"Hey, Babe," Wendy came over and kissed Kyle's forehead. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," he smiled softly. "I...I just need to get home before I have a freak-out."

"Goin' out back?" Stan asked.

"Yeah," Ken nodded.

"Cool. Me and Cartman will tag along if the girls don't mind," he looked towards them for approval.

"Sure," Bebe nodded. "We'll take Red to the mall and stuff. You guys go relax. Butters will take us, right, Hon?"

"Of course," he smiled, kissing her cheek sweetly.

Ken smirked at him. "Stotch, I still owe you that beer.

He giggled lightly. "Yeah, yeah."

"We'd better go," Oliver suggested/ He motioned towards the reporters. "They look like they're ready to strike."

"Com on," Damien muttered, leading the group towards the back. The girls and Butters ran off as Stan and Cartman received their farewell from Wendy and Red. The group of eight turn and sauntered towards the back, stepping out into the crisp afternoon air. They began crossing over into the park from behind the courthouse, watching squirrels running across the yard furiously.

"Kyle?" Kayla asked.

"Yes?"

"Why are you so sad?" she looked at him with her large hazelnut eyes.

He smiled softly at her. "I'm not."

"You are," Ken interjected, squeezing his hand. "You gonna be okay?"

He shrugged. "I really don't know," he admitted. "I made a total ass of myself."

"No one else thinks that, Ky," Stan inputted.

"I feel really bad doing this," he sighed.

"Why?" Cartman raised his brow.

"I dunno. I feel like I humiliated them or something."

"As many times as they've done that to you, you have issues with getting them back?" Damien smirked.

"I feel like I owe them more than that," he shrugged.

"You don't own them shit," Ken stated, taking his hand from Kayla's and turning Kyle to face him. "Look," he started firmly, "you have every right to tell the world how they treated you. I had physical abuse, so my crap was obvious. But your parents completely destroyed your sense of yourself, Ky. They need to be put in their place."

"Ken, it's not that easy," he mumbled miserably. "I love being with you, but I don't like that losing our parents was the tradeoff. I...I want things to be right again."

"Were they ever right to begin with?" Oliver asked softly.

Kyle paused and looked at him for a bit. "We had our moments," he finally replied.

"And so have we," Kenny said, pulling him into his frame. "And I can tell you that you and I have had far more together than either of us had with our parents, right?"

"I...yeah...," he trailed off.

"I say that we stop being the adults," he continued. "If they want us back, fine. If they don't, we still have each other," he gave him a crooked smile before leaning down and gently meeting lips with him.

"Ugh," Cartman rolled his eyes. Kyle wrapped his arms around the blonde's neck as Ken flipped their fat friend off, embracing Kyle around his slender waist.

He pulled back and looked into Kyle's tired eyes. "Why wouldn't I love you?" he whispered, Kyle's earlier question running through his mind.

"I'm not what you think I am," he responded softly. "I don't want to lose you," he bit his lip.

Kenny blinked at him before placing a cautious kiss on his forehead. "You won't," he promised. "I love you to much to give you up."

"But...I...I hide from you," his voice cracked. "All I do is tell you things for you to interpret and I'm just so fucking scared that you'll figure things out and-" he was cut off by Ken slamming their mouths together again. He pulled away slowly and stared at him.

"Perhaps I wasn't clear. I love you, Kyle. Nothing you do or did is gonna change that, Dude."

"You have no idea, Ken," he sniffed, leaning into his chest. Ken pecked his head and grasped him tightly.

"It's okay," he cooed, rubbing his back. Kyle reached up and grasped the front of Ken's shirt, sniffling lightly. Ken swayed him gently and gave him periodic kisses. The others stood around watching them, just quietly letting them have each other's comfort if only for a moment.

Ken nuzzled into his hair lovingly and sighed. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain across the back of his head and he stumbled forward slightly. Something shoved him to the side and he spiraled onto the grass. He could vaguely hear shouting above him, seeing feet moving around him before they finally stopped. Someone grasped him under his arms and hoisted him to his feet. He recognized Stan beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder for balance, bringing the other to his head.

"Come on, you Asshole," he heard.

Shit.

His eyes finally readjusted and he came across Craig Tucker standing in front of them. "One hit and you're out, huh?" he cocked an amused brow.

"W-what do you want...Fucktard..." he stammered, trying to sound forceful, but failing miserably as he struggled to regain his focus.

"I wanna talk," he smirked.

His eyes finally fell back into normalcy and his head cleared aside from an annoying pulse from the back. He looked to his side for Kyle, then to the other in confusion as he didn't find him.

"Over here," Craig called. He looked up, finding a large boy holding Kyle against him with a hand clasped tightly over his mouth.

"Who the fuck are you?!" he screamed.

"This is Tyler," Craig replied. "Leader of the South Park Skinheads."

"Good for him," Stan sneered. "Now let go of Kyle!"

"Nah. We need incentive for Ken to talk," Tyler smiled evilly.

"What the fuck do you want?!" Ken fumed.

Craig walked towards his side and took Kyle's left arm from Tyler's grasp. The redhead tried to take his appendage back, struggling viciously and screaming from beyond Bates' hand.

"So it's true?" he asked, looking at his slender hand. He lifted Kyle's ring finger and stared at it. "Heard from Tweek. Wasn't sure if it was true."

"Well now you know," Cartman said gruffly.

"Alright Ken, here's the deal," Craig ignored him. "Take your ring off."

Kenny's eye twitched. "I don't fucking think so!"

"I do," he raised a brow. He gestured to Tyler, who released his hold on Kyle's arm to pull a pistol from his pocket and press it to the boy's temple.

God. Fucking. Damn it.

"Why?" Ken asked through clenched teeth as Craig grabbed Kyle's other arm and bounded both of them together with his belt.

"Don't ask, just give me the ring." Ken looked from him to Kyle, who was glaring at Craig evilly. He changed direction towards down at the aqua gem on his finger. He gritted his teeth, looking back at his lover and taking a deep breath. He slowly slid the promise ring off, his hand trembling violently as he did so. He scowled up at Craig. "Give it," the black-haired adversary ordered.

"Let go of Kyle first," he responded.

"Just cooperate and he'll be fine. Now give me the ring."

Kenny growled, tossing him the stone with a heavy heart. Craig caught it and turned to Kyle's arm, still in his grasp. "And this one...," he went to remove Kyle's band. The Jew clenched his fist tightly, trying to pull away from them both.

"Listen to him, Kike," Bates sneered. Kyle shook his head, still jerking around.

Kenny looked to Damien, who was watching Kyle intensely. He shot his ruby eyes towards the blonde and held up his hand, signaling for him to wait. They turned back, watching the redhead anxiously as he struggled. Kyle let his foot fly upwards, nailing Craig in the crotch. The larger boy fell the the ground in pain and Kyle tried to use his bound hands to beat against the arm holding him still.

Ken tried to move to help, but was stopped Oliver. "He still has the gun," he reminded him. Ken's heart sank as he stood not ten feet away from his lover's battle, unable to aide him in any way.

Craig glared up at Tyler. "Throw him down," he snarled.

Tyler forcefully shoved Kyle down onto the grass and pointed the gun into the back of his neck.

"Don't move, Kike."

"Fuck you," he hissed, looking back towards him down the barrel of the gun. Tyler growled and smacked his mouth with the metal. A stream of blood poured down his face, but his glare remained strong. "I'm. Not. Afraid. Of you," he snarled. "So you can go fuck yourself, you Hitler-worshipping jackass!" Tyler's face grew red and he raised the gun again.

"Learn your place you fucking Jew!" he shouted.

"Now," Damien murmured before taking off and leaping towards the larger male. Ken and Stan ran out towards Kyle, who was trying to kick a very angry Craig away from him. Damien tackled Tyler and grabbed the gun from his hand, throwing it out to the side before his eyes glowed red and Tyler went unconscious.

Ken leapt in-between Craig and Kyle, staring evilly down at the nasally male. "I told you not to touch him," he breathed heavily. "You're not hurting him again, are we clear?"

"What are you gonna do about it?" he smirked, standing and holding his ring for display. "Pretty feelings for such an ugly kid, hm?" he threw the ring over into a small garden of tall flowers and looked back at the blonde evilly.

Kenny shook with rage before he finally raised his hands, punching Craig straight in nose, feeling the bone crack beneath his fist. Craig stumbled back, clasping his bleeding nose and looking at Kenny furiously.

"You fuck!" he spat.

"You're the one who struck first," he growled. He leaned down to help pull Kyle up and Stan untied his wrists. Kyle rubbed at the raw skin, looking at Craig confusedly.

"What the fuck is your problem, Craig?" he asked.

"You, you little two-cent whore," he sneered.

"Don't make me punch your face again, you fuck!" Ken yelled, stepping in between him and his fiance again.

"I'm terrified," he flipped him off with rolling eyes.

"What did I do to you?" Kyle blinked, stepping up beside Ken.

"You got more. I don't see what makes you so goddamn special, you little bitch!"

"How about the fact that he isn't a dick who throws people's engagement rings into the bushes!" Stan shouted, gesturing over towards where Oliver and the kids had began looking for the stone.

"Craig, I didn't like you as a fucking friend, let alone anything else," Ken glared. "You need to figure that out. I'm engaged to Kyle. I don't love or like anybody else! Beating him with a gun is a really farfetched way to earn my affection, you ass!"

"I told you, I don't want you like that anymore. I just want to make up for the time I lost waiting and waiting and waiting for you to stop being such a dick!"

"By...hitting me with a gun...," Kyle blinked.

"You're an easy target," he shrugged, taking a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it up. "Stop being so fucking weak and you wouldn't keep having this problem. You know that Ken's not always gonna be there to save your ass when you get into trouble, don't you?"

"Yes, I will," Kenny growled.

"You gonna glue your hands together or something?" he smirked.

"He can take care of himself, you dick," he retorted.

"Wouldn't know it from what I heard in that courtroom," he cocked his brow as he exhaled a stream of smoke into the lovers' faces. "From what I hear, Kyle here is damaged goods, huh Brof?"

Kyle's face began glowing scarlet and he averted his eyes away from the boy. "Craig," Ken took a composing breath. "What the fuck do you want?"

"I want you to feel rejection for once in your life, you ass," he glared. "I think it's bull that you get whoever you want whenever you want. Just because Broflovski's an easy fuck, you claim that he's yours for forever? Just how are you sure you want this?"

Kenny saw red as he shouted, "Don't talk about him that way! And I know because I fucking know, Craig. You just don't fucking get it! I'm not with him for sex, you fucking idiot!"

"How do you know?" he cocked his head.

"There were things there before we got into a bed," he growled. "You were the easy fuck, not him."

Craig stared at him a moment before scowling. "So were you, McCormick. Moaning like a little bitch under me," he smiled evilly. "Oh you just couldn't get enough of my cock you little slut. Sucked and rode for hours. You loved every minute. You were screaming with ecstasy."

Kenny's stomach lurched heavily and his face dropped into a guilty expression. He felt Kyle shaking beside him and looked towards the ground shamefully.

"What the fuck is up with your eyes?!" Craig shouted, receding quickly. Ken shot his head up, looking at his trembling fiance and saw his eyes completely concealed in a vibrant ruby and violet mixture. The Jew growled and held out his hand.

"Fuck. You," he snarled before his eyes pulsed and he recoiled back a bit. Craig went flying back into the ground, his head landing with an audible thud, followed by a groaning before he fell unconscious. Kyle's eyes stopped glowing and he stumbled, falling back onto the ground. Ken dove down beside him with Stan and Cartman and brushed hair out of his face.

"Are you okay?! Ky?! Ky, can you hear me?!"

Kyle opened his eyes slowly, wincing in the light. "Yeah," he breathed out. "Just...really dizzy..."

Damien kneeled down in front of his head and pulled him back a bit, staring into his eyes. "You used a lot of power for your usual amount," he commented. "You pretty much just used up every bit of energy in your body, Kid."

"I...I did?" he panted.

He nodded. "These powers are directly in touch with your life force. It's all your energy, Kyle. You just used up almost everything you have because of what you've been doing all day."

"What's that?" Stan questioned, helping Kyle stand and supporting him on his shoulder.

"He's been repressing his anger all day and it all built up until he couldn't hold it back any longer and everything came flying out. You're lucky you're still conscious, Kyle," he frowned.

"I'm...I'm sorry..."

He broke into a smirk. "Don't be sorry, just be aware that you have your limitations. Overexert yourself and your ass is back in the hospital."

He sighed, moving from Stan's arm to Ken's. "I'm sorry," he repeated tiredly.

"Come on, let's let them...sleep," Damien said, grabbing the discarded gun.

"Found it!" Kayla cried as she and Jacob ran over with the ring. Ken smiled as Kyle grabbed it and cleaned it off with his shirt. He grasped the blonde's hand and slid the ring back onto his finger with a grin.

"You can't get rid of me that easily."

He snickered. "Never wanna try." he leaned down and kissed his forehead.

Damien grabbed his arm and they all connected before they were transported back into Ken and Kyle's place. Ken swooped Kyle up and carried his exhausted form over to the couch, sitting down and placing Kyle beside him, curled up into his larger form. Stan, Cartman, and Damien joined them on the furniture as the kids went to get Snickers from her crate and Oliver paced the room.

"Kyle?"

He creaked an eye open at the voice. "What, Kayla?"

She looked up at him with a sad smile and Snickers in her hands. She climbed onto the couch and sat atop him, looking at him intently.

"Was that your daddy?"

"Who?"

"The man with the pink hat," she cocked her head.

"Yeah, that's my dad," he nodded tiredly, playing with her chocolate hair.

"Why were you yelling at each other?" Jacob asked, tugging his sleeve. He sighed and sat up straighter, pulling Jacob onto the couch with himself, Ken, and Kayla.

"Sometimes...," he started slowly. "Families don't always get along. They fight and they yell and other things that don't seem very loving."

"How come?" Kayla questioned.

"Well, we're people. People don't always agree on the same things."

"You and Kenny do," Jacob pointed out.

"Not everything, Kid," Ken ruffled his hair. "Me and Ky don't like the same foods, we don't like cleaning the same way..."

"We like different TV shows and books," Kyle continued. "Needless to say, we're not equal on every level. No one is."

"But...you don't yell like you and your daddy were," Kayla said, looking between them. "How come you yelled at your daddy like that?"

Kyle paused before sighing. "Sometimes...family...doesn't stay a family."

"How come?"

"We have too many differences," he explained. "We can't agree on anything and all we want to do is get away from each other."

"But you have to have a family...," Jacob said sadly.

He smiled, "I do have one."

"You do?" Kayla asked.

"Sure," he nodded. "I have Kenny, and Stan, and Cartman can be some long-distant cousin twice removed I suppose on a good day."

"Ay, shut up, Jew boy!"

"And now," he pressed on, "we have you two and Snickers. Family doesn't have to mean blood-related. I'm perfectly happy with the most dysfunctional family in the universe," he smiled wider. "Do you get what I'm telling you?"

They broke into huge smiles. "We...we have a family?" Kayla squealed, her eyes glistening.

"Sure ya do," Kenny smiled. "We're right here for you if you need us and you're there to cheer us up on a bad day...that's all one needs from a family. So congrats you two, you pass."

The kids started crying happily before lunging themselves into the boy's arms with Snickers in-between them all.

"Hey kids," Damien called. The youngsters looked back at him with their smiles still widespread. "Come with me for a minute, will you?" Kayla and Jacob looked up at Ken and Kyle with cocked heads.

"Go ahead," Kyle nodded for them. They jumped up and went over to the demon.

"Ollie, come on," Damien gestured.

"I will when you come back. I need to talk to Kyle for a moment."

He nodded. "Alright. I'll be right back." He took the kids' hands and they went off into thin air.

Kyle teased Snickers with his finger as Oliver continued to pace. "Kyle...," he started.

"Yes?" he looked up, still playing with the kitten.

He sighed. "Kyle, we may have run into a problem."

"What?"

"The lack of evidence that we have, Kyle...it's killing us. It's stabbing us in the face repeatedly. Without proof...telling them that Ken's injuries were just from a fight..." he sighed again, taking off his glasses and massaging his forehead. "We could lose this case."

Their faces all dropped. "Are...are you sure?" Stan asked.

"Yes," he nodded. "I...I have to admit, your father is one hell of a lawyer. Bringing in your insecurities...your depression, and Ken's criminal record...he's proven to the entire court that your judgement has been flawed in the past. We've only managed to dispute a few of his statements...," he trailed off a bit. "We're...we're really gonna have to pull out the stops with your testimony. You're the final piece of this puzzle, Kyle."

"What do I do?"

"You listen to me," he stared into his jade eyes. "I have the one physical piece that we need."

"What do you have?" Cartman asked.

He looked between them all before his eyes landed back onto Kyle. "Kyle, I have the tape."

Kyle's eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly. "You...you...I forgot to...oh my god," he placed his face into his palms.

"Tape? What tape?" Ken repeated. "There wasn't a camera...was there?"

"Not until later," Oliver said softly, still staring at the distraught boy. He kneeled down in front of him. "Kyle, look at me." The boy removed his hands and stared down at him. "Now look," he said gently. "This is a guarantee to win this case...but I want your permission to play it."

He bit his thumbnail nervously. "Oliver...do you know...how much trouble..." he began to breathe heavily.

"No, you won't get in any trouble, Kyle," he said firmly. "You'll be just fine so long as you stay calm and just stay with me. Alright?"

He stared at him for a long moment. "I...I can't...," he shook his head. "You can't show me like that," he pled.

"What's in this video?" Stan asked.

Oliver looked at him seriously. "They taped themselves raping and torturing him and then it recorded on its own until he finally made it out."

"So...this is like...porno, basically." Cartman blinked.

"It's not porno, you fat fuck!" Kyle screeched. "Trust me, there's no faking any feelings in that fucking movie!"

"Kyle, calm down," Oliver put his hand on his knee. "We have to show it," he whispered. "It's either this...or you give Mitch a chance to make a sequel."

Kyle paused and looked at his hands. Ken followed his gaze, watching as his fingers shook violently. He grabbed one and raised it to his lips. "Kyle," he said quietly, waiting until the boy made eye contact with him. He smiled and kissed him again. "It's alright. No one's going to judge you. You're gonna be safe. We'll settle down and have a happy life with no fear of him ever again. You just have to be willing to play the game."

"Ken, you don't understand...," his voice cracked.

"But I do," Oliver said gently. "And I'm your lawyer. Trust me when I say this: you will be safe. Nothing will come back for you, I swear."

Another moment of silence passed before Kyle looked up at the ceiling sadly. "Last resort...," he whispered.

"What?" Stan asked.

He looked back down. "A last resort."

"We're on our last resort," Oliver said softly. "Kyle, we've gone through my list of witnesses and then some...we're stuck. We've done all we can, and this is what we have left."

"No...no...no Jacob or Kayla...or Ike," he whispered, shaking again. "Not...not my mother...not Wendy...or...or...."

"Shh, we'll send them out, I promise," Kenny whispered, taking him and drawing him into his chest. "It's okay," he reassured him. "I'm right here, Ky."

"I know," he whispered, nuzzling into the fabric of his shirt. Ken kissed his head and swayed him back and forth softly.

"We're back," a voice called, they looked over to see Damien standing with the kids on either side of him, both still grinning, though wider than before.

They all blinked at the children confusedly. "Why...where's their...why aren't they glowing?!" Kenny did a double take.

"Pops said that should you two call yourselves their family, you were stuck with 'em," he smirked. "Congrats, you got one of each now."

Kayla and Jacob ran over and leapt into their arms, snuggling with them tightly. "Wait...they're alive now?!" Cartman blinked.

"Yup. And immortal to boot," Damien nodded. "They're gonna do the same kind of lifespan that these two have going on," he nodded at the boys. "Their powers are the same as you and Marsh, but they have the immortality boost on 'em now."

"Why?" Stan cocked his head.

He smiled. "Well, they're kids. They need a home. And it's hard caring for ghosts. My father and I should know," he smirked.

"We can't take in every ghost kid we find," Ken said worriedly. "I mean, I'm happy we have these two, but we can't be an orphanage here."

Damien nodded. "I know. But...we have a backup plan."

"What?" Kyle asked.

"We have a good number of cases that were unsolved by the previous vessels," he explained. "Ones that, like these two, were unsolvable. I'm sure plenty of them would be cool with being parents of other ghosts," he shrugged. "Kind of a lame plan, but hey, it works."

Ken and Kyle looked at each other, then down at the warmed kids snuggling into them. They looked back at each other and smiled.

"Well...you think we can handle it?" Ken asked.

Kyle chuckled. "If we can handle this trial, we can handle anything."

"Right," he nodded in agreement. They leaned in and pecked lips, separating slowly. "But only if we're in it together."

* * *

_A/N: Oh yeah. Kids are alive now. What what? Anyways, I was planning on making it so Jacob became unstuck but Kayla stayed with the boys. But then I realized that's like sacrilegious. I love them together and I know you do too. They're cute and adorable and separating them would just be cruel in my opinion._

_Anyways. Craig may or may not be done as of yet, haven't decided. But the video._

_AH! The video comes next time._

_And this is where I'm going to tell you: It will be FUCKING GRAPHIC._

_I plan on making it as sadistic and filthy as I possibly can. This is gonna be THE shabang. Alright? Okay._

_Thanks for R&R-ing!_

_(we're getting closer to that end, finally xD) _


	49. Revelations

_A/N: Last warning. It's gonna be graphic. You thought chapter 21 was too much? Get out now xDDD_

_Okay, I'm using the ~ symbol to switch between the video and reality. So, just be aware. it should be obvious though because the reality in the courtroom will always be from Ken's perspective. So yeah._

_Enjoy my twisted dream turned into reality. =D_

* * *

Kenny lied awake in the early morning, watching the three sleeping faces sprawled across from him on the bed. He chuckled as the two kids curled into each other and muttered at the other. He looked past them to Kyle, his smile dropping slightly. The boy's face was marred with worry, as it had been ever since their discussion with Oliver as of the night before.

"Kyle?" he whispered.

The redhead stirred a bit before creaking his eyes open. "Yeah?"

He sat up and brushed some of his messy hair back before looking at Kyle sadly. "You okay?"

"Dude, I was sleeping," he yawned, sitting up with him, careful not to wake the kids.

"I know, but not well," he replied.

"Sorry," he yawned again, rubbing his eyes. "What time is it?"

He looked over at the clock and smacked his lips. "Uh, 8."

"Mm...," he nodded. "Come on, I'll make us breakfast." He carefully stepped off the bed and stretched, his back letting out a soft pop.

"You're gonna get scoliosis one day," Ken smirked.

"I think that'll be the least of my problems," he muttered, stepping over to their dresser and pulling out a shirt, yanking it over his small torso. Ken stood up and clasped him around his waist, kissing his neck gently.

"Seriously, are you alright?"

Kyle sighed and leaned his head back on Kenny's shoulder. "No. No I'm not."

"Thought so. What's wrong?"

Kyle locked their eyes and he sniffed. "I...I don't want this."

"I know," he said, swaying him back and forth. "But I'll be there the whole time with you."

"Until you see it...," he sighed, turning and wrapping his arms around him underneath Ken's biceps and nuzzling his face into his chest. "I...I don't want you to see this, Ken..."

"Babe, it's gonna be okay."

"No it's not!" he argued, gripping his skin tightly. "I...," he sighed irritably, pulling back and looking up at him. "Ken...it's not."

"Look, I've seen you naked before, don't be embarrassed about that. I know what kind of noises you make, I know the facial expressions. Only difference is that I'm pissed instead of aroused," he stroked his hair slowly. "I love you, Ky. It's gonna be alright."

"I wish...I wish that Oliver didn't have that damn thing...I should have gotten it!" he growled angrily, staring at Kenny's abs.

"You wish that Mitch had a chance of going free?" he asked. "Kyle, that isn't the right thing. This video may win us the case."

"Oh," he laughed humorlessly, "it will. I know what the fuck's on that thing..." he sniffed and leaned into Kenny. "Ken?"

"What?" he brushed some fiery hair out of his eyes.

"Can...can I convince you not to be in the room when..." he trailed off.

He sighed and pulled him tighter. "Ky, look. I've told you, no matter what, I love you. I will as I have, alright?"

"You don't know that."

"Yes I do," he said firmly. "I'm going to be right in that room with you when this thing goes down. Okay? I'll be right there to catch you."

"You don't want to catch someone like me," he mumbled.

"Morning!" small voices called. They turned and watched as Jacob and Kayla crawled to the end of their bed and waved.

"Good morning," the boys said, separating and looking back. Ken pulled on a shirt and they walked over to the kids, each picking one up.

"You guys hungry?" Kyle asked.

"Yeah," Jacob nodded.

"Well Kyle here wants to make us breakfast, so let's go," Ken winked, taking Kayla up and out of the room with Kyle and Jacob in tow. "Morning," he shouted towards the sleeping forms in the living room.

"AH!" Stan shouted, falling off the couch and landing with a heavy thud. He groaned and rubbed his head as he sat up. "McCormick, you asshole!" he yelled groggily.

"You're just now figuring this out?" Cartman yawned with a small smirk. "The poor are always asswipes."

"Not as much the morbidly obese who try to pass themselves off as merely big-boned, Cartman," Kyle commented, walking up to the couch and placing Jacob down. He walked to the front of the couch and crouched down beside Stan, who was still rubbing his skull and muttering obscenities. "You alright?"

"Yeah, but your asshole of a fiance better watch his damn step," he muttered. Kyle laughed softly before helping him to his feet. "Come on, sit down and I'll make us some food and maybe your mood will lighten up a bit."

"Whatcha makin'?" Cartman questioned.

He looked up thoughtfully. "Eggs?"

"Yummy!" Kayla commented, hopping down from Kenny's grasp. "Can I help?!" she looked up at him with shining eyes.

He looked down at her and smiled gently. "Sure. Come on, kids," he motioned his head over towards the kitchen and they followed him into the room.

Ken sat down next to Stan and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Dude. Didn't think that you were gonna freak out like that on me."

"Whatever. You owe me," he smirked. He shot his blue eyes towards the kitchen and looked back at the blonde slowly. "Is he okay?"

He shook his head. "Not by a long shot. He really doesn't want us to see this movie."

"Why not?" Cartman asked. "Not like none of us have seen him naked before," he rolled his eyes.

"None of us have seen him completely humiliated and tortured before, though," Ken retorted. "We have to look at this from his perspective. Would you want the entire world to have access to a view of you being used as a toy? I wouldn't."

"Yeah, but it's gonna get that bastard in jail," Stan replied. "he needs to see it like that."

"You'd figure that our testimonies would be enough," he sighed. "This is just...God, it's ridiculous how much we've had to go through."

"Oliver should have just whipped out the video at the beginning and gotten it over with," Cartman groaned.

"He wanted to avoid having to use it," Stan explained. "He didn't want Kyle humiliated, but he's at the end of his rope."

"So is Kyle," Ken sniffed, putting his face in his palm and shaking his head. "I just want this goddamned thing over so we can go back to normal."

"You and Jewboy were never 'normal'," Cartman smirked.

"Fuck off."

"Not now, thanks."

"Guys, grow up," Stan shook his head.

"I'm gonna check on Kyle," Ken mumbled, getting to his feet and crossing into the kitchen. He popped his head into the inlet window, smiling as he saw his little family cooking together. He bent down and unhooked Snicker's crate, letting her venture out and go over to rub against his leg. He picked her up and scratched behind her ears gently as they watched the three others in the kitchen. Kyle placed Kayla and Jacob on either side of the stove, handing them different items.

"Crack these like this," he instructed Jacob, showing him how to break an egg and throw it into the bowl. He tried to mimic him, only getting part of the yolk into the bowl.

"Oops," he frowned apologetically.

Kyle smiled at him gently. "It takes practice. Keep trying." The boy nodded and tried again, getting most of the egg into the container.

"I did it!" he beamed.

"Awesome," he smiled wider. "Keep going, I need all of those eggs."

"What do I do?" Kayla asked excitedly.

"Once he's done, you get to stir the eggs," he explained.

She cocked her head at the utensil in her hand. "But this isn't a spoon."

"You're right," he nodded. "It's a whisk. You use it for stuff like eggs to mix them quicker because it breaks the yolk faster."

"What's a yolk?"

He pointed into the bowl. "The big yellow part is the yolk. The rest of it is called the egg whites."

"But they're clear," Jacob blinked, cracking another one and watching it drip down into the bowl.

"If you mix 'em up a lot without the yolks, they get pure white and really fluffy," he shrugged. "So they became egg whites."

"How come we don't want them fluffy?" Kayla asked.

"Because you do that for baking," he explained. "We're just fixing them as they are. The yolk gives them the color and the flavor that we want."

"Ohhhh," they nodded. He laughed softly and they watched as Jacob cracked the last one. He took the bowl from him and poured a dash of milk before handing it to Kayla with one hand still wrapped around the edge.

"Alright, take the whisk and stir," he instructed. She nodded, placing the utensil into the bowl and starting to spin it. She bit her tongue in concentration and continued to try.

"I can't do it," she whined, looking up at him sadly.

"You're doing fine," he assured her. "Here," he took the bowl. He grabbed the whisk and spun it a few times. "See? Just do this and you'll be fine," he hopped up on the counter next to her and held the bowl down to her level. She looked up at him before grasping the silver mixer in her hand and beginning to stir just as Kyle had showed her. "See? You're gettin' it," he smiled down at her. She looked back up with a large grin plastered on her face.

"I am?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Keep it up and you'll be America's next top chef," he grinned. She giggled before returning her concentration to the bowl. Kyle's eyes flickered up and he caught Ken and Snickers staring at them and he smirked. He handed the bowl off to Kayla, who cautiously took it and continued stirring as Kyle hopped down and walked over towards the gawker. "Can I help you?" he asked sweetly.

"Yeah, heard this is a great restaurant," Ken smirked. "Best food in town."

"You heard right," he smiled, leaning on the inlet ledge. "Though I'm sorry, Sir, but we don't allow pets," he brushed his finger over Snicker's head, prompting a small meow from her.

"Are you sure? She sure seems to like ya."

"It's policy," he smirked. "She's cute, but it's not allowed."

"You're awfully cute yourself," he licked his lips. "Why do they put you back in the kitchen?"

"I'm the only one here who can cook," he raised his brow amusedly.

"You should be the one out in the front of the house. Beauty sells, ya know."

"But then who would cook?"

"Who cares?" he retorted. "I don't need a good meal, per se if I get to see you."

"Are you hitting on me, Sir?"

"Maybe," he smirked. "Am I getting anywhere?"

"Maybe," he smiled back.

"Maybe you and I could...get together sometime..." he purred.

"I don't know...," he looked around a bit, fiddling with his ring. "I'm engaged. I doubt my fiance would be too happy if I just went out with a flirtatious stranger."

"Aw, I'm sure he wouldn't mind," he smiled, looking down at him predatorily. "He probably can't take me on."

"Nah, he's pretty strong."

"Ya like 'em like that? Tough?"

"I guess," he shrugged. "He's not macho, but he protects me. That's all I need."

"He a looker?" He leaned his cheek into his palm.

Kyle raised his brow. "Eh, he's alright," he shrugged, his lips curling up a bit as he toyed with Snicker's fur. "I'm not with him for his looks, though."

"What's he got that I don't?"

"I don't know," he looked at him innocently. "I don't really know you."

"We could change that," he growled, leaning closer to him.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm happy with what I have."

"Maybe you'd like me better," he arched his brow in challenge.

He shook his head, his hair flowing softly. "Not possible."

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

"You're smart and pretty, huh, Hotstuff?"

"He tends to tell me that," he smiled.

"So this guy treats ya alright?"

He nodded. "Yeah. He's good to me."

"No chance of you dumpin' him to go with me, huh?"

"Wouldn't leave him if you paid me."

"I'm good in bed, that lure ya in?"

"So's he," he chuckled.

"This guy is a real challenge to me, hm?"

"He's a challenge to everyone," he rolled his eyes jokingly.

"Even you?"

"Sometimes."

"What's he do?"

He shrugged. "He's a stubborn asshole sometimes, but so am I, so it evens out."

"Pretty little thing like you? You don't seem stubborn to me."

"I'm refusing you time and again, aren't I?"

"Touche," he snickered. "How old are you, Cutie?"

"Seventeen."

"Mmm, legal with consent, ya know."

"I'm not consenting, though."

"I can change that."

"Not unless you kill my fiance."

"Betcha I could."

"Then I definitely wouldn't be interested in you," he scoffed lightly.

"I think you are, but you're too sweet to let me know," he pushed a stray curl from the boy's forehead.

"I'm committed, sorry."

"How would he find out?" he cocked his head.

"He knows me too well."

"Knows everything about ya, huh?"

"Pretty damn close."

"I envy him," he smiled. "You seem like a very interesting person, Beautiful."

"Interesting? No. Complicated? Yes," he replied.

"Mmm, I don't think so," Ken shook his head. "You're sweet, intelligent, and adorable. That's not too complicated."

"You've barely scratched the surface of my persona," he replied. "Surface isn't everything."

"But it is a lot."

"Secrets are on the inside, Sir. Are secrets not what make a person a person?"

"I believe that what shows is what makes a person."

"So if someone like him," he gestured back towards Cartman who was looking back at them in confusion at their discussion with Stan, "walked in, you'd automatically assume that he was just a fat asshole who couldn't control their diet?"

"AY!"

"Would I be wrong to say that?"

"That's not the point," Kyle giggled.

"And what, Lovely, is the point then?"

"That the inside is what makes us who we are, not just what we show to outsiders."

"I'm an outsider to you?"

"You're not my subconscious, so yes."

"What about this fiance, the lucky bastard. Is he one of the outsiders as well?"

"I love him, but he's not my mind. He can't know everything about me when even I don't."

"I'm sure if you'd share with him, he'd try to understand with you. I don't know who wouldn't listen to someone so captivating as you."

"You can stop with the compliments, I already turned you down."

"Doesn't mean the compliments are any less true," he grinned. "Can I at least know your name? Or is that a secret, too?"

"Mmm...only if you tell me yours first," he said lowly.

"How come?"

"I need to know if I can trust you. Tell me your name first."

He laughed and leaned in a bit. "Kenneth James McCormick. But my friends call me Ken."

"What should I call you?"

"Dunno," he shrugged. "What name sounds better being screamed in ecstasy?"

"I wouldn't know."

He smirked. "Alright, you know my name, let's hear your full one."

"Why my full?"

"Because, first names are too commonplace. Leave an imprint on my memory, will ya?"

The redhead smiled at him. "Kyle Isaac Broflovski."

"Broflovski? Hot."

He sniggered. "No, Jewish."

"They're interchangeable," he shrugged with a smile.

"Know a lot of Jews?"

"A couple. All very sexy."

"How many is a couple?" he raised his brow.

Ken looked up at him innocently. "Okay, maybe I only know one. He's hot as fucking Hell though."

"And you kiss people with that mouth?" he blinked at him in feign shock.

"Well, not many," he purred. "Perhaps I could entice you as to increase my number?"

He looked at him, unsure. "I don't know. What if my fiance walks in? What could I tell him?"

"I grabbed you and started making out with you. You get to run to his arms and I get a kiss. Everyone wins."

He looked up thoughtfully before glancing back at him, "Maybe one," he shrugged. Ken stood and leaned over the counter, staring down at him.

"You have beautiful eyes," he growled, brushing his eyebrow with his lips. Kyle batted his lashes at him and smiled.

"Do you talk like this to every pretty boy you meet?"

"Nah, only the special ones. Lucky for me, I got my first customer right here. Kiss?"

"I'm not very good," he said shyly.

"I'll be the judge of that," he purred, leaning further and connecting their mouths.

"All that for a kiss?" Cartman shook his head in disbelief.

"Wow," Stan blinked. "Didn't think that foreplay was needed for that."

Kyle and Ken laughed softly against each other, their hands finding one another and intertwining. They pulled back and licked their lips.

"I must say that that was an excellent kiss right there," Ken winked.

Kyle blushed a bit. "He taught me everything he knows."

"How do you know it's everything?"

"Okay, he's in the process of doing so," he shrugged. "Better?"

"Sure. Wish I could be the one teachin' ya though."

"Sorry. Too late."

"It's never too late. Everyone can move on," he squeezed his fingers.

"Not me," he said softly. "I tend to have issues with letting things go."

"Well everyone has that problem at some point in time," he shrugged. "Maybe one day you'll get sick of your redneck boyfriend and look for something better."

"How do you know what he's like?"

"I look at you and I see an innocent kid looking for someone bad to offset himself."

"I'm not innocent by a long shot."

"You're a sweetie," he smiled. "You're innocent in my book."

"You don't even know half of my story, Kenneth."

"Don't wanna be my friend?"

"I like sounding authoritative. Sometimes you have to be to keep the peace."

"True," he nodded. "Your hick of a fiance teach you that? He authoritative to ya?"

"Never. He's good to me, I told you."

"You sayin' that to avoid a beating or speakin' the truth?"

"The truth. He'd never lay a hand on me like that."

"How do you know?" he asked softly, slowly losing character. "How do you know he won't turn into a pissed off, drunken moron like his parents probably were?"

Kyle looked at him for a moment before his expression melted into sympathy. "Because I know him better than that. He's too kind for that kind of stuff."

"Thought you said surface doesn't matter."

"I know past his surface better than he seems to think," Kyle replied firmly. "I know him probably better than I know myself. He doesn't act like that."

Ken smiled up at him. "Insightful, too? You're just a pretty package, aren't you?"

"Wrappers conceal nothing more than thinly painted cardboard boxes set to be ripped apart and destroyed by the owners."

"And opened to something wonderful," Ken finished, stroking his hand with his thumb. "You have something inside of you that's beautiful and sweet and smart. Secrets don't completely overshadow your personality."

Kyle blinked at him before smiling back. "You seem insightful yourself, Stranger."

"You still consider me a stranger?"

"You're not him and you're not me. I think that I have to," he smirked.

"Got friends?"

Kyle's eyes flickered to their observers and he smirked still. "A few."

"They strangers?"

"They don't know me that well. So I probably don't know them well, either."

"Maybe you're just more secretive than others."

"That's a true statement," he nodded. "I have a lot to hide. I'm not the best person to get involved with."

"Secrets don't matter. If this fiance is anything worth your time, he'd focus on what you share rather than what you hide. I'm sure he has secrets all his own."

"You think so?"

"We all do," he said simply. "Some are bigger than others, but they affect us the same. All we can do is hold onto ourselves and whoever means the most to us to make it through. I hope this guy of yours will be with you throughout everything if you have to confront it."

"He told me he would be."

"And I'm sure he means it. If he's worth anything, it won't matter what your secrets are. He'd be a fucking idiot to let someone like you go."

Kyle smiled sweetly at him, his eyes flickering away from him for a moment and he chuckled. "Ya know...you've been here ten minutes. You haven't ordered any food."

"Maybe I didn't come in for food," he replied softly. "Maybe I wanted the pleasure of your company."

"And now that you've had it?"

"I'm gonna ask for another kiss. Whaddya say?"

"Two kisses are only for paying customers," he smirked. Ken took his wallet from off the corner of the inlet and smacked it down.

"That enough?"

"I guess," he smiled, leaning up and initiating the kiss. Ken smiled against his mouth and ran his fingers through the scarlet hair. He nibbled on the boy's bottom lip and they locked eyes. Kyle still look tired and worried, but little flecks of rose could be seen within the bothered green gaze. Ken pulled back and smiled gently at him.

"I love you."

"Right back at you," he smiled back. They leaned forward and met foreheads, their noses resting against each other. Ken stared down at the inlet ledge with mixed feelings. He knew what he said was true, that Kyle's secrets could never tear them apart. However, that didn't cease his curiosity. What was so damn secret that Kyle couldn't even share it with him of all people? His eyes fluttered up and met with Kyle's again and he smiled reassuringly, maybe just as much for himself as for Kyle. This was nothing more than a moment leading to the inevitable. Leading to a point where Kyle's ordeal would be laid out on the table for himself and everyone else to see.

Whether or not that was for the best, he had yet to figure out. That was for the day to decide.

* * *

He opened his eyes to find himself with the others outside the courthouse, each looking more anxious than the last. They all rounded the corner up the front of the establishment and sighed.

"Where are the reporters?" Cartman asked, looking around confusedly.

"Probably just getting ready to keep on with their notes," Oliver answered. "Come on," he motioned for them to follow. They trailed his lead into the house, making their way up front.

"Hey, boys," Wendy called as she, Red, Bebe, and Butters all stood and walked up to them. Her hazel eyes flickered down and widened in surprise. "Kids?"

"Um...they're ours," Kyle rubbed his neck sheepishly, motioning between himself and Ken.

They looked at the boys in shock. "You adopted kids already?" she whispered in disbelief.

"We found them on the street a few months back," Ken explained. "They're orphans. They hung out with us for awhile before they got sent to the orphanage."

"When we got engaged, we decided that we'd take 'em back," Kyle shrugged. "We got kinda attached. They're not a handful and they don't cost a shitload of money. So we adopted 'em."

Bebe knelt down with Wendy and they smiled at the kids. "What's your names?" she asked.

"Kayla."

"Jacob."

"Aw, how cute," Red smiled.

"I'm Wendy," the raven-haired girl started. "This is Bebe, Red, and Butters."

"Butters?" Kayla giggled. "That's a silly name."

"He's real name is Leopold," Ken smirked. "I think Butters is a step up."

"I agree," Bebe nodded, standing and kissing said boy's cheek.

Butters chuckled lightly. "Whatever you say. Either one makes me sound like we're still in elementary school."

"Wish we were," Ken said dreamily.

"Why?" Cartman blinked.

"I dunno. Just do. No bills for one thing," he chuckled as they headed towards the front of the room to meet up with Oliver who had gone ahead.

"Do you really think it's a good idea for these kids to be in here during this trial?" Bebe asked.

"They'll fall asleep," Damien responded. "They're almost as lazy as Ken, and they're not even related," he rolled his eyes.

Ken smacked his shoulder. "I do more than you, Asshole."

"Oh please," he smirked.

"All rise for the honorable Judge Ruth Michaels," the bailiff started.

"Shit," Ken murmured, handing the kids off to the girls and speed walking with Kyle to their seats. They turned and watched as the judge made her way down the aisle and up to her bench.

"Good afternoon," she smiled. "Be seated. This third day of Mitchell Derrick vs the state of Colorado is now in session," she banged her gavel. "We left off with the Broflovskis, yes?"

"Yes," Gerald nodded.

"Alright," she nodded back. "Kyle Broflovski, if you'll please retake the stand."

He sighed and Ken squeezed his hand reassuringly with a smile. Kyle shot him a small one back before getting to his feet and making his way back up front. "Do you swear to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"Yeah." he took his hand from the bible and made his way into the plush chair, sighing softly to himself. Gerald stood and moved in front of him.

"Kyle."

"Gerald."

"Kyle, what did you just do?"

He raised his brow. "Said your name?"

"No, before you sat down, Kyle."

"Uh...took my vows?"

"How important are those vows to you, Kyle?"

"Important enough," he shrugged. "I know better than to lie."

"Oh really?" he cocked his head. "You lied for years about being a homosexual, did you not?"

"No one asked. Once Ken brought it up I told him."

"Why didn't you just tell someone from the start?"

"Because this is a small town and everything around here spreads like a goddamn wildfire," he retorted. "Besides, coming out is a really big deal. Especially because at first you have no idea how you're supposed to feel."

"Confusion?"

"It's a complete battle with oneself," he sighed. "It's a really frustrating time."

"As you were stuck in sexuality limbo, what did you do to cope?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did you cut yourself?"

"No," he shook his head. "I just kinda...withdrew into myself. My thoughts became more self-evaluating than anything else. Eventually that led me to come to terms with the fact that I was gay and that I had a crush on Ken. Then more of my thoughts led me to believer that I could never have him, so I started cutting and doing all the other stupid shit that I did."

"Would you say that self-evaluation is a strong point of yours?"

"You mean judging myself to the extremes? Yeah, I guess."

"What was going through your mind on the night of the accused abduction and rape, Kyle?"

He paused for a moment, staring at his father. "What was going through my mind?" he repeated. "Well for starters, 'ow, ow, ow. They're fucking hurting me'. That was a big thought I had. Um, we also have the 'what the fuck did I do to deserve this?' the 'I hate them, I hate them, I hate them...'"

"But what did you think about yourself?"

"Why wasn't I strong enough to fend them off? Why was I so tiny and weak? How did they know exactly how to play my buttons?...I asked myself a lot of things that night. Like why did they choose me? Was it just impulse or what?..." he sighed. "I dunno," he said softly. "When I'm scared, I think. And I was fucking terrified. I got my mind to zone out for a bit, but they made me start thinking again and everything just went haywire. I had too many thoughts for anything to be comprehensible aside from the fact that I was completely at their mercy."

"And you didn't fight back?"

"I'm weak. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't have fended them off. Everyone's said it, I'm just too damn tiny to cause a lot of damage to people three times my size. Besides, I wanted Ken safe."

"You thought the only way to do that was to bend over?"

"Yes. I didn't know what they were capable of. So I just played their game."

"How long did this game of theirs last, Kyle?"

"Four hours at least."

"Four hours. And you didn't scream for help or anything?"

"I screamed all I could," he muttered, looking at his feet and sniffling.

"What do you mean all you could?"

He continued staring at the floor. "They usually had a gag on me, a hand, or there was a cock shoved down my throat. I couldn't do much."

There was a small pause before Gerald regained his vigor. "Two men. They were both holding you down, I'm supposing?"

Kyle looked back up at him and shrugged. "Sometimes. Sometimes it was only one of them. Sometimes my arms were tied up, sometimes they weren't."

"Why didn't you fight back when your arms weren't tied and there was only one of them?"

"Because it's hard to fight when they're holding you into the ground and shoving themselves into your ass," he muttered, avoiding eye contact.

"Did they ever let you off the hook for a bit then?"

"In a way. They'd throw me down and usually tie my arms and gag me before throwing me aside so they could rest a bit."

"What did you do then, Kyle?"

"I'd pray," he said, looking back at his father.

"Pray?"

"I...I knew that no physical being could help me. No one knew where we were. No one could hear me screaming or them hitting me...I-I didn't know what else to do. So I prayed for God to help me."

"And do you think He answered your prayers?"

He shook his head slowly. "No. He either sat back and watched with popcorn or just ignored me altogether. I just had to wait it out."

"What were you expecting to happen, Kyle? Did you think that he would come down himself and rescue you?"

"No. I thought he'd...send help. Tell Stan that I was in danger. Have a K9 unit sniff us out. I don't know what I thought. I just thought that maybe he could give me some strength. I knew that I wasn't getting out that easily, but I needed help before I lost my mind, so I kept talking to him. Kept praying that he would explain to me why he was doing so."

"Did you ever come to conclusions about the alleged incident? Did it affect your faith in any way?"

He nodded. "I came to the conclusion that God is an asshole."

A small gasp elicited from the audience as the small Jew leaned back in his chair. Ken looked over, seeing Sheila shaking her head and muttering to herself as Ike looked on interestedly at his brother.

"E-explain that," Gerald stammered in shock.

"I think...I think he was testing me. It was so soon after my suicide...maybe He thought that I needed a test to make sure that I wouldn't test the waters of death again. I don't know. But no loving god would submit someone to that kind of cruel and unusual torture. It's just wrong. Any god who does that is not by definition divine in my book."

Ken's eyes flickered to Damien, who was leaning back and grinning smugly. He gave the blonde a thumbs up and Ken just rolled his eyes, turning to watch the little redhead once more.

"So...you lost faith."

"Not necessarily," he sighed. "I...I just don't think that He controls everything I do and He won't help me even when I need Him the most. I think He just makes us and then throws us down to Earth to battle for ourselves. I still wish he would've helped me, but obviously He has better things to do with His time."

"Did you do anything besides pray?"

"I tried to make sense of the situation. But that didn't go too well. I was disoriented."

"Oh really? How so?"

"You try being fucked for hours and beaten and you tell me just how comprehensible your thoughts are at that point," he replied dryly.

"Did you tell them that you wanted out?"

"Of course I did, what a stupid question," he rolled his eyes. "I fucking begged them to let us go."

"And how did they react?"

"Threw me into a wall and raped me some more. 'Silly me. How could I think that I'd escape?'" he mocked. "I was their toy for the time and they wanted to make sure that I knew it."

"Did you?"

He blinked at him before sighing. "I guess so, yes. I did what they told me and I took what they gave me. I became their little object."

"Kyle, you've spun a pretty story for us so far, but one question remains: how did you get out?"

"Barney and Mitch left. The keys were on the table. I grabbed them and dragged Ken out of there."

"Just...left?"

"I was unconscious. I think that they thought I was dead and necrophilia wasn't their thing."

"How'd you go unconscious?"

"Too much going on, I guess. I just...lost it."

"You're always portrayed as this symbol of self-control, though," he raised his brow. "This seems like a bit of a farfetched tale for someone like that."

Kyle's brows furrowed. "Self control doesn't apply here!"

"Why not? Why couldn't you just deal with it and move on afterwards?" he pressed harder.

"It's really hard to cope with four dicks flopping in your face, Gerald!" he stood and shouted at him.

A long and awkward pause filled the small courtroom. "Four?" he repeated.

Kyle looked taken aback and blinked. "What?"

"You said four...uh 'dicks'," he cleared his throat.

Kyle's face paled. "I-I meant two."

"But you said four."

"But I MEANT two!" he insisted, shaking with widened eyes.

Ken blinked at him before his gaze fell over to Mitch, who was grasping at his hair and shaking his head down towards the table. He looked back up at his lover, who looked to be nearing hyperventilation.

"So, you can't keep a number straight, who to say you can keep this story straight?"

"I-I meant to say two!" he insisted again. "I just misspoke!"

"I think the defense rests," he smirked, walking back to his seat. Oliver slowly stood and made his way over to Kyle. He leaned up towards him and muttered something with a sigh. Kyle sat back down, shaking uncontrollably.

"Your honor," Oliver started with a sigh. "I have no questions to ask of Kyle. He's told us all he can...however if it pleases the court...I have something that can wrap this case up for us."

Ruth leaned down and peered at him. "What are you talking about?"

He walked over to his bag and pulled out a videotape. "This was a video shot on April 13th of 2009, your honor. This is a full depiction of Ken's position, of Kyle's rape and torture. Of the men who did it. This is everything. Right. Here."

"Why did you not present this earlier?" Ruth asked.

"Because, your honor, I had Kyle's dignity to think about. This is unedited. Every inch of skin, every scream...it's all here. I was hoping that we could avoid this; that we could just present what little we had and call it a day. I can see that...we're not on the winning side. And Kyle...Kyle just opened this case wide open with just a misspeak."

"How so?" she cocked her brow.

"Approximately two hours after Kyle first arrived to the shack in which Barney and Mitch had the boys, two other men, friends of theirs, showed up. They played part in hurting Kyle just as much. One of them brought their video camera. Apparently this was not an uncommon occurrence among Barney and Mitch. This wasn't a first time rape, but it was probably the most brutal."

"How do you figure that?" she asked.

"These men? They're pimps, your honor. They usually raped their...workers. Made sure they could handle it rough or something of the sort. But Kyle...Kyle was new game for them all. He was an innocent plucked off the streets by the matters of his looks. These men weren't used to hearing 'no', so they decided that nothing was going to stop them from getting what they wanted. So they took Ken, held him for ransom, and brought Kyle along."

"Why did they make a tape?"

"It says in here..." he sighed. "I'm well aware that our case isn't until we cycle through his witnesses, but this is just a clear-cut case with this tape, your honor. If it pleases the court, I would like to play it."

The judge looked at Gerald. "Mr. Broflovski, would you object to this?"

He looked from her, to the tape, to Mitch, and back to her. "I suppose not. I'm aware what the reaction of this court will be should I prolong their evidence."

"Very well. Mr. Dodson, go ahead."

"Hold on," he said, looking out into the audience. "Per Kyle's request, I would like some of you to leave. Judge, is that alright?"

She nodded, "Kyle, go ahead and list them."

He sighed. "Girls...take the kids and stay out...please?"

They looked at him and gulped before nodding, gathering Jacob and Kayla and trying to lead them out. Kayla broke away and ran up front past the bailiff and leapt into his arms. "You okay?" she asked, clinging onto him desperately.

"Yeah," he nodded, kissing her head. "Go on. We'll get you some ice cream later, okay?"

She kissed his cheek before Wendy came up and took her from his arms. "I love you," Kayla smiled before Wendy smiled with her, taking her out of the room. Kyle watched after them with shock outlining his features.

"Kyle?" Oliver prodded.

He blinked a bit. "Oh...right." he looked out towards the other side of the audience and sighed. "Mom...Ike...get out."

"I will do no such thing!"

"Ma, please," he pled.

"No, Kyle," she said firmly. He bit his lip and exhaled shakily.

"Fine. Ike. You HAVE to go."

"Why?"

"Because I told you to and I know how to wedgie you until you cry until next week, Ike! Now go!" he trembled with saddened eyes and Ike slowly nodded and stood up.

"Good luck," Ken saw him mouth before he turned on his heel and walked out behind the girls.

"Kyle, is there anyone else?" the judge asked. He looked up at her and back down and sniffed.

"Yes. But they wouldn't leave," he looked towards the group of boys in the front sadly.

"We can't force people out who wish to witness justice."

"I know," he mumbled.

"Mr. Dodson, go ahead," she nodded.

"This is the last call," he warned. "As I said, this is completely unedited. Nothing is hidden from sight. If you can't handle things like this, I suggest you leave now." He looked around, finding everyone glued to their seats, sans Kyle, who was fidgeting around nervously.

"I will say now that any snide remarks will result in immediate expulsion from this court, are we all clear?" Ruth asked of them. They all nodded softly. "Good. Proceed."

Oliver patted Kyle's shoulder before walking over to the tape player that projected onto a larger screen on the side of the room. "Lights, please," he called. The bailiff flicked off the light switch and the tape began with the traditional blue screen. He pressed play and all of a sudden, a road came into view along with husky laughter.

* * *

"-hy always there though?" a voice asked from beyond the camera.

"'Cuz Barney owns it. No one comes there without good reason, Trent, you idiot."

"Don't call me an idiot, it was a question," the camera fell on a tall, burly man with short, curly black hair and mocha eyes. "What's with the camera, Richie?"

"Figured we could use it as a demonstration. Teach our girls what happens should they say no to anybody," he snickered.

* * *

Ken paused. He knew that voice. He squinted in concentration before realizing that it was the third man from the attack on himself and Kyle not long before all this happened.

* * *

"Is this one of Mitch's kids?"

"Nah, he's some little pest we found a few nights ago," Rich responded. "He knocked us all away, so we decided he needed a lesson."

"Awesome," he chuckled darkly. "He could learn a lot from us."

"Exactly." the camera swooped back up, approaching a broken down house. The momentary expanded view showed a sign marked 53rd and Grape right outside the rickety shack.

"What a pigsty," Trent commented. "Never gets old coming here and realizing that I have it better."

"It's not like Barn lives here, you moron," Rich cracked. "It's just where we take our girls for their lessons."

"This kid isn't a girl, though."

"Eh, he's small enough to be one," he laughed. They approached the door and Rich laughed. "Watch this," he whispered. He banged loudly on the door, "POLICE!" he shouted, throwing it open into the room.

"Jesus Christ, you asshole," Barney's voice became apparent. The camera focused on him and Mitch sitting in folding chairs by a small table smoking and with shot glasses in front of them. "I oughta bust your ass for that."

"I'm terrified," he replied, shutting the door and locking it behind him.

"That wasn't cool, Rich," Mitch took a drink. "You almost gave the kid hope."

"Poor thing," Trent fake-cooed. "Where is the little buddy?" They pointed towards a back corner and the camera followed their gesture, coming across a pale, naked form curled up as small as possible.

"Aww, he's shy," Rich snickered.

"Go introduce yourself, he'll be better," Barn smirked. "Kylie," he called. "You have visitors."

The camera walked with Richard and Trent up to the small body. He kept his head down and was shaking just slightly. Trent cupped his chin, bringing his face up to reveal Kyle's shocking green eyes glistening, tear stains running clearly down his reddened cheeks. A piece of duct tape was secured over his lips, a small trail of blood going from his nose over the silver tape that matched the band binding his arms together behind him.

"Hi there," Trent cooed. "Are you the toy today?"

Kyle's eyes dropped away and he shook heavier.

"Don't be shy," Richard played with some of his hair. "You're very pretty."

The Jew's eyes widened and he tried to sink back into the wall before Trent yanked him forward. "Hey, hey, hey," he lectured. "No running from us." He stroked the rouge cheek before pushing him back against the wall and leaning into him. He licked a fresh tear running down his cheek and Kyle let out a small frightened whine, his eyes slammed shut.

Richard shot the camera up towards Mitch and Barney, who were watching in interest. "Can we play?"

"Sure," Mitch chuckled. The camera went flying through the air and was caught by Barney, judging by the lens' perspective. The camera watched as the men drug Kyle out into the middle of the floor and threw him forward. He crashed headfirst, slowly sitting up on his knees and looking up at the men pleadingly. Bruises and blood was shown more profoundly upon his pale frame, the result of hours of endless abuse, no doubt.

"He's small, ain't he?" Richard commented, stroking his hair lightly.

"Not everywhere," Trent smirked, grabbing his exposed cock. Kyle squeaked in pain and tried to close off his legs away from him. Trent leaned down and nibbled on his ear lightly. Kyle's chest erratically rose and fell as he was coaxed down onto his back. Richard held his shoulders down and Kyle cried in pain as the pressure increased. Trent undid his jeans and grasped his cock, slowly pumping it and getting it ready as he bit down on Kyle time and again, eliciting small yelps and sniffs to escape the trapped boy.

"Makin' friends everywhere, aren't you, Kyle?" Mitch laughed from beside the camera. Kyle yelled and tried to wriggle his way out of their hold.

"Hold still," Rich ordered, hitting him across the cheek. Kyle cried out and let out a soft sob as Trent positioned himself at his entrance. The words 'don't', 'no', and 'please' rang clearly from beyond the gray tape. He let out a shrill cry as Trent slammed into him, the sound of his balls slapping against his thigh echoing in the small room. He started sobbing as Trent thrust into him harshly, his back and captured arms scraping against the concrete floor. Richard moved and grasped the tape, ripping it off of his mouth. He screeched in pain before once again being reduced to soft, rapid sobs as Trent continued to drive into him.

Suddenly, the man pulled out and flipped him over onto his knees. He looked up to find Rich's cock in his face. "Come on...," he urged, smearing his precum across Kyle's bloody lips. He pursed his mouth defiantly, only to open it to gasp as Trent slammed back into him. Rich dove into his mouth and choked him, tears spilling down his pale face. Trent grabbed his hair and held on tightly, his fingers threading roughly in the Jew's glowing curls as he continued thrusting. Richard did the same rhythm from his end, Kyle merely taking what they gave to him. He gagged around the skin flying in and out of his throat, a trail of drool starting to cascade down his chin, co-mingling with the tears dripping down his face.

"Tight, ain't he?" Barney laughed.

"Jesus Christ, yes," Trent breathed. "He a virgin or what?"

"Well definitely not anymore," Mitch snickered from the edge.

"Rich, pull out for a sec," Trent nodded. The other man pulled his cock away from Kyle and he coughed a few times, spitting out excess saliva and god knows what else. Trent's grip tightened in his hair and he yanked him up vertically, pulling his back into his clothed chest. Kyle let out soft groans as his speed increased and his hand moved from his hair to hold him around the throat. "Open...," he coaxed, tightening his hold on his neck. The boy's mouth opened slightly before he was invaded by Rich's cock once more. The camera zoomed in on the three, accentuating Kyle's beet red face and shiny tears. It panned downwards, focusing on Trent's cock slamming into him and his small fists clenching in pain. Trent's free hand grasped onto the Jew's hip, leaving crescent-moon markings on the pale skin along an array of other mars surrounding that area.

* * *

The entire room sat and watched in horror as this played out for minutes on end. Ken broke his view away from the screen, looking up at Kyle, who was shaking and hiding his face down on the banister in front of the stand.

He took off his sports coat and grabbed his chair before walking up towards him.

"Mr. McCormick?" Ruth asked softly. He merely nodded at her before making his way over and placing his chair next to Kyle's. She nodded back and turned back to the screen. Ken threw his coat over the trembling boy's shoulders, sitting down next to him and gently rubbing his back. Kyle looked up at him, sniffing lightly. Ken scooted closer and pulled him into his chest, gently stroking his hair and kissing his head softly, trying to ignore the sounds emitting from the tape. Kyle nuzzled into him and clasped his shirt tightly, seeming terrified to let go. Ken rested his chin on the mess of curls below him, diverting his eyes back to the screen.

* * *

Trent's rhythm became much more jarred and random, his grip seeming to tighten on Kyle's throat. Richie noticed and laughed softly, pulling away from Kyle and slapping his cheek with his cock. He grabbed him and pulled him away from Trent, who moved his hand to stroke his own length. Rich whipped Kyle around and forced his face towards the floor, pushing his mouth onto the end of Trent's member. A few quick strokes was all it took before Trent's hips arched up into Kyle's mouth and he released. He stayed as such before he was drained, finally pushing Kyle up back onto his knees. He slammed his hand over Kyle's mouth and smirked.

"Swallow." Kyle made a gulping motion and he pulled his hand off, leaning in towards the boy. "You're pretty special. Getting the attention of four guys like us?" he snickered. "So many girls would kill to be in your position right now. Consider yourself lucky."

Kyle's brows furrowed before he leaned back a bit before flying his head forward, spitting a large gob of spooge into Trent's face. He breathed heavily and shakily, a mess pouring down his chin.

Mitch, Barney, and Rich all broke into laughter as Trent groaned in disgust and tried to get it out of his eyes.

"Looks like Kyle's got a problem with your phrasing," Mitch chortled.

Trent wiped off the remains and scowled, getting to his feet. "Get up," he ordered.

"N-no...," Kyle said in a quavering tone.

"What was that?" Richie asked, standing beside Trent and looking down at him amusedly.

"I...said...no," he gasped out. Trent clucked his tongue and shook his head before reaching down and grabbing his hair, yanking him to his feet as he cried out in pain.

"Did you just refuse us?" he cocked his head. "It sure sounded like it."

"Stop," he pled, trying to wrench out of his grasp. Mitch entered the shot and stood behind Kyle, grasping his arms tightly and leaning his head over his pale shoulder.

"I thought we went over this," he growled lowly, running his fingertips around his collarbone. "You do what we tell you, do you understand?"

"Fuck you!" he screamed, trying to rip away from him, fresh tears rolling down his cheeks. "Just let go!"

"Nah...," he said, trailing his fingers along the back of his neck. "This is too much fun for us, Pretty boy." He took a knife from out his pocket and slashed off the tape bounding his wrists. He ripped off the remains and threw them across the room. Trent grabbed both his wrists and smirked at him.

"I think that punishment is in order, don't you think so?" Barney interjected from behind the camera.

"Oh yes," Rich laughed. Kyle looked between the four of them fearfully before a knife appeared at his throat.

"Walk," Mitch smirked, poking him with the blade. The camera got up and started following as Trent led him forward as he tried to pull the rest of his body back enough so as not to collide with the knife.

"Let go!" he repeated angrily.

"We will in a minute, Red," Mitch assured him. They walked past Ken's unconscious form slumped in the chair, the gag still secured tightly across his mouth.

* * *

Ken looked up at the judge, who was jotting down notes in front of her. His view shifted towards Gerald, who was biting his knuckle anxiously, conversing with Mitch through a paper they slid between the two of them.

* * *

The men led Kyle over to a metal pipe running along the ceiling.

"Here," Barney called out before a pair of handcuffs flew into view. Trent caught them and secured one around Kyle's left wrist.

"Raise your arms," he directed.

"No!"

Mitch sighed and dug the knife into his throat. "Just do it, will ya?" He set his eyes on the ground, his jaw set defiantly. Trent growled and yanked his arms up himself, securing the cuffs over the pipe. Kyle tried to gain solid ground, finding that the pipe was just high enough that he had to stand on his toes to have any chance of keeping his shoulders in their sockets. He tugged on his bindings, finding that he was trapped.

He groaned and tried to break away anyways, the metal digging into his skin. Rich disappeared as he bent down onto the floor before reappearing with Kyle's boxers in his hand. He smirked and balled them up as Trent pried the redhead's jaw open. He shoved them deep into Kyle's mouth, causing him to cough a few times from the sudden intrusion on his throat.

Barney approached him with the camera and chuckled. "Comfy, Kylie?" Kyle's jade eyes slowly raised into the camera, tinging with fury and humiliation. Trent and Rich backed away with Barney, watching as Mitch circled him predatorily, trailing the blade across his skin.

"Say sorry," he ordered in a purring voice. Kyle just furrowed his brow at him before dropping his view to the ground again. Mitch sighed before slapping his cheek, a loud smack echoing around the space. "Look at me." The spot began glowing red as Kyle raised his head to meet stares with the man. "Say you're sorry," he repeated.

"No," he mumbled from behind the gag.

"Do it," Trent nodded at Mitch. The man nodded back before placing the blade to Kyle's hip and digging down, dragging it down to his upper thigh. Kyle screeched and shuddered as the blood began trailing down his leg.

"Come on, Kyle," Mitch growled. He shook his head no, firmly standing in place.

Rich walked up and cupped his chin, forcing his gaze upwards before smirking and landing a blow into his stomach. Kyle's eyes bugged and he gasped for air, his legs seeming to give out from under him. He went out of view for a moment as the camera was handed to Trent for Barney to walk over with the other two.

He grasped Kyle's face and smirked before lightly kissing his temple. He hit his shoulder blade with an audible thudding sound before smacking Kyle's ass and probing him with his finger. Kyle groaned and squirmed trying to break off of the pipe. Barney removed his finger and grasped Kyle's right thigh, lifting it high off the ground. Mitch smirked and ran his blade on the inside of the limb, ending the mark just beside Kyle's manhood. The young Jew's eyes rolled back as he half-sobbed in pain. Mitch leaned forward and kissed his neck, trailing his tongue along his jugular. His knife moved to Kyle's back and quickly swiped down, followed by a shrill shriek from the hostage. The knife continued slashing in quick, small motions in different areas around his back and the back of his thighs.

Richard ran his hand along his back before bring up his fingers, coated in a thin veiling of blood. He smacked Kyle across the face, branding him with the staining crimson. "Apologize," he ordered, taking the gag from Kyle's mouth.

He gasped for air a few times before his gaze fell back down and his chest heaved. "I'm sorry...," he whispered, shaking his head slowly.

"You know what's funny?" Trent asked.

"What?" Barney replied.

"I don't remember what the hell we're making him apologize for," he sniggered.

"Me neither, but damn this is fun," Mitch chuckled. "Aww, he's a mess, look at him." he smirked. The camera moved with Trent to come along to Kyle's backside, covered in several inch-long slashes and blood pouring from them. The camera shifted back to his face, fresh with tears; his cheeks matching the crimson cascading down his back.

"Shakin' like a rattle, too," Rich laughed.

"Please...," he choked out. "Please...."

"Please?" Barney cocked his head.

"Stop...please stop...," he cried, the saline water pouring from off his face down his neck.

"He did say please," Trent smirked.

"Well I guess that means we should," Mitch chuckled, reaching up and uncuffing his left wrist. Kyle's legs gave out and he fell to the ground, the camera following him. He tried to move his hands to gain some ground, slipping on his jeans. A gentle scraping sound was heard as the jeans slid on the floor.

"What was that?" Rich asked.

"Cell phone, probably," Mitch muttered, picking up his discarded jeans and reaching into the right pocket. He pulled out a small electronic device and raised his brow. "What the fuck is this?"

Barney grabbed it and cocked his head. "A glucometer?" he looked down at the boy on his knees. "You a diabetic, Kylie?"

He just stared at the floor, shaking heavily.

"He asked you a question," Trent growled, kicking him in the side.

He gasped as he fell down onto his side and curled up into himself before nodding softly.

The camera panned back up to Barney, who looked between him and the glucometer with slitted eyelids. He looked up at Trent and Richard. "Start the shower. We gotta clean him up."

"Already?" Mitch asked.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Go get it."

"Righto," Trent saluted, walking off into a separate room with Rich following suit. A small bathroom came into view, containing a medium-sized bath at the far end. They walked over and Trent switched it on, sitting on the edge of the tub rim.

"What the hell crawled up Barn's ass?"

"Fuck if I know," Rich sighed. "He's on his period or something. I didn't even get a chance, goddammit," he growled.

"I'm sure you will," Trent snorted. The camera zoomed over as Mitch came dragging Kyle into the room.

"Stop...," he pled, trying to break out of his grip. "No!"

"Come on, Kyle," he growled pushing him back into Rich's grasp.

"No, no don't!" he screamed. Richard pushed him into the tub and held him down by his neck. The steaming water beat on his cuts and he gave a high pitched whine and crossed his arms, bending down at the waistline and sobbing. "It hurts!" he cried.

Trent let out a low whistle. "I can imagine."

"Let me out!" he tried to struggle up and out of the tub. Richard sighed.

"Hold him for a second," he motioned to Trent. He came up, holding the camera still, and pushed on Kyle's back. Richard tore off his clothes, climbing into the tub behind him and regaining his control on the boy. He pushed him into the wall opposite the shower head and held him as he sobbed.

"Trent, c'mon," Mitch motioned. The camera left Kyle and Richard to follow Mitch out of the room.

"What's up?" he asked, approaching Barney, who was looking at the ground with his brow furrowed, looking at the glucometer in his hand.

"Something...something's not right here," he looked up and bit his lip. "This kid should be dead...or at least in a coma or something."

"Why?" Mitch asked.

"This says his blood sugar's at 23. If he's a diabetic especially...he should've been long since passed out."

"Maybe he's holding on for Kenny's sake or something," Mitch shrugged.

"It doesn't matter how much you want to hold on if you're beheaded. You're going to die if you're going to die. He should have been long gone."

"Why'd you check his sugar?" Trent asked.

"He was shaking a bunch. I didn't know if it was fear or a stage of diabetic shock," he shrugged.

Mitch snorted. "Why the concern for his well being all of a sudden?"

"Because how affected he is can increase our chances of getting caught you idiot," he rolled his eyes. "If he falls into a coma from his blood sugar, he'll go to the hospital. Then the doctors will find the marks, then he'll probably tell them what happened. We have to be at least somewhat pre-cautious."

Mitch froze up slightly. "You...you think?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "We need to get him and Ken the fuck out of here. We need to destroy the evidence." They turned their heads as they heard a shrill cry from the bathroom. They ran in, finding Rich holding Kyle down with his head in the water, thrusting into him roughly.

Kyle's fingers scraped uselessly on the porcelain wall in front of him, trying to fight for air. He raised his head and coughed for air. "Stop!" he said before being pushed back down.

"Rich, ease up," Trent instructed. "We can't have him closer to a seizure." Rich cocked his brow, but nodded and loosened up on him, allowing his head to come back and break the surface. He pressed him up into the wall, hitting into him harshly. Kyle just whimpering brokenly, his cheek pressed against the wall, rubbing against the side of the material in time with his thrusts.

Rich grabbed onto him tightly and let out a long groan as he released, the evidence pouring down onto the inside of Kyle's marked thighs. He pulled out of him and ruffled the boy's hair. "All clean," he smirked.

Barney sighed and stepped between Trent and Mitch towards the tub, peeling off his jacket and placing it on the toilet beside the bath. "Come on, Red," he stated. Kyle looked up at him fearfully as Richard stepped out and turned the water off. The man reached down and grasped his arm, hoisting him up onto his feet. He pulled him up and over the tub rim and set him on the tiled floor, kneeling down beside him and grabbing the towel from beside him.

"What?" he blinked at the boy, who was half-smirking at him. The camera fell beside them and watched as Kyle shook with what seemed to be dead laughter. He leaned up and whispered something into Barney's ear before pulling back and laughing shakily.

"What'd he say?" Richard asked, pulling his clothes back on.

Barney blinked at Kyle and then at the men. "He's delusional. We need to get him the fuck out of here before something happens." He pulled a bottle out of his pocket and waved it in front of Kyle. "Do you see this?"

He nodded softly.

"This is makeup. You're going to cover the bruises and keep them covered, do you understand?" Kyle didn't respond.

"Answer!" Mitch yelled. Kyle sniffled and nodded again. Mitch threw his boxers at him and sighed. "Guys, meeting," he jerked his head out towards the door.

"Dry off and get dressed. You can come get your jeans and shirt when you're done," Barney muttered before he and Trent stood and followed Mitch and Richard out of the room.

"What's up, Mitch?" Trent asked, the camera now dangling from his hand by the neck strap lazily.

"We're in deep shit, you realize that?" he said.

"Look, he's still conscious," Barney stated. "He knows that if he goes to the hospital and people find things out, we're going right back for his little lover over there," his hand was seen gesturing to Ken across from the camera's view.

"But what if he does go unconscious?" Mitch asked. "I'm not going to fucking jail for this."

"You won't," Trent sighed.

"Look, I think there's only one solution for this."

"What?" Richard asked.

There was a brief pause. "I say we kill him," he stated simply.

* * *

Ken's eyes widened as he looked over at Mitch, who was staring at Kyle from across the room. He narrowed his eyes at the man and growled. Kyle merely hid his face into the blonde's chest, sniffling.

"Please don't hate me."

"I don't," he assured him, kissing him lightly. "I love you so much."

"Please...please don't...," he repeated, breathing softly into his form. Ken pulled him in closer and wrapped his arms around him.

* * *

"Oh, because that'll make this situation better," Trent commented.

"It will."

"Mitch, how the fuck do you think that we could cover something like that up?" Barney asked impatiently, his arms being seen crossed in the corner of the screen.

"Blame it on Blondes."

"How? How would anyone believe that?"

"Look, this is really simple," he started. "Kyle is small. Ken could very easily be held accountable if he dies, right?"

"True." Trent said.

"After all, it's always the lover they accuse first, right?"

"Yeah," Rich agreed.

"But how does that cover Kenny's wounds?" Barney questioned.

"Defensive," he replied simply. "Kyle was fighting for his life."

"No one is going to believe that. Not one person will be able to think that someone Kyle's size did all that to Kenny," Barn sighed.

"That's why we fill Blondie there with alcohol," he reached over and grasped something before it fell to his waist and was revealed as a bottle of gin. "Drunks can't always fight back the best. He'll wake up with alcohol in the system and stumble around looking for Kyle. He'll go to police and report him missing. The police will note that he was intoxicated and they'll start being suspicious of him."

"What would we do with the body?" Trent interrupted.

"I say we stab him a bunch. Watch any criminal show, they'll tell you that people who murder those they know often stab them more times than necessary to kill them. We'll take him and dump him in the woods or something."

"And if they find Kyle's body?" Barney asked. "I mean, we cleaned him off, but our DNA is bound to still be there."

"Consensual gangbang," he chuckled. "Little Kyle has a whorish side that no one knew about."

Barney sighed, "I don't know if that'd work. They'd convict us before Ken."

"Look, it's either we have him pass out and we no doubt get caught or we kill him and increase our chances of getting away. Not like you've never killed before, Barns."

There was a momentary pause before Barney spoke again. "Fine. Who's going to?" he sighed.

"Trent," Mitch said. "You can handle a knife better than the rest of us. Stab him once and get him dead. Then once he's gone, just keep going. We'll finish him off, throw some of Ken's hair and spit on him and take him to the woods. Then we'll take Blondes and drop him off in a park or something."

"God, this is why we need medical records of the victims first," Richard sighed. They heard a small groaning and a thud, looking over to find Kyle coming out of the bathroom in his boxers and falling to the ground. Trent sighed and handed the camera over to Richard. The man turned and set the camera on the table beside them, leaning against it and looking away with Mitch and Barney as Trent grabbed the knife and headed over towards him, hiding it behind his back.

"Hey, Kyle," he said softly, kneeling down beside him and withdrawing the knife from beside his back. Before he could do anything Kyle whipped something out from behind himself as well and there was a deafening bang.

* * *

The entire room stiffened. That was all-too-familiar of a sound for them.

Ken looked over at Kyle, who was shaking, but managing to keep himself under control. A quick scan showed the shocked expressions of the audience, and was a wake-up to his own feelings. He looked down and saw that both his own and Kyle's hands were shaking.

It only worsened as he brought his eyes back up.

* * *

The men all looked over, completely stunned as they saw Trent fall to the floor with the knife still clutched in his hand, blood leaking from the side of his head, a thin layer coating Kyle's skin in a gory splatter.

"The little fuck has my gun!" Barney shouted.

Richard growled and started to advance on Kyle, but he raised the pistol and once again fired, hitting him in the chest. He stopped and turned slightly before falling to the ground clutching near his heart.

"FUCK!" Barney screamed, running off in the opposite direction. Kyle stood and raised the gun once more before falling to the ground and screaming as another loud bang was heard. Mitch's gun came into view before he put it back in his pocket and knelt down to check on Richard. Barney came up beside him with a bucket of water and a first aid kit, trying to see if he could get Richard back. He held his ear against his chest and backed away slowly. "He's dead."

Mitch's breathing became erratic, almost over powering Kyle's subtle sobs. They moved out of frame, revealing Kyle on the ground, his leg bleeding profusely as he clutched around his thigh and trembled. Suddenly, Mitch came back, attacking Kyle and landing on top of him, his hands clasping around his neck tightly.

"You fucking little shit!" He screamed, pressing down onto his throat and continually slamming his head into the concrete. "You little whore! I'll kill you, do you understand me?!"

Kyle rasped for air, pathetically clawing at his arms in a vain attempt to escape. Before long, he fell limp, shuddering and merely going slack against the cold ground.

"Mitch, he's done," Barney said, shaking his head from Richard's side. Mitch got up and breathed heavily.

"He's still. Not. Dead," he growled. "I want him dead."

"Look, we're in this too deep. We can't do anything more."

"What do we do then?" he asked desperately. "Rich and Trent are gone and this little fucker doesn't seem to want to die!"

"Whether or not he wants to is irrelevant. Look, you shot his thigh, he's not going anywhere. I say we leave him to bleed to death. Then Ken can die as he watches Kyle's body decompose. We can't leave anymore evidence."

"Someone's going to catch the smell eventually."

"We'll come back in a few days," he sighed, getting to his feet, walking over and taking his gun back. "We'll come back...we'll get Rich and Trent out of here...and we'll plan until then, alright?"

Mitch looked down and kicked Kyle's unconscious form. "Fine. Come on. Someone might've heard the shots." They both shakily made their way out past the four unconscious forms and shut and locked the door behind them.

* * *

Oliver paused the video and sighed, looking out at the audience and their shock. "From here, it's all recovery for Kyle." He started fast-forwarding the video. "He woke up and panicked. He had no idea what he'd done until he saw the blood all over himself. He prayed and cried for both Trent and Richard before taking care of himself. He grabbed the knife from Trent, digging the bullet out of his leg," he nodded as the image appeared on the screen. "He used the bucket of water to clean up the blood, the kit to wrap his wounds and the make-up that Barney had given him to cover the obvious bruises. His pants had blood on the back from Trent being shot, but he knew that people would find out he was raped, so he left it to tell that tale. Barney and Mitch had left the keys for Ken's cuffs on the table, so he grabbed them and unlocked them. It took him an hour to drag him from where he was to the door, where he called Stan and told him to get to them because Ken was hurt. No one remembered about the tape. It took a total of over three hours from the time he was shot to him calling for help."

He shut off the player and sighed again. "I myself heard the shots and found this tape, so I went and found Kyle to be his lawyer."

He walked back over to his table and pulled out various plastic bags. "Trent's knife," he demonstrated. "The tape they used to bind Kyle's arms. The gin. The rag Kyle used to clean himself off, his glucometer...there's a lot here," he sighed.

The lights were flipped back on and the court sat in complete silence, staring at the small redhead. He sat in a somewhat stately manner, completely still, staring straight ahead of himself at the door.

Ruth cleared her throat. "I believe...that a half hour rest is called for at this time," she looked out towards her stoic courtroom. "This court rests for a half hour," she banged her gavel. "Go out...clear your heads. Just come back as we near 1 o'clock...," she looked down. "Kyle."

He looked up at her slowly. "You may step down. Please...you can go have some time to think." He looked from her into Kenny's azure eyes before sighing and getting to his feet. Kenny watched as he and Mitch locked stares for a brief moment before Kyle broke away past the blonde, striding slowly, yet strongly towards the door. He looked back at Ken one last time with a saddened expression before pushing open the door and heading out away from the gawkers.

Kenny wanted so badly to jump to his feet and pursue him, but his shock prevented his legs from movement. He finally looked away as the door slammed shut and echoed amongst the silent audience. His eyes widened and his hands shook as his glance fell upon Kyle's chair, with a tsavorite garnet band placed precariously on the cushion.

* * *

_A/N: Weren't expecting that, were ya? _


	50. Reconcile

_A/N: Chapter fifty? Really? And we're STILL not done?_

_No wonder people are frustrated with this story xD_

_...but WOW. Last chapter was apparently very much a win! I was expecting some 'ehs' but the words 'holy' and 'shit' were quite common xDD_

_I didn't realize that Kyle bein' all James Bond-like was so enticing to you guys xD_

_Now then. This raises the point of no, I don't see Ky as completely defenseless. He just had to wait for the right time to strike. He's been my victim this whole time. It was his turn to jump up and fight. Go. Jewboy._

_Anyways._

_Enjoy the commotion as we lead into the ending of ending-ness. Woooooo._

_And, AND: Happy birthdays to some people: tfro97. I don't know your specific bday, but you asked for this beforehand, so here ya go! Happy early birthday, my friend! =D_

_And of course, today is Adrenaline...or ketamine. methanol ...or Tweek...or...You. You're new name is You, You. It's You's birthday today! =D_

_I couldn't give him an oneshot as planned because my attempts sucked donkey balls, but here's an update for ya! Happy birthday, Dude!_

_**Anyways.**__ On with the chapter =p_

* * *

Ken stood up from his seat, taking the ring from off of Kyle's empty chair and staring at it. He heard quiet sobbing and looked up, seeing Sheila trying very hard to keep herself calmed down but failing miserably as tears rolled down her plump cheeks.

He left the stand and walked down towards the front to go follow Kyle, but not before stopping as he was adjacent to Gerald and Mitch's table. He glared at the elder Broflovski. "If I lose my fiance` because of this...we're gonna have some problems," he growled in the midst of the booming silence. He, Stan, Cartman, and Damien all walked over and shoved the door open, looking for the runaway Jew.

"Boys?" Wendy called. "What happened?"

"Where's Kyle?" Ken demanded, looking around for any sign of the redhead.

"He just ran off," Bebe answered, standing up with Ike, Kayla, and Jacob beside her. "He muttered something about a bus and left."

"Fuck, he's running," Stan stated. "We have to get him."

"Come on," Ken motioned his head. "The bus doesn't come for two hours anyways." The boys nodded and followed him out the door. They came across Kyle's fresh footprints in the thin layer of snow, keeping their eyes on the ground as they followed them.

After a long while of awkward tension, Ken let out a soft, choked sob. He shook before blinking his tears back and turning on his heel to look at Damien. "Why didn't you tell us?!" he demanded. "Why wouldn't you tell me?!"

"I wasn't about to go and pry into Kyle's business," he explained softly. "He didn't want anybody to know."

"Why didn't you help him?! You watched them doing all that to him and you never once thought of saving him?!"

"We had to see just ho-"

"How far he would go is obvious, Damien! They...they fucking tortured him and all you did was watch!"

"From a camera," Damien sighed tiredly.

"What?" Cartman blinked.

"Ken, listen to me. I wanted him out. I really did, but my father said it was necessary. But I did all that I could to help him out. And all I could do from that point on was try to find ways to bring these guys to justice. All I could do was keep the camera battery going..." he sighed again. "I did everything I could to keep him conscious and out of a coma. Barney was right, his blood sugar should have killed him, or at least set it so his body would stop and he would already transcend to his second body. I kept him hanging on all that I could. I'm sorry I couldn't do more."

They stared at each other for a minute before Ken broke away and sniffed. "God...how could they do that to somebody?" he asked softly. "How...how can they knowingly hurt someone so much?" he looked back at them with glistening eyes.

"I don't know," Damien replied gently. He placed his hand on the blonde's shoulder. "I have to go home to talk to my father about something. I'll be back soon. Just find Kyle."

He nodded before Damien vanished. The three remaining boys stared at each other, the tension bearing down on them immensely.

"Come on," Stan said. "We better find him."

They nodded and Ken turned again, leading them down the trail of footprints imprinted into the white crystals. He looked up at the sky and felt himself shudder. No wonder Kyle had been so secretive; so distraught...

'_You think that you're getting revenge, but all you get in the end is heartache from your actions.'_

He'd been so careful, never mentioning anybody besides himself, Mitch, and Barney being in the picture.

'_God...he was...he was just like...oh God, Kenny...he was just like them!'_

Not once had he ever said that he himself wanted them hunted down and punished for what they had done to him.

'_I wouldn't say unforgivable, Stan...I mean...yeah, it was...upsetting...'_

He himself had almost no idea of what had transpired as the gun was shot. He was completely derived of himself in that instance.

'_I...I remember just about everything. There were a few points where either my brain wasn't cooperating or I was unconscious, but I remember a lot.'_

It was perhaps the event that caused him to look at his life on a wider spectrum, to push him deeper into his depression and closer into Ken's arms.

'_Think about it. We can't die. I...I wanna know just how far my body can go. What's the limitation on a human's life? Where does it finally stop? I haven't tried anything...but just the idea of seeing how far I could take it...it just makes it all the more captivating.'_

'_Kenny, I'm not going to hurt myself like that again. If I wanted to, I would have taken those steps already. I wouldn't have let you bring me back. I'm here because goddammit I want to be with you, alright?'_

He was scared. He was completely terrified of Ken's reactions. Of everyone's reactions. So he hid. He lost his story a few times in the process, subtle differences that would have led anyone observant enough to be suspicious.

'_Kyle said that they just left afterwards.'_

'_They passed out....I got the keys for your cuffs, called Stan, dragged you out of the place, and just waited.'_

Ken bit his lip and sniffled as he thought of everything that Kyle had told him. Of how he never wanted him to know what had happened, for fear of the blonde leaving him. As said blonde looked at the ring clutched in his hand, he merely bit his lip.

Kyle really thought it was over. He thought everything was done.

Kenny froze as another thought entered his mind:

'_How can you protect someone from themselves?'_

"Come on," he motioned his head to the two trailing him before breaking off into a run. They followed behind him, their feet pounding against the cold, hardened ground in a mash of sounds. If Kyle thought things were bad before, there was no doubt that he believed it to be worse now. There was no telling just what he would do.

He looked to his right, seeing that they were passing through the old neighborhood. He raised his brow back at the other two, who looked just as confused. The bus station was on the other side of town. Where the hell was Kyle going?

He slowed as he came across the sight of a small redhead curled up into himself on the ground, leaning against a sign pole. He looked around, recognizing the bus stop from when they were kids. The three of them looked at each other briefly before swallowing and stepping forward. Ken came right up beside him and looked out towards the road.

"Don't you think you're a little old to ride the bus?" he asked, looking back down on him. Kyle sniffed and tried to curl up tighter. He sighed and plopped down on the ground next to him, Cartman taking his left and Stan sitting on the other side of the pole by Kyle. A few moments of silence passed before Stan sighed.

"Ky, you gotta look up sometime."

"No I don't," he mumbled from his concealed lips.

"Come on, talk to us," Ken coaxed, brushing some of his unruly curls back. "We just want to talk, Kyle."

He lifted his head from his arms, his eyes glimmering and bloodshot. "Why are you here?" he asked, trembling.

"Because you ran out and I promised I'd protect you," he shrugged. "Hard to do that when you're not there."

"Why would you protect someone like me?" he cried, a few tears cascading down his cheeks. "I...I..."

Ken wiped away the water and sighed. "Kyle, not one person in that room blames you for what you did."

"I do."

"Well you shouldn't, Stan interjected. "Kyle, Ghandi would have done what you did, alright? Don't beat yourself up over it."

Kyle looked from him to Kenny and sniffled. He looked past the blonde to the heavyweight beyond him. "What about you?" he choked out. "Where's the 'murderous Jew' commentary?"

"Even I can tell that's the last thing you need right now," he raised his brow. "I'll wait a few weeks and come up with some good material then."

Kyle just sighed and looked away, staring at the road past his curled-up knees. "None of you were supposed to know," he mumbled miserably. "I didn't want you to know...or anyone else..." his voice cracked and he buried his face again and cried lightly. "Now everybody does! God, I shouldn't have done that!" he screamed.

"Kyle, they were going to stab you to death," Stan said. "You would've been hurt way worse. They might have found out about your powers and everything because you wouldn't have died! You killed two people who were going to kill you. That's a fair trade in my book."

"Yeah," Cartman and Ken nodded.

A small pause came in-between them. Kyle looked up and stared across the road. "He knew," he whispered.

"Who's he?" Ken cocked his head. "Knew what?"

He looked at him. "I'm a horrible person," he croaked. "I...You...Barney...," he mumbled.

"What about him?" Stan asked.

"Ken...didn't kill...Barney...," he said slowly, looking at the ground.

"Uh...I'm pretty sure I did," Ken raised his brow. "Remember? Irretrievable and internal bleeding and all that?"

"No...no...," he shook his head robotically. They stared at him expectantly. "I did it," he finally whispered.

"Kyle, he was holding you down," Cartman rolled his eyes. "Ken was the one who-"

"NOT LIKE THAT!" he yelled, looking over at the boy angrily. "I told him. I...when he pulled me out of the shower....I told him that we could see ghosts. That I had the power to speak to and see the dead...," he trembled. "I killed him. Ken held the gun but I put it there in the first place."

"He thought you were delusional...." Kenny gulped before looking up at the crying Jew. "Kyle. Look at me, please?" He flickered his emerald eyes towards him. "I don't care about what you did," he said firmly.

"I killed three men and that doesn't bother you?" he sniffed.

"We've all killed people, Ky," Stan lied on his back and sighed. "We had a fucked up childhood, remember."

"Yeah, really. So you shot some people, big whoop," Cartman snorted. "I ground people up and made them into an entree`."

"But you're an asshole," Kyle sighed, lowering his legs and sitting Indian-style. "You thrive on vengeance...I don't. I'm supposed to think things through...and act accordingly."

"I'd say what you did was pretty damn according," Ken commented. "They raped you for four hours. I would've lost it after that, too."

"I would've found a knife and turned on 'em at the mention of them attacking me," Cartman gruffed.

"Same," Stan nodded. He looked up at Kyle and smirked. "And you know what a peace-loving hippie I am."

Kyle let out a small cough of a laugh before shaking his head disbelievingly. "Why are you doing this? What I did was wrong!"

"No, it wasn't," Ken assured him. "What they did was wrong. What you did was justifiable. Well, aside from one thing. I can't fucking believe that you did it, but you did and I'm pretty pissed about it."

"What?" Stan cocked his brow. Ken smirked at the trembling redhead and displayed his ring in his fingers.

"Mind telling me why you took this off?"

"I...I didn't think that you would w-want...," he stammered, completely dumbstruck. Ken laughed softly and grasped his left hand, sliding the ring back on.

"I told you that I love you and that nothing would change that...and I meant it. All this has proven to me is a few things."

"What?" he blinked.

"You're a fighter. You're controlled. I finally know why you were so terrified and why you were so secretive. And above all, I found out that you want to live," he smiled wider. "You wouldn't have done that if you were still on your suicidal phase."

He raised his brow. "I already told you I wasn't."

He kissed his hand softly. "You were so hidden from me on this whole thing, Kyle. I didn't know what to think about the whole suicide scenario. But now I know that you really don't want to leave me. And I don't want you to leave me...so I think you better keep the damn ring on."

Kyle blinked at him slowly. "You...you still want me? Even after seeing all that?"

He nodded. "My decision never changed for a second. Kyle, that doesn't matter. What matters is our future," he leaned up and kissed his forehead softly. "Surprise twenty-one." he whispered before pecking him again. Kyle pulled back and looked at him with glittering eyes. They slowly faded into a gorgeous rose and he kissed Kenny back before looking at him shakily.

"I love you...that's why I never told you..."

Kenny chuckled lightly. "I know, Babe. No more secrets. I'm right here for you, alright?"

He nodded softly. "Okay. Then I have to tell you that you're a terrible cook."

He laughed loudly, "That's not a secret, but it's a start," he winked. He sighed and took Kyle into the crook of his arm before lying them both on their backs, Cartman following suit.

"Why'd you come out here anyways?" Stan asked, looking at Kyle.

"I think I was hoping a time machine would pop out of nowhere," Kyle muttered. "Remember when we were kids and we would always be here?...Things just seemed easier. We'd do whatever we wanted to, did all kinds of insane stuff...but it just seemed so routine."

"Now everything has a purpose," Ken nodded in agreement with him. "We can't just do whatever and go on crazy adventures."

"We have to actually think about what we do when we do it and how it'll affect us," Stan sighed.

"I hate growing up," Cartman finished.

"Yeah," the other three muttered in agreement.

"We did a lot of crap back then," Stan laughed softly. "Saving people, taking down government conspiracies, meeting celebrities...now all we do is fill out college applications, beat off psycho-rapists, and have trials about a neighborhood tragedy."

"God, how many times have we been in a courtroom?" Ken groaned.

"Too many times, it was almost always because of Cartman," Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Whaddya mean by that, Jew?"

"You sued me for sexual harassment," Stan said dryly.

"You tried to make me suck your balls," Kyle added. "Which by the way, I'd still aptly refuse."

"You're a fag, they're all the same to you," he retorted.

"Nope, only ones he can put a claim to are mine," Ken winked, kissing Kyle's temple.

They all sighed together before Stan chuckled lightly. "What?" Kyle looked over at him. Stan met stares with the three of them, a grin spread over his face.

"Did anyone else learn something today?"

"Oh Jesus Christ," Cartman rolled his eyes and went back to staring at the pale grey sky. Ken and Kyle laughed with the black-haired boy.

"I think we all did," Ken smiled warmly. "What did you learn, Stan?"

"I think I learned that secrets are secrets for a reason. You didn't want us taking off after Mitch and we should have listened to you, or at least have found a better way to go about it. You shouldn't have had to be basically put on exhibit for the town. I think we scarred everybody's mind for the rest of their lives...your parents especially," he looked over again and grinned at Kyle. "But now we got that freak away from you for sure."

The redhead nodded softly. "Yeah...thanks, you guys," he said, looking up at the clouds. "I think I learned just the opposite, though."

"Whaddya mean?"

He laughed. "I think I learned that secrets shouldn't be the driving force behind who I am and what I do. I need to be more open about what happens, because otherwise it drives me fucking insane. I was completely sheltered when I didn't come out when I found out I was gay. I committed suicide when I was secretive about Ken. I was secretive about this whole thing and just look at what happened. But coming out, getting with Ken, and even this whole thing being played out...as embarrassing and humiliating as it was, I can honestly say I'm happy that it's finally out in the open. I feel like I can finally get back on the right foot and on with my life, ya know?"

"Yeah," Ken nodded happily. "I'm glad for that."

"What did you learn, Po'boy?" Cartman looked at him boredly.

"I thought that you weren't participating," Kyle smirked at him.

"It's either this or fall asleep," he shrugged.

Ken laughed lowly before staring at the sky in thought. "Hm. I think that I learned...I think this whole damn thing has taught me that I'm a completely different person than I used to be. That I'm totally changed and for the better."

"How so?" Stan asked.

"When they were talking about my criminal record...my thoughts focused on the fact that I would never even consider doing any of that shit again. Then watching everyone freak out when I announced that me and Ky are engaged made it sink in more than anything: I'm getting freakin' married. I don't know what the hell happened, but I guess I've grown up a hell of a lot more than I realized. I think I learned that everything's changing and life definitely isn't as exciting and adventurous as before, but it's still getting better everyday."

"How is it getting better?" Cartman scoffed. "You two are freaks of nature, you've been attacked, Kahl's been a walking pile of secrets, and you're in the middle of a court case. Where's the better part of that?"

He looked over at him and smirked. "Because. When this is all said and done, sometime in the future, me and Ky are getting married," he squeezed the Jew's shoulders. "We have Jacob and Kayla now, he's goin' to college, I'm gonna plan my own future...things are just gonna get better. Screw the bumps we seem to keep hitting, what matters is the big picture."

Kyle smiled up at him. "That was beautiful, Dude."

"Yeah, I have a great inspiration for it," he grinned back, kissing his lips sweetly.

"Gay," Cartman called out.

"Well duh, you idiot," Stan scoffed as Kyle and Ken continued to kiss. They pulled back and sighed softly together. Kyle sat up slowly and looked across the road in deep thought.

"What's up, Ky?" Kenny asked.

"My parents...they watched that whole thing...," he said monotonously before looking back down on him. "Do you...what do you think my father...," he trailed off and bit his lip. They all three sat back up with him.

"Kyle, they aren't going to judge you for this," Stan said firmly. "No one on the planet would. It was all in self defense. You told me that it's okay for Jews to kill in self-defense, right?"

"But I didn't even know that Trent had the knife," he retorted.

"Doesn't matter. After everything he did to you, it was self-defense," Ken reassured him. "Same for the other dude too. You're cool. Your parents will be cool, I promise."

He snorted. "Yeah. My mother. Cool. You let me know how that works out."

"You may wanna see for yourself since it's time to head back," Damien's voice came from behind them. They turned around and stared back at him.

"Already?" Stan questioned.

"Yeah," he nodded before looking at Kyle. "You okay?"

He shrugged. "I'm...disappointed. But I'll live...I guess."

He chuckled lightly. "That you will. Come on," he mentioned towards himself. The boys stood and Kenny made a grab for Kyle's hand, holding tightly as they walked over to him before fading back to in front of the courthouse. They took deep breaths and walked back in. The room stopped and stared at the small Jew as he walked up the way to his seat. He cringed lightly, but kept a steady pace.

"Head up to the stand, Kyle," Ruth nodded softly. He nodded back, separating his hand with Kenny's as the blonde turned to sit back down in his seat at the table. "This court returns to session," she declared, banging her gavel. "Mr. Dodson?"

"I have nothing to ask him," he shook his head. "I think that the video spoke for itself, did it not?"

"Alright, but I have questions of my own," she stated. He nodded and sat back in his seat. She looked down at the redhead and sighed. "Kyle Broflovski."

"Yes?"

"You swore to an oath to tell the truth, did you not?"

"Yes, Ma'am," he nodded.

"Then please explain why not one detail of that video was presented to the court by word of mouth."

He blinked at her. "Everything I said was the truth," he replied softly. "No one asked if it was only Mitch and Barney...I just...I didn't want anyone to...to know...," he looked down guiltily.

"You killed two men and you didn't report it to anyone? What of their families, Mr. Broflovski?"

"They didn't have any," he sniffed, tucking a curl behind his ear.

"And how do you know this?"

"I looked," he shrugged. "I...I made sure that they didn't have anyone left behind. I work in the library and I was able to pull up records on them. No living relatives..."

"And if they did have them?" she pressed.

He looked back up at her. "I would have told them what I had done," he said steadily. "I'm not completely without a conscious."

"You let them do these things to you...why did you snap when you did?"

"I heard the words 'dead' and 'Ken'. I thought they were going to kill him, not me. I...I panicked. Barney left his jacket in the bathroom and he kept a gun in his inner pocket. I saw the barrel as I was drying off and decided to grab it."

"Mr. Dodson told us that you were not aware of what was happening, is this true?"

"I was at the time. But my body was on autopilot," he explained tiredly. "I did it without truly realizing that I was pulling a trigger. Then once I woke up, I realized that I was covered in blood and there were two dead men on the floor."

"What did you do then?" she asked softly.

"I...I cried...," he breathed shakily. "And I...I prayed for them to be forgiven and for me as well. I had no right to take people's lives and I know that."

"You believe that what you did was wrong?" she blinked.

He nodded. "They were...I was not...," he sighed in aggravation. "This was...the worst experience of my life by a long shot. I've never been so disgusted or hurt or scared before...but they were just using me as a toy. As of then, I didn't know their intentions were to stab me to death. My brain just kept saying that they hurt me and I needed to get even....but killing them didn't make things even in my opinion....," he looked down and sniffed. "I'm still here. I have the chance to make up for what I did. They don't get that opportunity."

"You think that they would try to repent?"

"I don't know. They could try."

She took off her glasses and sighed. "Kyle...I can tell you right now that I see your actions as...let's say justifiable. You were a hostage and you merely did what you could to get out. However, I'm curious. How on Earth did you keep your wounds a secret?"

He sighed and ran his fingers through his curls. "The cuts were easy to hide. I just wrapped myself up and wore some loose shirts for awhile. I never let anyone see my back or legs. The bruises...I kept that bottle of foundation that Barney told me to use. My bruises were mostly under my clothing, so I only had a few on my face to cover up. Not too hard."

"What of the gun wound?"

He paused for a moment. "Well, they all thought that I was sore from the rape. Which I was, but I could still somewhat move afterwards. I just let them all think that that's why I couldn't walk. I...I got a doctor at the hospital to stitch me up at my desecration."

"What was this doctor's name?"

"I don't know," he shook his head. "I told him that I punctured my leg on some of the hospital equipment and he patched me up for free so I wouldn't sue...," he looked away and sighed. "I could somewhat walk not long afterwards...I just never told anybody that it was only my one leg that didn't want to cooperate."

"Kyle...if you could go back during this...monstrosity," she gestured towards the screen. "Would you do anything different?"

He looked at her steadily. "I don't think so. I had...nightmares for months. I became absolutely terrified of everything...but if I were already there and I couldn't get Ken out still...nothing would be different. It's not like I could fight them or something."

"Would you bring police?"

He shook his head. "No. I didn't know what they would do if I'd brought help and I don't want to know. They had weapons, they could have used them more so if I'd decided to take the risk."

"Do you believe you should be punished for the action you took, Kyle?"

He paused and looked down for a long moment. "I...I don't know. I keep wondering what other people would do if they had a gun in their hand. Everytime...I can see someone else shooting them. I had the chance to escape and I took it. God may punish me one day but until then...I'll live with the guilt on my own unless someone decides to take it further..." he trailed off and gulped.

"Well, I'm pretty sure no court on this planet would convict you for this tape," she smiled softly at him. "Kyle, is there anything you want out in the open before we move on?"

He raised his eyes and met them with Ken before shifting his view over towards Mitch, who was looking back steadily. "I don't hate you," he said softly. "Everyone else might, but I don't. I'm sorry I killed your friends...but I'm not sorry I killed people who hurt me like that. I honestly didn't want this thing to happen. I was perfectly willing to just let it all go so neither of us would have to tell anything...," he sighed. "You ruined your own chance to get off free like you wanted. Don't blame me for this, because you're the one who came back. I don't want you dead, I just want this over and done with so I can finally fucking move on...," he trailed off again and trembled. "I'm not happy being in the limelight like this and neither are you. So let's just get this fucking thing over with so we can both move the fuck on," he shook more visibly.

Ruth nodded. "Thank you, Kyle...step down." He slowly moved to his feet and shuffled back over to his seat. Ken wrapped his arms around him and kissed his temple as he snuggled into his chest. "Mr. Broflovski?" Ruth looked at Gerald.

He looked from Mitch to Ruth and shook his head. "No...no, we're done."

"Very well," she nodded approvingly. "Mr. Dodson? Would you like to begin the defense's case?"

"We have nothing else to give," he shrugged. "Defense rests as well."

"Alright. Before the closing statements, Mitchell Derrick, do you have anything to say in your own defense?"

He looked up at her and got to his feet. "I suppose I don't," he said gruffly.

"Can you give this court any indication of why one would ever commit such a heinous crime?" she pressed.

"We wanted something. So we got it," he stated simply. "We made a rule. No one tells us no. Kyle was the first one to say no. So we did what we found necessary."

"You find that kidnapping and brutal assault was necessary?" she repeated.

"Yes," he nodded sharply. "And he got his revenge."

"He doesn't think of it as revenge, Mr. Derrick."

"It was, everyone here knows it," he rolled his eyes.

"Why did you go after him again, Mr. Derrick?" she asked lowly.

He looked over at the emerald-eyed boy. "He killed Barney. I wanted my own revenge. I was going to grab him and kill him because he took three lives of his own, I had every right to retaliate."

"How did you know of Barney being killed by the boys, Mr. Derrick?"

He smiled demonically. "Barney told me," he laughed. The courtroom looked at him in complete confusion. "He told me who had killed him...and how...and how I had to find Kyle and take our revenge. So I did."

She blinked at him. "No further questions," she said quietly. He sat back down, that sadistic grin still overshadowing his face. "Mr. Broflofski...your closing statement, please," she nodded.

Gerald looked from his client to the judge and blinked before getting to his feet and trailing up towards the front. "Ladies and Gentlemen," he started, "I started this off with asking you to think. And I still ask that of you. I ask you that you look back on that evidence you saw and think about what they're claiming. This case was for the abduction of Kenneth McCormick and the rape of Kyle Broflovski. But notice how no evidence was shown that Mr. Derrick actually committed either of those crimes. He was not shown taking Ken, he was not shown raping Kyle, correct? So if anything, his largest proven crime was that of threatening and knife and gun wounds. I mean, we all watched as Kyle stammered through his testimony, as he lied and said that it was only Barney and Mitch. How can we be sure of anything in this case? How can any of you be positively certain that he was indeed involved in what he's being accused of? Perhaps he was merely the brute who stood by and made sure that Kyle didn't get away from the others, hm? You have to look at things on a wider scale. After all, not one person suspected that Kyle had killed those other two men, how can anyone say that they know for sure that Mitchell played part in the raping? Just think about it," he nodded briskly. "Defense rests."

Ruth sighed and shook her head softly. "Oliver, please," she nodded at him/

He stood and patted Kyle's shoulder before heading onto the floor. "Really?" he started, walking to the jury. "You can really think that Mitchell didn't play part in this? Even if he didn't, what was he doing just sitting there, watching Kyle being violated as such? You really think that Barney did all that himself? No. If you re-watch that video, you hear him say certain things, act certain ways to indicate that he indeed played just as much a part in Kyle's torture as anyone else in that room sans Ken," he said firmly. "No one not completely involved would just sit there and laugh as my client was raped. No one who didn't already have a guilty conscious would just stand by, only to move when told to cut the kid. Mr. Broflovski wants you to think? Well so do I," he stated briskly. "Anyone with sensible judgement could see that this man went all out against both Ken and especially Kyle and deserves to suffer for his crime. Kyle hid the truth for the fact of he didn't know what to say. This man is hiding the truth for the fact of that he doesn't want to get caught. I'm asking you to look at what we showed you, to see that we showed you that tape for a reason. That man has damaged these boys beyond comprehension and is just trying to slide it off his shoulders and claim his innocence? Please, follow Mr. Broflovski's advice and think, Ladies and Gentlemen. This is too important to just brush off. Prosecution rests."

"Very well," Ruth nodded. "The Jury will begin their deliberations now," she banged her gavel. The twelve men and women filed out to the side of the jury box and headed down and out a door. As they left and shut the door behind them, Michaels sighed. "As the jury deliberates, you are free to move about the room and talk, but not of this case, are we understood?"

They all nodded. "Alright, go ahead," she nodded at them before looking down at her notes. The room was silent for a moment before small murmurs began echoing around the room.

"You alright?" Ken asked Kyle.

"No," he sighed, leaning into him and sniffling. Kenny cradled him and gently kissed his head time and again.

"Kyle?" a woman's voice appeared. They looked up to see Sheila staring down at them. He sniffed again and pulled away from Ken, but grabbed his hand.

"What?"

She reached down and ran her fingers along his cheek. "Kyle...," she repeated, shaking her head. "Kyle, baby..."

He frowned and pulled away from her. "What do you want?" he demanded.

"I...I..." she stammered. "Kyle...Bubbeh..."

"Don't. Call. Me. That," he hissed, standing and backing up with Ken towards Stan and Cartman's seats.

"But...but...," she blinked back tears.

"Don't try to apologize now," he said firmly.

"Kyle...," she sniffled. "I love you..."

"I'm sure," he drawled sarcastically. Ken looked around, seeing the courtroom staring at the two redheads brawl. "Because love equals booting out of the house, right? I didn't realize that love meant that we don't respect each other and that it's one way or the highway. Forgive me for being so naive," he snarled.

Gerald joined her side and they blinked at him. "And YOU," he growled at the man. "How fucking dare you! I understand that you're greedy, but of all the things in the world to do, you fucking do this to me?!" he gestured around the room spastically.

"I have a job, Kyle," he retorted lowly.

"There are other lawyers in this town, Dad. You didn't have to take this case on!"

"I never turn people down and you know it!" he yelled back.

"This should have been your exception!" he screeched.

"You! Mister!" a small voice chirped up. They looked to see Kayla tromping over and glaring at Gerald. She walked over and tugged on his jacket. "You be nice to Kyle! Your his daddy! Daddy's shouldn't be mean!"

"Kayla, come here," Kyle said gently, pulling her over to him and scooping her into his arms. Ken took up Jacob and they all four glared at the elder Broflovskis. Ike came over and stood beside Kyle, his expression set the same.

"You don't understand, Kyle...," Sheila sniffed. "We...we didn't...we raised..."

"You can't raise me to be straight, Mom," he sighed. "In actuality, you couldn't raise me to be Jewish either. But that's who I am so I stayed as such. I found that I'm more comfortable worshipping Moses than I am Jesus so I stayed a Jew. But I also found that I'm more comfortable with guys than I am with girls....," he sighed as Kayla snuggled into his shoulder. "You kicked me out just because I wasn't what you wanted for the first time in my life."

"We kicked you out because you dishonored our family, Kyle," Gerald lectured.

"Dishonored?" He repeated. "Rabbi Wertheimer was cool with it."

"That I was," the man's voice arose from behind them.

"You just didn't like that you didn't have your little puppet strings all still attached to me," he glared. "I was everything you wanted except for that one little area and you went ballistic on me."

"We supported you, at least," Gerald crossed his arms. "We very easily could have just pushed you aside and not given you the aide."

"And I do appreciate that, I suppose," he glowered. "But...you just don't understand where I'm coming from at all," his face dropped into a saddened expression.

"And what's that?" Sheila cocked her head. Kyle looked between Ken and the kids and laughed in disbelief.

"You...you really don't see it?" he shook his head.

"He's happy," Stan interjected, hopping over the bench and standing beside the small Jew. "He's finally fucking happy, Sheila."

"With what?" Gerald sighed. "He's seventeen and already planning on getting married? Just how are you planning on affording this little thing of yours?"

"We aren't doing it until we're damn well ready," Ken growled. "We're engaged but that doesn't mean we're runnin' to Vegas to get hitched. We're gonna wait until our feet are on the ground. And now with the kids, it'll take longer, but we'll get there one day."

Sheila and Gerald blinked in disbelief. "These...these children are yours?!" Sheila exclaimed.

"We adopted them," Kyle said softly as Kayla grasped onto him and nuzzled into his suit. "We found 'em not too long ago and decided that we wanted to keep them."

"Kyle...you're seventeen!" she protested.

"And I'm more responsible than you seem to think I am," he said firmly. "Me and Ken are doing well. We both have jobs, our place is always clean, there's food always on the table. We're not just two stupid kids trying to make it on spaghetti-o's and our parent's pocketbooks. Believe or not, we're both adults. I certainly don't need you to hold my hand. Not like you ever did in the first place."

"We're your parents," Gerald growled.

"I wouldn't know it," he retorted.

"You are still a Broflovski whether you like it or not, Kyle!"

"Not once me and Ken are married," he snarled back. "I'll be a McCormick. I'm done with you and I'm done with pretending to be your son!"

His words and furious breathing echoed through the room as his parents stared at him. "You're...you're taking his name?" Sheila bit her lip and trembled.

"As far as I'm concerned, I never fucking was a Broflovski," he glared. "I don't know why all this trial shit made me so upset," he laughed humorlessly. "Everything about this has taught me that you don't respect me and you don't deserve mine."

"Kyle...we love you," Sheila tried, shaking her head. "We thought that...that you were..."

"What?" he demanded.

"You were ready to be on your own," she said, a few tears rolling down her cheeks. "We couldn't teach you anything else...we knew that you could make it...and you coming out was an excuse to get you on your own."

"That's the biggest crock of shit I have ever heard," he glowered.

"No, she's being honest, Kyle," Gerald sighed. "At first, yes, it was because you came out. But we kept making those payments because we saw that you were succeeding. We...we really don't care that you're gay, to be honest. I kinda figured since you never had a girlfriend or mentioned any," he shrugged.

"Then why are you here?" Ken gritted his teeth. "If you're okay with him, then why are you cross-examining your own son?!"

He looked around before leaning in closer to the boys. "I honestly wasn't expecting to get anywhere," he said softly. "Why the hell do you think I pulled out random doctors? I was taking this case down from the inside-out. But then I pulled out the no evidence and I had to go with it. I didn't mean for it to actually start working."

Kyle pulled back and blinked at him. "You...you didn't want..."

"You really think I'd let someone who hurt my son get away with it?" he quietly raised his brow. "I figured that should anyone take this on, it should be me so you'd have a better chance of winning."

"You were fighting for...for me?" he blinked confusedly.

"Always," he nodded. "I just wasn't expecting my one stance to be so convincing...," he trailed off and sighed. "My closing statement there was pretty lame, dontcha think?" he grinned crookedly. "You have to admit that that was probably the worst argument I could have given."

Kyle shook his head slowly. "I...I don't understand this at all. Why are you...why did you act so...you came to the library and scowled and...and demanded that someone else take care of you...what was that?"

"A pretty good facade apparently," he chuckled. "Kyle, if you knew I was on your side, you'd be too comfortable, right?"

"I...I suppose so..."

"And those books I got were on reverse psychology. I figured that the more of a bad person I made you seem, only to destroy my own statements with witnesses who claimed you were good, you'd have a better chance. Why do you think I went the rabbi, your doctor, Eric, Joe, and then Stan? I finished with the person who'd put you on the highest note aside from Ken," he crossed his arms.

"Hold it, hold it, hold it," Cartman broke in. "So this was all deceitful Jew magic?"

"Shut up!" Kyle yelled, kicking him in the shin. He yelped and hopped on one foot. Red shook her head and helped him sit in a chair after smacking his head.

"What about at the hospital?" Stan glared at them. "You...you looked at him...lying there bleeding and half-dead...and you just shrugged it off."

"We're horrible people," Sheila sniffed, pulling a tissue from her pocket and dabbing her eyes. "We...we didn't know what to do. We overreacted."

"I'd say," Wendy crossed her arms. "Kyle was really hurt."

"We know," Gerald looked from her to Kyle sadly. He sighed heavily. "There's nothing we can really do anymore...except ask that you forgive us somehow."

Kyle blinked at him, then Sheila, and up to Ken. He smiled softly. "I...I guess I can't be that angry. Well, I can be, but I won't. After all...had you not done what you had done...I wouldn't have gotten Kenny," he grinned gently at them. Because you told me to get out, I got engaged," he laughed. "Kinda...a strange turn of events...but I think it worked out for the best," he stroked Kayla's back as she yawned.

"Kyle...," Sheila came up and brushed his hair out of his face. "I'm sorry."

"I know," he nodded. "But I'm still taking Ken's name."

"Can I ask why?" Ken looked over and smiled widely. "Not that I'm not ecstatic, but I'm curious."

He smirked. "I like my name with yours better than yours with mine. And besides, you're not Jewish."

"I'd convert for you," he leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"Don't," he smiled. "I like you like you are," he kissed him back softly. They pulled away and looked at Gerald and Sheila, who were smiling gently at them.

"Hello, Honey," Sheila smiled at Kayla and Jacob. They hid their faces into the boys and they laughed. "What's your name?" she brushed Kayla's hair back a bit.

She looked over a bit from Kyle's chest and sniffed. "Kayla."

"What a gorgeous name," she cooed. "And you?"

"J-Jacob...," he blushed.

"They're adorable," she smiled. "Where did you find them?"

"On the streets," Ken shrugged. "They're orphans. We took 'em back to the orphanage for them to be taken care of, but we got kinda attached after a few days so we decided to keep 'em."

"Well they are precious," she grinned. "Kyle, can you put her down for just a moment?"

He blinked before handing her off to Stan.

"What?" he asked. She stepped up and embraced him gently.

"I do love you, Bubbeh," she swayed him back and forth. "I do. I...I don't want you to hate us." He blinked for a moment before sighing, bringing his arms up and returning her hug.

"I don't hate you, Ma," he said.

"You do," she cried into his chest.

"No, no I don't," he assured her. "I'm...upset. But I don't hate you. I really don't have enough justification to hate you now that I've heard all this. I don't know if all of it is true...but I'm going to choose to believe it just because I can't fucking keep this crap up anymore."

"Every word is true, Kyle," Gerald claimed, walking up and patting his shoulder. He looked up at him with his chin rested on his mother's head.

"I can't say that I trust that completely, Dad."

"And I don't expect you to," he nodded. "We've...we've got a lot of ground to cover."

"Well, one step at a time, hm?" he smiled gently at him.

"That's how us Broflovskis do it," he winked. "Step by step to the beat of our drums."

Ike broke in and hugged his mom and brother tightly. "Now I'm not the only one that's gonna be yelled at!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah, but I can choose to not answer the phone," Kyle smirked at him.

"Do that and I'll hunt you down," he stuck his tongue out at him.

"Ooh, big tough Canadian," he mocked. "Imma scared," he winked, pulling back and sighing. "This has...definitely been an interesting few months."

"Yeah," Ken agreed, handing Jacob to Sheila and wrapping his arms around Kyle's waist and holding him closely. "Best few months of our lives though, hm?"

He chuckled and leaned his head back. "Yeah...videotapes aside," he shot a quick glare towards Mitch, "I wouldn't trade this for anything."

"Even for all the pasta in the world?"

He laughed, reaching up and grasping the pendant around Ken's neck. "Even for pasta," he said softly. Ken leaned down and kissed his forehead.

"Love ya, Ky."

"Love you, too," he smirked. "You sissy."

"Yeah, you turned me totally gay. I hope you're proud of yourself."

"Damn straight I am," he giggled. Ken laughed and played with Kyle's hair a bit.

"Seriously, I do."

"I know," he smiled gently. "Trust me, I know." He nuzzled back into him and breathed deeply.

"So," Sheila started. "What kind of wedding are you boys planning on?"

They looked at each other then to her and shrugged. "We have no idea," Kyle stated. "The whole conflicting religion thing may come up later, but we'll take care of it when we decide that we're ready."

"How long do you think that'll be?" Ike asked.

"I'm ready to kiss my bride right now," Ken smirked. "But we're gonna hold off until we're financially...not dead," he laughed.

"We'll help pay for it," Gerald smiled. "We have no qualms with that."

"Thanks, Dad," Kyle smiled softly at him. "I really do appreciate that."

"Yeah, well, I'm your dad, it's my job," he shrugged. Ken squeezed his waist and grinned down on him. Kyle looked back up in his eyes and returned the expression.

They looked up as the jurors came piling back into the room and scurried back to their seats. Everyone watched in anticipation as they filed in and filled their chairs once more, their expressions unreadable.

"Welcome back," Ruth nodded. "Stand, Mr. Derrick." Mitch got to his feet and shifted uneasily. "We are here today in the case of Mitchell Derrick vs the state of Colorado. He has been charged with the kidnapping and assault of a Kenneth James McCormick and the assault and rape of a Kyle Isaac Broflovski. Has the jury reached a verdict?"

The foreman stood with a notecard and nodded. "Yes your honor." He looked out towards the defendant. "We find the defendant, Mitchell Derrick, guilty of all charges on the grounds of insanity."

The room froze. "Insanity?" Ruth repeated.

"Yes. We believe for his actions to be the result of a lack of reasonable thought," he nodded.

"And have you decided on a punishment?" she asked.

"If it pleases the court, we'd like for Mr. Derrick to undergo analysis at an institution for a set time and for him to undergo yet another trial to make a decision as to where he goes from there at that time."

Ruth nodded slowly, looking conflicted as she looked back out to Mitch. "Mr. Derrick, I am sentencing you to two years of time spent in the Denver Mental Institution. From there, you will undergo watch and we will decide in two year's time if you are to remain there or be transported to a federal prison," she banged her gavel. "Case dismissed."

Nobody moved. Everyone merely stared at the jurors in disbelief.

"Insanity?" Kenny mouthed, shaking his head softly as the cops led Mitch out of the room.

He looked up to see Gerald in front of them. "I..." he started. "I'm sorry, Kyle," he shook his head with Kenny.

"How...how did they get insanity from that?" Kyle looked from him to Oliver to Ken. "Did I miss something?"

"I dunno," Oliver stood after gathering his papers. They all stood with him and people began to file out the door. "Jurors...don't always make the best decisions."

"God, it's an O.J trial," Gerald sighed. "I don't get it," he walked back over and grabbed his briefcase.

"He got off the hook...," Stan came up and blinked. "He's...he's basically free, isn't he?" he looked at the lawyers.

"Essentially, yes," Gerald nodded. "He's getting the lowest form of punishment. They treat you like freaking royalty over there," he rolled his eyes.

"After all that, they seriously thought he was just insane?" Cartman scoffed. "Well I guess those assholes proved me wrong."

"Can't you call for a mistrial?" Wendy demanded.

"No," Oliver shook his head. "The verdict was decided. We're...we're stuck with what we have unless new evidence shows up."

"Goddammit," Ken growled.

"Hey, calm down," Kyle said, wrapping his arms around the blonde and swaying him gently. "We wanted him put away...and now he's getting put away. We still...we still won in a sense, right?"

"Where the FUCK did these people come up with insanity from?" Ken blinked.

"Can you guys go for a minute?" Kyle asked the crowd around them. "I'd like to talk with Ken."

"S-sure," Stan nodded. "Come on," he jerked his head and grabbed Jacob as Sheila took Kayla's hand and they all walked slowly out of the courtroom, their footsteps echoing in the wooden space and finally ending with the door slamming shut.

"Ken?" Kyle asked. "You alright?"

"That fucker is getting off for free!" he breathed, blinking back tears. "He...he hurt you like that and somehow he's not getting punished! Why?!"

Kyle cocked his head cutely and cupped his chin. "I don't know," he whispered. "They had to have had some reason...and there's not much we can do. All the evidence is pretty much gone."

"God, this isn't fair! I wanted him thrown in jail and I wanted to have the rope taken off of his soap!" he fumed. "I wanted you to have justice, not this load of shit!"

He looked up at the ranting blonde sympathetically. "Ken, look. All that matters is that he won't bother us again, okay? He's going to be in the looney bin for two years. Then they'll either keep him there or put him in jail. We'll be okay. Isn't that all that we wanted?"

"I want him punished," he sniffed. "He...he did things like that to you...he shouldn't be allowed to breathe!"

"I don't know what to tell you, Ken."

"Tell me why these people are so fucking stupid! You're the smart one, maybe you caught it!" he panted. "I mean...what did he do that flicked on the crazy alarm, huh?!"

"Well, telling the room that a dead guy told him what to do could indicate a lot," a voice echoed in the room. They shot their heads around, their eyes falling to a glowing green figure sitting upon the judge's bench. His dark brown eyes twinkled with mischief and he licked his lips. "Tell me, Red, Blondes...ain't that just the craziest thing you ever heard?"

* * *

_A/N: He's baaaaaaaaaackkkkkkkkk_

_Mmm, I'm thinkin'...two more chapters? Somethin' close. We're hitting the edge here, kids._

_Thanks for R&R-ing =D_

_And for reading all the way through to this, Chapter 50! *sniff* it's a proud moment indeed =)_

_Think we can hit 400 reviews by the end?_

_Probably not, but here's to hopin' xDD_


	51. Bargaining

_A/N: Uh. Woot?_

_Not much to say here. This...this is all on a whim from this point forward. I'm still debating the ending._

_Go me xD_

_And on a side note, happy (really late) nineteenth bday to Amara777 =D_

_(Don't you love how my last three chapters have all had bday dedications? xD)_

_Enjoy~_

* * *

The boys stared up at him, their breathing hitched with one another's as they stared back at the man. He cocked his head at them and smirked.

"Is something the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost...but I'm sure you hear that line all the time, huh?"

Kenny finally exhaled shakily. "You...you...you're st..."

"Stuck?" he finished. "Why yes. Yes I am. And how are you two doing? Are ya happy now? You got rid of all four of us...," he hopped down from the bench and started approaching them. "Ya killed three of us and got the last one imprisoned for the rest of his life. Awesome job."

Ken pushed Kyle behind him and growled protectively. Barney laughed softly, "Something the matter?"

"Get. Away," he warned.

"Or what?" he challenged. "Just what are you gonna do, Kenny?"

Kenny growled and launched his fist at him, his eyes widening as he fell straight through him and spiraled onto the floor. He looked back up at him and breathed heavily, his crystal eyes narrowed. "What the fuck do you want?"

"Well, it's your job to help me, isn't it?" he smiled innocently, looking between the two of them. "It's your responsibility to make sure that I go to Hell, right?"

"Fuck off," the blonde muttered.

"Aw, that ain't nice," he pouted. He looked over at the redhead and smirked. "How about you, Kylie? Will you help me?" he cupped his chin and forced him up. Kenny growled and grabbed his ankle, trying to pull him away. Barney shook his foot loose of his grasp and bashed it back onto his head. Kyle shook his head away and backed up slowly from him as Ken went in the other direction. He looked between the two of them and laughed softly. "It's almost like you don't wanna see me," he raised his brow. "Can't imagine why."

"Get away from us," Kenny snarled.

"How come?" he cocked his head.

"Get out!"

He chuckled lowly and looked over at Kyle. "So. Kylie. How are you doin'?"

"F-fuck off," he stammered.

"Don't tempt me," he smirked. "You don't seem very excited to see me. How come?" he stepped towards the redhead.

"TOUCH HIM AND I'LL KILL YOU!" Ken screamed, jumping to his feet and running towards the man. He lunged at him and flew straight through his glowing frame and rolled towards Kyle. The Jew quickly bent down and helped him to his feet. Kenny scrambled up and held his arm across him in defense.

Barney broke into laughter and stared at them. "You already did that," he replied.

Kenny slowly started pushing the redhead back and walked with him. "Stay. Away," he warned.

"I'm shakin' in my boots there, Ken," he rolled his eyes.

"Why are you here?" Kyle demanded.

"Aw look, he can talk," Barney chuckled. "Well, I came to watch Mitch and make sure you two didn't throw him on death row."

"How?" Kenny blinked.

He smiled evilly. "Whisper into people's ears. If they can't see you, they automatically think you're their conscious. Do you realize how easy it is to convince people of things when they just hear a little idea whispered in the air?"

"You fucking swayed the jury?!" Ken's jaw dropped.

"Give the boy a medal," he smirked. "Let's face it, humans don't like making decisions. They listen for other people and usually follow example. It only took two rounds of votes before they all opted to ship Mitch off to the looney bin."

"Great," Kyle snarled. "Well he's right where you wanted him, so you can go fuck off now."

"Oh no no no," he shook his head. "I'm here for other reasons as well, ya know."

"What?" Kenny asked through gritted teeth.

Barney looked from him down to the redhead behind him and smiled sadistically. "You weren't lying when you told me what you did," he said lowly. "And so you killed three of us. Tell me, Kyle. How did it feel to know that you had the blood of three men on your hands? Bet it hurt. Betcha broke down time and again, didn't you?"

Kyle grasped Kenny's shirt and the blonde continued leading him back. "I'm serious," he said slowly. "Stay away from us." He just smirked and started walking towards them. "Run," he muttered to Kyle.

"No," he shook his head.

"Run, Kyle," he growled insistently.

"No," he repeated, backing up with him still.

"What do you want?" Kenny looked back towards Barney darkly.

"I want to be unstuck," he smirked.

"Then do it," he narrowed his eyes. "Apparently you have some idea of what you're stuck for so you solve the problem!"

His eyes sparkled. "Then give me Kyle."

"I don't fucking think so!" he yelled back, clenching his fists.

"I want my revenge," he said smoothly. "Give me Kyle and I'll be set to move on."

"Go fuck yourself!"

"Enough!" a voice echoed in the room. They turned to watch as Damien appeared from his demonic glow with a glare on his face as he looked at Barney. "This is not my job, but I'm stepping in," he said lowly.

"You," he rolled his eyes. "You're the little squirt that keeps giving them powers."

"This little squirt happens to be the son of Beelzebub, so I suggest you watch yourself," Damien warned.

"Damien...what is it?" Kyle breathed shakily.

"Kyle, come here," he motioned for him to step over towards him. Kyle and Ken looked at each other before he nodded and started stepping over towards the red-eyed boy. Barney smirked and lunged out at him. Damien ran in-between them and sent the ghost flying back into the air and onto the wooden floor. He grabbed Kyle's shoulder and led him to the far end of the room and stepped in front of him as Barney shakily stood back up.

"Fucking kid," the man muttered.

"Barney," Damien started. "Listen to me and listen to me well. You've been trailing these two for months and I know that you know plenty about them. But you don't understand what they're capable of. I'm well aware that vengeance is what you yearn for to pass on but the idea of such is a lot for you to ask for. Tomorrow at two in the afternoon, meet us all at Kenny and Kyle's apartment, do you understand? You are not to come within seeing distance until then or there will be serious consequences. We will discuss the conditions of your situation there."

"Consequences?" he raised his brow.

"I'll find a way to banish you to Limbo without my father's approval," he growled.

He looked from Damien to the Jew behind him and smiled. "Sure. I can wait another day," he chuckled. "And then I'll have little Kylie all to myself again, won't I?" he cooed.

Kenny growled possessively. "Get the fuck out," he ordered.

He looked between the three of them and snorted lightly. "Fine. See you tomorrow," he smirked evilly at the redhead one last time before turning and walking out of the room through the back wall.

The three boys looked at each other confusedly before Kenny scowled. "You knew he was stuck," he said lowly.

He nodded. "Yes."

"Why didn't you say something?" he demanded. "Just how many fucking secrets are you keeping from us, Damien?!"

"Nothing else in the means of secrets," he sighed, running a hand through his ebon hair. Kyle broke away from behind him and walked back over to Ken, grasping his arm and breathing shakily.

"You...actually told him that we'd...consider this," Ken said slowly, looking from Kyle to the demon. "You actually think that I'm letting him so much as touch Kyle again?!"

Damien looked at him, his expression steady, yet unreadable. "No. I don't think you would."

"THEN WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU SAY WE'D DISCUSS IT?!" he screamed. Kyle grasped him around the waist tightly and hid his face into his shirt. Kenny breathed heavily a few times before swallowing and returning the embrace. "Damien...what the fuck are you thinking?"

He sighed heavily and shook his head. "Kyle," he started. The Jew looked up at him with saddened eyes. "Go home. Please. I need to talk to Ken about something. He'll see you after awhile, alright? I have a watch on you, so Barney won't get near you without me going after him."

Kyle blinked at him before nodding. "Okay." He leaned up and kissed Kenny gently on the cheek before breaking away and heading out towards the door. The slam of the entrance echoed around the room as the two immortals stood and stared at each other.

"What?" Ken finally demanded.

"Stop being angry with me, McCormick, you know that this isn't my fault," he lectured. "And you know that he would have tried attacking you both if I hadn't of sent him away."

The blonde paused for a moment before sighing heavily. "Alright. Fine. But still, why the fuck would you tell him that we would actually consider this?"

Damien crossed his arms and sighed before walking over to him and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Come on," he muttered. Kenny slammed his eyes shut before reopening them to a bright red door.

He raised his brow quizzically before a booming voice started, "Ah, hello, Kenny."

He whipped around to find Satan sitting at his desk with his pen halted in mid-scribble. "Father," Damien began, "Johanson finally showed himself."

"Oh," he said softly before clearing his throat. "And...just what have you done about this so far?"

"I told him to meet us tomorrow and the terms of his case would be discussed from there."

"Good planning," he nodded. "Ken, sit down," he motioned to the chair in front of him. Kenny grabbed the chair and slowly sat down in it.

"Dude...what's going on?" Ken blinked between the two of them.

"Kenny, we have a problem," Satan said gently.

"What? Aside from the fact that your son just basically put Kyle on a silver platter for that fat fuck to take again?!" he snarled.

"Well...in a way," Damien sighed.

"Ken, what do you plan on doing about the situation with Barney?" the dark figure asked.

"Telling him to get the fuck away from Kyle before I reincarnate him just so I can kill him over and over again," he growled.

He massaged his forehead lightly and took a deep breath. "Ken...you have to find a way to make him unstuck."

"Why? Why the fuck should I help this guy?!" he demanded, getting to his feet and glaring at the demon. "He fucking kidnapped me, and beat me, and you know perfectly well of all the shit he did to Kyle. So give me one good reason to give this guy any kind of peace!"

"I can give you a few," Damien growled. He stepped up beside Ken and they glared at each other. "One," he held up his index finger, "it's your job. Two: You'll be stuck with him for the rest of eternity should you refuse to help him. And three: your third condition, McCormick."

He blinked between the two of them. "Which one was number three?"

Satan shook his head. "Kenny. It's Kyle."

"And you damn well know it," Damien huffed impatiently.

"Damien, calm down," Satan rolled his eyes.

Kenny's face dropped. "You...you fucking knew this was gonna happen, didn't you?"

He nodded. "Yes, we noticed he never crossed over into Hell. We looked more into it and saw that not only was he watching Mitch, he was stalking the two of you constantly."

"And telling us about this little matter never even crossed your mind?" he demanded through gritted teeth.

"Look, we were hoping that he'd lose interest and become unstuck on his own," Damien argued. "But he hasn't, he's become more and more obsessed with revenge."

"What does he want from us?" he asked.

"Not from you but from Kyle," Satan said quietly. "He wants to have him again to avenge himself and the other two."

"Well that's not happening," he retorted. "He's not getting another look at Kyle if I can help it."

"Well, you can," Damien shrugged. "You'll just hate the other side of the bargain if you remember what you agreed upon once you took this job."

"Which was?"

"Kyle will belong to me," Satan said firmly.

"Wait, you mean that...you're actually going to make him...THAT'S SICK!" he screamed. "You really think that's a fair proposition?!"

"You swore on the contract and it's not about to be broken," Satan replied calmly.

"You broke it when Kyle became my partner," he growled.

"No, we added another person to the exact same rules," Damien responded. "It's like a job on Earth, McCormick, it was nothing more than another signature."

"But Kyle's not an object," he argued.

"A possession doesn't necessarily have to be an object," he sighed. "A possession can easily be a feeling or something of the sort. Besides, Kyle verbally agreed that you had him. Not too long ago, he told you that he was indeed yours and yours alone." He reached down and grabbed Kenny's left hand and held it up, pointing to his ring. "When you and he became engaged, it was set in stone that you are his but more vitally as of now, he's yours. His love and him in general is what you treasure the most."

He took his hand back and stared at his ring. "I...I...what the hell am I supposed to do?" he demanded. "I can't lose Kyle!"

"Then let Barney have him," Satan shrugged.

"I'm not doing that either!"

"Well you've got to make a choice, Kenneth," he warned. "I told you when Kyle became your partner that you shouldn't jump into predicting the future. I warned you that you would most likely fall if you did so, and now look at where you are. You need to decide which is more important to you: his place in your life, or his safety."

He blinked up at the prince of darkness, shaking his head slowly. "I...I can't make that kind of choice," his voice croaked pathetically.

"Then talk to Kyle."

"What?!"

"Talk to the root of this situation," he urged. "Kyle's decision could be the entire swaying factor of this whole thing."

"I already know what he's gonna say!" he protested.

"Then let him say it," he interrupted. "Listen to me, Ken. Kyle's a smart boy, he's stronger than anyone's ever given him credit for. He loves you and you know that."

"I do," he nodded, sniffling lightly.

"Then let him make this decision with you," he said softly. "After all, should he not be at the reins if it's indeed his life on the lines?"

Ken couldn't respond, he just stared at the ground and shook violently.

"Look, Damien will assist you as of tomorrow in talking to Barney...," he assured him. "We'll do all we can, alright?"

"Put him in Limbo like Damien said!" Ken pled.

"Ken, that was a lie," Damien shook his head. "We don't send people there."

"Well now would be a good time to start," he sniffed.

"Sorry, Kid," Satan shrugged. "We don't have the authority to do that. Just go back to Earth, alright? Talk to Kyle and work this out."

"What is there to work out?!" he asked. "I'm so...sick of him having to sacrifice fucking everything!"

"Sacrifices that he chooses to make," he replied. "I know that usually these sacrifices derive from him being shoved into a corner, but nonetheless, he makes them with a purpose, just as you were willing to make the sacrifice when he died. If he wants to stay with you, then are you really going to tell him no?"

"I...I..."

"Talk to him before making up your mind, Ken," he sighed.

"So...I'm just expected to sit back...and watch him get hurt again." he stared at the ground and shook his head.

"We'll see what happens," Damien interjected, stepping up beside him. "We'll work on the deal tomorrow if he chooses that path."

"What exactly are you going to propose?" he asked.

Damien shrugged. "We'll work on it. As of now, I'll take you home and you can talk to Kyle."

"If there was more that we could do, we would do it, Ken," Satan sighed, leaning back in his chair. "You're helping us immensely and I only wish we could return the favor."

"There's no way you can get him back down here on your own?" he whispered.

He shook his head. "No. We can't make the souls pass on. All we can do is let them through the gates."

He sighed, "Well that's not very helpful."

"Sorry, Kid," he shrugged.

Damien put his hand on his shoulder and patted it a few times. "Come on, let's kick it," he stated. Kenny felt that familiar twinge in his chest as they transported out of the office and into the comforting lighting of the boys' living room.

"Welcome back," a voice said softly. He looked over to find Kyle lying back on the couch with a book in his hands.

"Hey," he smiled softly.

He smiled back and sat up, staring at the two of them. "You talk?"

"Yeah, but Ken needs to talk to you some more," Damien stated, pushing the blonde towards him. "I'm gonna head back...you two just work it out, alright?"

"Whatever," Ken muttered.

"See ya," he nodded before vanishing again.

Kenny looked down to see Snickers brushing against his leg and sighed. He leaned down and swooped her into his hands before looking at the green-eyed boy. "Ken, you okay?"

"Not really," he sighed. Kyle swung his legs off the cushions and Ken sat in their space, letting Kyle lean onto his shoulder as he kicked off his shoes. He looked around the room confusedly. "Where're the kids?"

"Wendy and Bebe wanted to take them shopping," he shrugged. "Cartman's taking Red back to the airport."

"Where's Stan?"

"Sitting by the phone waiting for me to call him probably," he sighed, putting his head down on Ken's frame.

"Why?"

"He heard Barney," he muttered. "I just let the kids go with the girls and just kinda walked off. He's probably freaking out."

"Call him then."

"I texted him and told him I was fine and so were you, but he told me to call him as soon as I could."

"You can now."

"No, you're upset about something," he observed. "What's up?"

Kenny looked down at the kitten in his hands and sighed heavily. "Kyle...there's a problem."

He cocked his head, "okay?"

"I...I have to um...talk to you about this whole...situation," he winced.

"Which one? We've gone through like, seventeen in the past three days," he smirked lightly.

"The jackass situation," he stated.

"Alright, what about it?"

"Well...you...were there," he said slowly. "And you know what Damien told him."

"I'm perfectly aware, yes," his face dropped a bit.

"What...what are we gonna do about it?" he looked up at him sadly.

Kyle stared back at him for a moment blankly. "Well...we're...gonna deal with him...aren't we? Wasn't that what Damien said, or did I miss it completely?"

"Well, that is what he said," he nodded softly. "But...I don't want you to have to go through that shit again," his eyes stung lightly and he dropped his vision down on the cat chewing on his cufflinks.

A few moments of silence passed before Kyle sighed, starting to stroke Snickers' head. "I...I don't really want to. But I also know what'll happen should I say no. I'm hoping that maybe talking with him with Damien will make it a little better...and I don't want to leave you. So I'm going to do this."

"What if he hurts you like before?" Kenny whispered.

"Then you'll have to help me back up," he replied gently. Ken looked up and met with his sad eyes before leaning forward and pressing their lips together. They pulled back softly and the blonde sniffed.

"I don't want you to do this."

"I know. But I am. I'd rather deal with a few more hours of being degraded than an eternity without you, Dude."

He looked back down at the kitten and shook his head. "This isn't fair to you."

"Most things in life aren't fair to anyone," he said softly. "But I'm okay with this. I'm not happy, but I'll get through it because I know that I'll be able to come home to you, okay?"

"It's just so...you shouldn't have to..."

"Shh," he said, placing his finger on Kenny's lips. "We're not discussing this anymore. I've made my decision. You just have to be here for me, okay?"

He looked up at him and nodded softly before Kyle leaned forward and mashed their mouths together once more. Kenny reached down, placing Snickers on the table before leaning back into the boy and leading him down onto his back. He laid down atop him as Kyle's hands entangled in his sandy hair. He pulled back and stared down into his emerald eyes before sighing and pecking his forehead.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered.

He cocked his brow. "For what? You didn't do anything."

"I didn't wake up..." he shook his head and looked away.

"Ken...don't do this," he pled. "I don't blame you for any of this shit happening. Look, let's look at this from a bit of a better perspective, alright? I can't die, so he can't kill me."

"He can rape you again."

"So I take a dick up my ass, that's not a new thing," he rolled his eyes.

"He can start beating you around," he said softly. "He can...he can really hurt you, Ky."

"And I'm willing to take the risk. If the asshole's been watching us and knows about the concept of being stuck, then I'm sure he knows that we're immortal and that I have my powers," he replied. "Please just listen to me, okay? I want you to just...stop. Just stop worrying. We have enough going on that we don't need you panicking over my well-being on top of everything else, alright?"

He sighed before nodding lightly. "Alright." Kyle scooted over slightly and Kenny fell in-between him and the back of the couch, wrapping his arms around the redhead and pulling him in tightly. "You feeling any better?" he asked softly.

"Not really," he said, looking up at him sadly. "I still feel like what I did was wrong."

"Well, even the judge told you that you're wrong on that," he said softly, stroking his hair.

"That doesn't really change my own feelings in the least. I mean, look at the fucking verdict," he growled. "I don't give a flying fuck if Barney played part in it, those people all have minds of their own."

"Well, you've said it before that people are fucking retarded," he shrugged.

"Yeah," he nodded before sighing. "Apparently my parents are coming over tonight to talk to us."

"Great."

"My thoughts exactly. I think they're totally bullshitting this whole thing. I mean, if they really cared, they wouldn't have just kicked me to the curb, right?"

"Right," he mused. "I think that it was just a case of them seeing you get hurt and their conscious' finally kicked into gear. I think they finally saw that this was their son of all people and they should have protected you."

"Or possibly they just thought that they would get blamed for any of that happening because I should have been home with them in the first place and they could have gotten in trouble."

"You really think so?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "My parents are just about as deceiving as I am."

"At least you have good reason for your deceit," he pecked his head lightly. "I mean, you were just scared out of your mind."

"Still am...," he said softly. "I...I really don't think that the entirety of the situation has hit you just yet. It took a while for it to catch up with me and I was the one who caused the whole damn thing to go up in flames anyways."

"Kyle, you didn't start anything," he said firmly. "They started it. You happened to end it. And I can't be more thankful that you did."

"You really think that I was in the right when I did that?"

"Completely," he nodded. "I mean, it was either you take them out or they stab the living hell out of you to the point where you would have transcended. Then what? We'd be stuck in the loop of being seventeen and eighteen for the rest of eternity? I mean, just think of all the consequences that could have happened had you really just lied there and taken their abuse."

Kyle looked off thoughtfully for a moment before returning his gaze back unto the blonde. "You don't look at me any differently for this? I mean...I was...."

"Hurting," he finished. "You were hurt and lost and you needed to escape. You tried their rules and you weren't getting anywhere but slammed onto the floor, so you made your own and played your own game. I can honestly say that I'm proud of you for defending yourself like that," he smiled.

Kyle gave him a soft grin back. "Really?"

"Yes," he nodded again, pecking his lips softly. "Really," he repeated before rolling over on top of him again slowly and biting at his lip. Kyle kissed his chin and cheek lovingly as Ken's eyes wandered to the clock. "How long are they all gonna be gone?" he asked.

Kyle broke away and looked over with him. "I dunno. Few hours I'm guessing."

He looked back down on him and smirked. "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

"Dunno. Are you thinking about how fucking lucky you are to have you?" he cocked his head.

Kenny paused for a moment before smiling wider. "Close," he said, leaning back down and taking his lips. Kyle lifted his hips into his slightly and rubbed their groins together. Kenny let out a small moan and dove his tongue into Kyle's welcoming mouth. He lifted himself back up before standing next to the couch, reaching down and taking the redhead into his arms. He felt a pat on his leg and looked down, seeing the kitten staring at them with wide eyes. He smirked, carrying Kyle over towards her crate and kicking a small ball with a bell towards her. She meowed and ran around batting at it playfully as the boys continued their make-out and headed into the bedroom.

Ken carried the Jew over to the bed and set him down gently, still attached to his lips. Kyle sat on the edge of the bed and straddled Kenny's legs with his own as the taller boy bent down and ran his fingers through his lush curls. Kyle's fingers worked their way up to Ken's tie and began undoing it slowly. He slipped the silk off from around his lover's collar and set it on the bed next to him as Kenny's hands fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. He undid them all before sliding the fabric down and off his arms, stroking the pale skin revealed to him.

Kyle pushed him back a bit before dropping to his knees in front of him. He reached up and undid his belt, throwing it to the other side of the room before beginning to unbutton his pants and pull them down. Kenny kicked them aside as Kyle grasped his cock gently and began steadily pumping it, looking up at him with a look of innocence spread over his features. Ken shivered lightly as Kyle's other hand traveled upwards and cupped his balls delicately before the pumping hand was replaced with a set of soft lips.

His tongue ran smoothly over the slit of the head before he pursed his lips tightly and began sliding back and forth down the skin. Kenny's fingers entangled in his hair and pulled him in further, feeling his cock pressing against the back of the redhead's throat. Kyle gagged slightly, but held still until the grasp of his curls loosened a bit and began bobbing again.

"God, you're fucking hot," Ken licked his lips hungrily.

Kyle shot his green eyes up at him as he worked and smiled around his skin before looking back at the member he was devouring. He opened his mouth at the base of his cock before looking at the blonde once again, running his tongue up his full length before pulling off and licking his lips.

"Come here," Ken purred, reaching down and pulling him to his feet before pressing him back onto the bed. He trailed kisses from his small chest to his navel before moving back up and nibbling on his left nipple. Kyle moaned softly as the boy began to undo his slacks with loving fingertips, pulling them down his legs with his underwear and throwing them aside. He moved down and licked from the inside of his thigh up to his balls. He opened his mouth and took his sac in behind his teeth, sucking gently and twirling his tongue around the skin. Kyle's fingers clenched onto the sheets below him periodically and his breathing increased. Kenny closed his eyes and continued his work, slowly taking his hand and pumping the hot skin standing in front of him. He took a deep breath, feeling the familiar clean scent of his lover filling his nostrils and felt his stomach flutter lightly.

He broke off his sac and ran his tongue up his cock before standing up in front of him and looking down on him. He leaned over him and trapped his form in with his arms, smiling gently. "Love me?"

He chuckled lightly. "Yes."

"Positive?"

"I'm positive," he assured him.

He smiled wider. "I know. I just like hearing it."

He broke into a gentle smirk himself. "I love you," he said.

Ken leaned down closer towards him. "What was that?"

"I love you," he repeated softer.

"One more time," he whispered, leaning in closer, their lips touching.

"I love you," he whispered back before craning up and connecting their mouths tenderly. Kenny pulled him closer towards him off the bed and grabbed the both of their cocks, rubbing them together roughly. They moaned together and their hips thrust lightly into one another. Ken let go of their skin and backed up from his face, giving a final quick peck before leaning back up. He grasped him under his legs and lifted him up slightly, taking his place between them with a smile. He positioned himself before sliding into him, watching his face drop into pleasure.

He started steadily thrusting away into him listening to his eager moans hungrily. He loved this: perfect connection between the two of them. The problems of the day left behind in a mess of sweat and love. Nothing could be better, nothing could be nearly as perfect as the way in which they were bonded together.

He let go of his left leg and leaned forward again, watching as his hands came up and grasped his shoulders, clawing for more. He smiled and leaned further into him, bending down slightly to peck his torso with loving lips.

Their breathing fell into sync as their bodies moved together into a looping rhythm, steadily increasing over time. The sweat shone from their bodies like glittering jewels, reflecting heavily off of Kenny's toned muscles and Kyle's pale, flat stomach. The blonde's hand moved to the Jew's member, grasping it lovingly and beginning to once again pump in time with their thrusts together. They both moaned and their eyes rolled back as the sensations took them over.

"_Ken..." _his name escaped the little redhead's lips as he whimpered softly. The blonde let out a heavy breath before speeding up slightly, listening as Kyle's moans increased, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Oh god...," he moaned, dipping his head down and biting on the boy's collarbone.

Kyle arched up and cried out softly. "Harder...," he breathed pleadingly.

Ken licked his skin and looked up at him. "Likin' this that much?"

"Yes...," he sniffed. "Please..."

He laughed softly and nodded. "As you wish," he purred, driving into him deeper. Kyle's hips jerked and he shivered. Kenny sped up his wrist, watching as the boy writhed underneath him.

"You're close," he licked his lips, feeling him tense under his touch.

"Ah...ahh..." he moaned. "Ken...nn-nngh..."

He leaned up and nipped his chin lovingly. "Come for me, Ky," he muttered.

Kyle tipped his head down and met his lips gently. They met their tongues as they continued pressing against each other. "Ken...oh god..." he dug his fingernails into his back and scraped upwards.

"Come on," he urged, nuzzling against him and smacking into him harder.

"Oh god!" he cried, his body lurching up as he released onto his stomach and Kenny's hand and abs. Ken continued driving into him as he settled down from his orgasm. They locked eyes as Kyle panted and the blonde licked his lips again, still pounding into him. Kenny smirked, reaching under him and lifting him into the air, still thrusting as Kyle wrapped his legs around his waist and his arms around his neck.

He carried him over and placed him against the wall, pressing him down into the paint and slamming into him forcefully. "Feels good, don't it?" he smirked.

"Uh huh," he nodded tiredly, sweat dripping from his scarlet hair. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against his holder's neck as he tensed, scraping his teeth against the delicate skin. Ken dug his nails into the boy's hips, leaning his head down onto his shoulder.

"God, I love you," he panted. "I love you so fucking much," he kissed his skin.

"I love you, too," he sniffed, nuzzling into him.

"Oh fuck," he gritted his teeth. He buried his face in his shoulder. "Kyle...fuck..." he trembled before arching up and releasing deep into him. Kyle moaned softly and leaned his head back onto the wall as it dripped down out of him. He sighed and his legs dropped to hang lazily off of Ken's waist.

Kenny pulled back and they smiled at each other. He pulled out of the Jew and carried him back over to the bed, setting him down and collapsing beside him tiredly. Kyle turned over on his side and snuggled up against him. "Love you," he murmured.

"You, too," he smiled, ruffling his hair. "Tired?"

"Yeah," he nodded with a small laugh.

"Alright," he kissed him lightly. "How about you go clean up and take a nap?"

"You sure?"

"Yeah," he smirked. "It's been a hell of a day."

"I have to get shit ready for dinner for my parents," he sighed.

"Eh, we'll get take-out," he suggested with a shrug. "They can just deal. Go ahead and rest, please?"

He smiled softly. "Okay." he leaned over and kissed him gently before sitting up. He cringed lightly.

"What's wrong?" he blinked.

"I'm kinda...leaking," he winced. "I have to admit that I hate that part."

Ken laughed softly. "Sorry, Babe."

"No you're not."

"You're right. Nothin' I like better than filling my love with my jizz," he winked.

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Oh, you sweet talker you."

"Damn straight," he chuckled. Kyle smirked and tugged his hair playfully before getting to his feet and walking off to the bathroom.

Ken watched him after the door closed and he looked up at the ceiling and sighed. Today was not going as planned. He sat up and ran his fingers through his hair tiredly.

Kyle was willing to go through all of this again with Barney, yet he didn't seem to broken down about it. He seemed to accept it much easier than Ken could have ever imagined. He sighed, getting up and heading over to their dresser to grab a pair of jeans and throw them on.

Everything seemed to come crashing down around them today, and yet Kyle was shrugging everything off as though it were just a mosquito bite. Maybe he just wasn't letting on how upset he really was about the whole scenario. Perhaps he was truly devastated by what was happening, but he just couldn't bring himself to show it and upset himself and Ken even more than they already were.

Kenny hoped to God he was wrong about that.

He slid on a shirt and walked out of the room, picking up Snickers and taking her to her food dish to feed her as she trotted happily over to him. He filled up the bowl and watched her nibbling away with his head rested in his palm atop the window inlet.

His eye was caught by the red notebook set upon the coffee table and he sighed as he stared at it. That damn thing. Were it not for it, they wouldn't be in this situation. Kyle wouldn't have been hurt, he wouldn't have had to hide. Ken himself wouldn't of had to listen to him cry and worry constantly about his safety...because he wouldn't have been there at all.

He groaned and placed his head on the ledge. He didn't know what to think anymore. Everything led from one direction or the other, he couldn't seem to find that happy medium anywhere. As horrible as this entire situation was, he owed everything to this job, to what had happened to them. He owed Kyle's life, his own, to the devil himself. He was completely at the ends of his marionette strings.

Perhaps Kyle realized this as well and decided from that that he was just going to get this cruel treatment over with in order to stay in the position that he is. Maybe he could just foresee the consequences of his refusal of cooperation and opted to take the route that would keep him in Kenny's arms, even if it hurt for awhile.

Snickers finished eating and went to rub against his foot with soft purrs. He bent down and picked the young cat up, carrying her over to the couch and sighing. "What do you think, Snicks?" he asked. He placed her by the notebook on the table. She stared at him for a moment before bending down to sniff at the paper pad. She nibbled on it softly before yawning and walking atop of it, laying down on its cover in a tight little ball.

Kenny just stared wordlessly. Symbolic little cat they had. Maybe Ky was right, maybe cats are just built with a sixth sense. Maybe she had the insight as to the matter of the situation. Everything he was weighed upon that little red notebook. A hard concept to grasp, but one that he was finally starting to believe.

* * *

A few hours rolled by with Kenny lazing around and messing with the cat, his mind drifting from here to there until he heard a knock at the door. He stared at it for a moment before sighing and getting to his feet with Snickers still held in his grasp.

He walked over and opened it to the faces of Sheila, Gerald, Ike, and the kids.

"Hi, Kenny!" Kayla and Jacob grinned before hugging him and running off into the room. He smiled after them before turning back to the Broflovskis.

They awkwardly stared at each other for a bit before Kenny cleared his throat. "Hello," he nodded.

"Hey," Ike responded for the other two, who were fidgeting around nervously.

"Well, come in," he stood aside and gestured inside the apartment. They nodded before all coming in and looking around.

"Not much change in the decor I see," Ike smirked.

He chuckled lightly, "Well, it's only been a few months. When you're living on two minimum wage paychecks, painting the walls isn't exactly the main priority."

He laughed softly as they all sat down on the furniture and continued staring at each other.

"So..." Gerald tried. "How are you two?"

Ken petted Snickers' head and looked at him seriously. "I'm maniacally depressed and confused as to why my fiancé went through the things he did. All I want to do is hunt down every member of that jury and put my foot up their ass for the verdict before hunting down Mitch myself. Kyle's exhausted beyond belief and doesn't know what to think about anything anymore. This entire thing has changed his perspective about every freaking aspect of our lives and I don't know what to do to help him." He paused. "But other than that, we're fine. Yourselves?"

They blinked at him slowly before Sheila took the reins and sighed. "We're fine."

"Good."

"So, is that your cat?" she asked, nodding towards the kitten.

He nodded, "This is Snickers. We found her in the park not too long ago."

"She's cute," Gerald mentioned.

"Yeah."

"Where's Kyle?" his mother asked worriedly.

"Sleeping."

"Can I go wake him?" she asked hopefully.

"No," he shook his head.

Her face dropped. "Can I ask why?"

"A multitude of reasons," he shrugged. "For one thing, seeing you may freak him out. No offense, Mrs. Broflovski, but you haven't been our best friend for the past six months," he said. "And besides, he's naked and I'd rather him not be embarrassed about it," he smirked.

"Oh," she said briskly. "Well, can you wake him then? We'd like to discuss some things."

"Hold it," he held up his palm firmly. "Before we get Kyle in here, I want some things of my own answered."

The two elders looked at each other briskly before nodding at him. "What do you want to know?"

"A lot," he said simply. He heard rummaging in the kitchen and he sighed. "Ike, can you go with the kids? We have a pile of take out menus beside the fridge, go pick something you want."

He nodded. "Yeah, sure." he hopped off his feet and walked over towards the noises.

Ken watched him before turning back to face Sheila and Gerald. "Alright. I'm going to be blunt. I'm well aware that one day, I'm going to be related to you two. And from what I've seen the past six months, that's not an exciting prospect."

"Ken, we can understand that," Gerald nodded, though Sheila looked throughly devastated.

"Well, that's good, because I won't lie; that's kinda upsetting," he shrugged. "My dad's off at God knows where probably banging random chicks and drinking away his government check, and you saw my Ma in court. I don't think we're gonna be having tea anytime soon. So in-laws were my last shot for anything like a parent."

"Well, we'd like to help take care of you boys," Sheila said firmly.

"That's gonna require a lot," he said softly. "For starters, I wanna know why you kicked Kyle out to begin with. Something pushed you there."

They stared at him a few moments before sighing together and intertwining their hands. "Look, Ken," Gerald said tiredly, "Kyle...had problems. You can see that. We...we didn't know what else to do. He was driving a stake through our family, even though we both know that he didn't mean to."

"How?" he raised his brow.

"Do you know how hard it is to watch your son so depressed?" he asked.

"Coming home, finding them lying on the ground and not breathing?" Sheila added, tears welling in her eyes. "Do you have even the slightest idea of what that does to a parent?"

"That doesn't explain things at all."

"We had no idea what to do," Gerald sighed. "Sheila wanted it taken care of one way, I wanted it dealt with in another. In the end, we settled for Kyle's suggestion which was, as he phrased it, 'tell the doctors to fuck off and die because they can't help me anyways.'"

"You...actually opted to just let him stay depressed and not get the help he needed," he stated.

"It's hard." Sheila sniffed. "We tried getting him the help, but he just wouldn't talk to anybody. We tried bringing you and Stanley into the picture and he begged us not to because he didn't want you to see him like he was."

"He told me you lied and kept him quarantined," he raised his brow.

"Well, we did after his request," she nodded. "We thought maybe the time alone would make him happy. Maybe some deep thought was what he needed."

"Well obviously that didn't work," he rolled his eyes.

"That's why we kept him in the house," Gerald said softly. "We wanted to keep more of an eye on him."

"Well, no offense, but you really sucked at that if he managed four attempts under your nose," he scoffed.

"We can't always be there," Sheila argued. "But we did what we could. Then we saw how stressed out he got around his birthday. He was constantly saying how he couldn't wait to get out of the house and away from us. We already figured out he was a homosexual, Kenneth. We thought he was just trying to get out and away from us."

"Hence the reason we really kept paying for this place," Gerald gestured around. "He's smart, but not financially independent."

"I want you to explain the comments you made when he was in his coma," he glared.

"We thought we'd lost," he shrugged. "We were furious. We really thought that he was doing this just to get away from us two...but then we found his journal."

Kenny blinked. "Wait...the one from the hospital?"

Sheila nodded, "yes. Why do you think we gave you the access to read it and our letter and not Stanley? We thought maybe you would be able to calm him down in some way...and obviously you have," she smiled sadly.

"That letter you wrote was fucking horrific," he reminded them.

"We know," Gerald said. "Well, we figured that we could play his game and let him out of the house, but if we were too forgiving, he'd come right back to us. He was a year away from being off on his own anyways."

"You really hurt him," he said softly.

"We're well aware," Sheila sighed. "I love Kyle. Gerald loves him. Ike idolizes him. But we're...we're a different kind of family. We're vengeful," she shrugged truthfully. "I'm sure that Kyle's done something to show you that before and not just by what we saw to...today...," she sniffled, wiping some stray tears beading her darkened lashes.

They were all silent for a moment. "Do you...do you hate him for what he did?" Ken asked them quietly.

"No. We can't hate our son for defending himself," Gerald said firmly. "Even if it was just a meaningless homicide, we'd still love him."

"Can you imagine what it was like for us to see that?" Sheila whispered.

"I can," he nodded. He played with his ring absentmindedly. "I love Kyle more than you two are probably ever going to understand. Seeing him do so much as stub his toe hurts me a bit. But seeing that turned my world upside-down."

"Do you still love him?" Gerald asked.

He nodded, "I just said I did. I mean...I'm marrying him," he smiled sheepishly. "It still sounds so...weird. But hey, you guys have grandchildren already," he chuckled.

"We certainly weren't ready for that, I can assure you," Gerald laughed with him.

"You guys want something to drink?" he offered.

"That would be lovely, Kenny," Sheila smiled.

He stood up and let Snickers hop onto the furniture to sniff at the two of them. "What'll ya have?"

"Whatever," Gerald shrugged.

"I'll get it," Ike offered from the inlet. "You go wake up your little boytoy," he rolled his eyes.

"Ike Broflovski!" Sheila yelled.

Ken broke into laughter. "Well, I see where Kyle gets his lecturing-voice from," he winked. "I'll go get him." He walked past them and into the bedroom, softly opening and shutting the door behind him. He walked up to the lump under the covers and smiled, sitting down next to him.

He reached over and petted his messy, silk curls before leaning down and kissing his neck and up to his ear softly. Kyle moaned quietly before cracking his eyes open and smiling at him. "Hello," he whispered.

"Hey," he moved up and pecked his lips. "The 'rents are here."

"Lucky me," he sighed before slowly sitting up and running his hand through his hair. "Anything I need to be warned about?"

"Nah," he shook his head. "They're being civil. And...kinda forgiveness-worthy," he smiled.

"Really?" he blinked.

He nodded, "yeah. Whether or not they're lying, I couldn't tell ya. But...they seem pretty sincere about it."

"Well, I trust your judgement," he smiled, leaning up and kissing his cheek gently.

"Good," he purred. "Because my judgement leads to fun," he trailed his fingers up Kyle's covered thigh. Kyle chuckled and grasped his hand back.

"Not with my parents a mere wall away it doesn't," he smirked.

"Goddamn you," he frowned. "We've done stuff with Stan and Cartman in the other room."

"They're Stan and Cartman though," he rolled his eyes. He looked away at the wall and sighed.

"You okay?" Ken cocked his head.

"Bad dream," he murmured.

"Wanna talk about it?" he intertwined their fingers.

"Not particularly, no," he looked back at him with soft eyes. "It wasn't...horrific. I was just...tomorrow..." he trailed off tiredly.

Kenny pulled him forward and kissed his forehead gently. "You'll be okay," he smiled as reassuringly as he could muster. Kyle looked up at him and returned the forced expression.

"I know. After all, I have you, right?"

"Right," he nodded, kissing him again.

Kyle sighed and pulled away. "Guess I better get dressed, huh?"

"Unless you want your parents to see your hot bod in all its glory," he laughed.

"Uh, no thanks," he smirked, throwing the blanket off and swinging his legs out of the bed. Kenny watched him and licked his lips, standing up and slowly following him as he walked over to the dresser to pull out some shorts.

He grasped him by the hips suddenly and they dropped out of Kyle's hand in surprise. "Keep 'em off," he purred, kissing his ear softly and trailing his fingertips along the pale skin.

"Ken, n-no," he gasped as the blonde bit his neck sharply. "Ken, I'm s-serious, stop," he said, turning and facing him with his hands firmly planted on the dresser behind him.

Kenny raised an amused brow. "Aw, you no wanna play?"

"We 'played' a few hours ago," he rolled his eyes. "I think you can wait while my parents are here, don't you?"

"Not sure, let's test this theory," he smirked.

"How?" he raised his brow.

"If I can't control myself, then you owe me," he raised his brow.

"Owe you what?" he challenged.

"The pleasure of your company again of course," he snickered, grasping his slim waist between his palms.

"That mean that if you do control yourself, you never touch me again?" he cocked his head.

He blinked. "Screw my theory."

Kyle laughed softly before leaning up and kissing him gently. "You have control, so we don't wanna take that risk, do we?" he asked.

"That'd suck," he nodded in agreement. Kyle chuckled, bending down and grabbing some jeans and sliding them on. He looked past Ken before sighing quietly.

"I really don't wanna do this," he murmured.

Kenny cupped his chin and pecked his forehead lovingly. "Yeah, but you know you gotta."

"I know," he nodded, leaning against him and sighing again.

"You feelin' any better than earlier?" he asked, wrapping his arms around him.

"Not really," he shrugged. "I mean...this whole thing blows."

"Tell me about it," he nodded in agreement.

"But we'll get through it," he said softly.

"Of course we will," he smiled down on him.

He looked up at him and grinned crookedly. "Yeah." His smile dropped slightly. "What...what do you think he'll...," he looked down at Kenny's stomach blankly.

Ken bit his lip and clasped him tighter. "I...I dunno," he whispered.

He sniffed briefly before looking back up at him with a sad smile. "Well, might as well go out there. No use dwelling on tomorrow, right?" He backed up from his grip and turned back to the dresser.

"Uh, right," he nodded slowly. Kyle reached over and picked up a shirt before sliding it on silently. He grasped Ken's hand and their fingers intertwined as the redhead led him to the door. He took a deep breath before opening it and stepping out into the living room with his tall lover.

"Uh...hi," he said quietly.

The five sitting around the room shot their heads in their direction. Sheila and Gerald got to their feet quietly.

The woman walked over to him and stared at him sadly. "Are you alright?" she asked, brushing some hair out of his eyes.

He shrugged. "I'm alive."

"Oh, bubbie," she cooed, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into her. Kyle flicked his eyes up at Ken with an annoyed expression and he smiled back down on him, releasing his hand.

"I'll let you guys talk," he stated. "Ike, did you pick dinner?"

"Uh, here's some wing place," he shrugged, handing him the menu.

He smirked, "Alright. I'll head over and order some different stuff and come back."

Kyle shook his way away from his mother and stared up at him. "Just...be careful?" he asked.

He smiled gently, "Always," he leaned down and kissed him gently. He looked over at Sheila and Gerald, who forced smiles across their faces.

Kayla ran over and tugged his arm. "Kenny, can I come with you?"

"Kid, you just got home," he pointed out.

"But I wanna go with you," she pouted.

He sighed before leaning down and picking her up. "You comin', Jacob?"

"Nah," he shook his head. "My feet hurt."

He chuckled, "Alright. We'll be back," he winked at Kyle before walking past the group and out the door with the girl still secure in his arms.

"So, how was your time with Kyle's mom and dad?" he asked.

"His mommy came shopping with us, but his daddy went to talk to the beard man," she said, hugging him around his neck.

"Oh," he nodded softly. "Well, do you like Mrs. Broflovski?"

"She's really nice," she smiled. "She bought us all lunch and drove us around. It was a bunch of fun."

"Well I'm glad then," he grinned back.

"Kenny, what's that?" she pointed to the sky.

He looked up and squinted. "That's a plane. Well, a jet I guess, actually."

"What's that line?" she cocked her head.

"It's the smoke coming from the back of it," he explained.

"How does it fly?"

"Uh...it's really complicated," he laughed nervously. "You'd have to ask Kyle about that."

"How come?"

"He's a lot smarter than me, Kid," he smirked.

She nodded, "Mrs. Broflovski told me he was really smart. He was a veterinarian."

He blinked before snorting softly in realization. "No, Kayla, he was a valedictorian."

"A what?"

"It means he was the smartest person in our class."

"Oh," she said cutely. "So...does that make him a genius?"

He shrugged, "I think he is."

"Why weren't you a val...val...validicktorium?"

He chuckled and shook his head softly. "I just didn't try very hard."

"Why not?"

"Well, I didn't really feel like it. It wasn't smart of me, but that's what I did and I have to live with that choice."

"I think you're smart," she said quietly. "Mrs. Broflovski said so too."

He blinked down at her, "really?"

"Yup," she nodded briskly. "She told us that she's proud of you for getting...getting past your roots...and overcom-coming ad...ad..." she furrowed her brow in concentration. "University."

"Adversity?"

"Yeah!" she smiled. "Advertising!"

He smirked and shook his head. "She really said that?"

"Yea," she repeated. "She's happy you and Kyle are together and he's not with someone who does drugs."

"Oh Jesus," he snorted. "Well, I guess I'm fairly happy to have her support." He shifted her around in his arms and had her fall onto his back and he grasped under her knees. She giggled and clasped around his neck tightly.

They walked around town for a bit, admiring the snow softly falling to the ground. Kayla made soft noises as she stuck her tongue out to catch some flakes. Ken smiled and followed her example, staring up towards the sky with his mouth open and making the sounds with her.

She fell quiet and Ken looked back behind him. "You okay?"

"I have a question."

"That's not a surprise," he laughed warmly. "What's on your mind?"

She leaned her head down on his shoulder. "We're a family?"

"Of course. You, me, Jacob, Kyle, and Snickers." He replied.

"So...does that make you my daddy?" she asked innocently. He stopped in his tracks and kept his head turned towards her. They stared at each other before he broke into a smile.

"Yeah...yeah, I guess it does."

"So is Kyle my daddy, too?"

"Yea."

"Do...do I call you daddy?"

He started back up walking and shrugged. "Kayla, you can call us whatever you want to."

"I...I always wanted a daddy," she murmured, hugging him tighter.

He felt a happy flutter in his heart. "Well, now you have two." he said softly.

"Why did you adopt me and Jacob?" she asked.

"We like having you around, that's why," he grinned at her as she snuggled into his shirt. "You kids are pretty cool to hang with."

She giggled, "thank you."

"Not at all," he replied.

"Mrs. Broflovski said you and Kyle are getting married."

"We sure are," he nodded.

"The man at church said you're supposed to get married and _then_ have kids."

He looked around awkwardly. "Uhh...adopting is different than..._having_ kids, per se."

"How come?"

"Uh, something else you need to ask Kyle about, not me," he cleared his throat.

"Oh, okay," she responded, yawning softly.

"Tired?"

"Yeah," she murmured sleepily, letting out another little yawn.

He chuckled, "you sound like a kitten."

"A kitten?" she repeated.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Kittens are cute, that was a cute sound."

"Oh," she said with a smile.

"Kayla the kitten," he smirked. "I like that, don't you?"

She nodded, "Yeah..." she trailed off tiredly, cuddling against him.

He laughed and looked up at the pink and dark blue sky, smiling to himself before dropping into a remembering grimace.

This wasn't exactly the time for celebrations, but then again, what more could be done? Today was nothing more than the stepping stone to an even bigger problem than they had perceived. After all, what was speaking compared to what lay ahead in the day to come?

Ken gritted his teeth as he though of that smug, overweight son of a bitch. The months of not knowing that he was trailing them, that he was right behind them; watching and waiting for the right time to make his appearance.

He knew all about them now, he knew their jobs, their entire lives, most likely. He knew all about their strengths, but more importantly, he knew what irked them. He knew just what he could do to make either of them submissive to what he wanted. And with the job and the damn condition held at the front of the line, they really had no choice but to listen to him.

He furrowed his brow as he thought of Damien and Satan. What the fuck gave them the idea that not telling them about Barney still hanging around was a good plan? And better yet, how had the boys themselves not noticed?!

He sighed as he thought of that, it was fairly obvious why they were so unobservant. So much had been throwing itself into their lives now. It was hard enough to keep track of themselves and the cases that they came face to face with, much less other things surrounding them.

"Daddy?" Kayla muttered.

"Hm?"

"You okay?" she yawned.

He looked back and smiled sadly. "I'm alright. Go ahead and sleep, okay?"

"Okay," she nodded softly, nuzzling into him.

He sighed softly and looked at the streetlights reflecting on the ice on the sidewalk. Something had to be done about this situation. Barney couldn't get his hands on Kyle again. Not if he could help it.

He furrowed his brow, releasing one of Kayla's legs and staring at his hand in concentration.

He was given these powers for a reason. If Kyle was indeed his possession, then it was his obligation to do everything he could to protect him, right?

Now the only question was, just how could he do that and still keep Kyle by his side?

He clenched his fist and watched as it shook violently as he thought of that bastard touching his Jew ever again.

He didn't know how, but he was going to find a way.

Whether Satan liked it or not.

* * *

_A/N: Uh...I'm guessing this was as boring to read as it was to write_

_*nervous laugh_

_Well, you're getting two more chaps. No epi, though, I've decided._

_Next chap will be a bit better, I promise xD_

_I just needed this one as a damn segway. Sorry it took so long, I have a lot going on right now =/_

_Thanks for reading and reviewing and etc._

_I think we can hit that 400 if we keep up with the numbers =)_

_That'd be DAMN exciting =D_


	52. Now is Forever

_A/N: WE'RE GOING TO FINISH THIS DAMN THING BEFORE I SHOOT MYSELF IN THE FACE xD_

_What's gonna happen with Barney? How am I going to end this?_

_WHO KNOWS?!?!?!_

_...I sure as hell don't._

_Enjoy my loves p:_

* * *

He listened to the steady ticking of the hands upon the clock across from him on the family room wall. He stared down at his own hands intently, seemingly boring into his skin with his bright blue eyes. His breathing remained slow and even while his mind raced consistently with worry and fear.

He bit his lips in anxiety and slammed his eyes shut as the ticking seemed to increase in volume. He knew what each of those clicks meant. Closer and closer came the time he had stayed up all throughout the night worrying about; ruing.

He watched as the back of his eyelids became filled with visions. Visions of blood and screams filled his head and he reached up, threading his fingers through his coarse hair and tearing at it. He sniffled lightly and shook his head against his fingers.

He couldn't do this. He had to find some way to stop this. But everything he thought of resulted in the loss of his fiancé in one way or another.

He looked up at the noisy time keeper across from him and stared at it, narrowing his eyes. He gritted his teeth, watching as the hand slowly moved along the clock. Fucking bastard just wouldn't stop. Despite his powers, despite everything he could do that defied the laws of mortality...he was still only human. He couldn't make this all go away, he couldn't just fix all the problems he faced with a simple thought. It killed him. It did nothing but destroy him as he thought of all that he wasn't able to prevent, all he couldn't stop before it got out of hand.

His job, Kyle's death, their pain...nothing. Everything was coming apart at the seams and all he could do was sit back and watch.

He stewed in anger for a moment before blinking slowly and looking down onto the floor. He couldn't help but think like that, but at the same time, there was no true justification in those thoughts.

Sure, there was pain. And loss. There was a lot that went wrong within their lives...but there was too much right to be ignored. He looked at his ring and sighed softly. There was balance in there somewhere. He lost his family, he gained more love than he had ever felt. He lost his freedom when he took this job, but he gained company from that loss. In general, he'd just gained Kyle. Could much more be considered a loss when compared against the gain of what he held to be the most dear to himself?

"Ken?"

He shot his head up and turned, looking behind him to see said redhead standing by their bedroom door. He yawned and rubbed his eyes, stepping towards him.

"Why're you up?" he asked.

"I could ask you the same question," he raised his brow. He looked up at the clock before gazing back at the blonde. "Dude, it's four thirty. Come to bed."

"Not tired," he shrugged.

He sighed, walking closer to him and sitting down beside him on the couch. "You're not a very good liar," he said softly.

Kenny turned and looked at him. "How do you know?"

He smirked, "I've told you. I know you better than you know you." He scooted closer, his leg resting against the older boy's. "What's wrong?"

He scoffed lightly. "Ky, what do you think?"

He took a deep breath. "I...I was kinda hoping that it was something else."

"You really think that that wouldn't be on my mind, Kyle?"

"I can hope," he replied quietly.

"And I can hope that you never have to do this, but it doesn't make it happen, now does it?!" he raised his voice slightly, edging on desperation. They stared at each other before Kyle bit his lip and winced just slightly.

"I...I don't know what to tell you, Ken."

"Tell me that you're not gonna do this," he said softly. "Tell...tell me that...you don't want to do this. That you refuse."

The Jew's face dropped. "So...you want to be separated for eternity?"

"No...no I don't. And you damn well know that I don't," he frowned. "But I'd rather you didn't have to do this."

"Well both of us are in that mindset, Ken, but what other choice do we have?"

He leaned back and intertwined their fingers. "I bring Barney back to life and send him to jail."

"Oh yeah. That'd work really well," he shook his head. "And just how would you explain that, Ken?"

He shrugged. "I'd get Cartman to think of something."

He let out a short laugh and shook his head. "While I'm sure that fatass could lie his way out of anything, I think that we need to just...let this happen."

"Kyle...," he started slowly. "I don't want you hurt."

"I know you don't. But I mean...what else can we do, Kenny?"

"Run?"

"To where? Where the hell are we going to escape a ghost? Or Satan for that matter?"

"Indiana. Even Satan doesn't want to watch that place."

He blinked at him before chuckling and shaking his head. "Ken, look. It's a few hours only, I'm sure."

"What if it's not?" he snapped, looking deep into his green eyes. "Kyle, what if what he needs to be unstuck is actually killing you? Or he kidnaps you and takes you away for like, years? Have you even _considered _these possibilities?!" his voice cracked.

He paused a bit before sighing. "Of course I have," he looked at him sadly. He squeezed his hand and continued, "but at the same time, I'm really trying not to. It's not exactly making the situation any easier."

He stared at their hands and took a deep breath. "I'll figure something out."

"Ken...please don't," he laid his head atop the blonde's shoulder. "We've been through enough without you freaking out about this."

"And you've been through enough without that fat fuck raping you again!" he shouted.

"Quiet down," he hissed. "The kids are sleeping," he jerked his head back towards their bedroom door.

"QUIET DOWN?!" he repeated incredulously. He released the redhead's hand and got to his feet, pacing in front of the couch furiously. "Kyle, why the fuck should I quiet down?!"

"Because this affects me, not you, Kenny!" he furrowed his brow angrily.

"Yes, because my fiancé getting fucking brutalized by that fucking bastard for like the fifth time, that doesn't effect me in the least!" he scowled, staring at the ground with his arms crossed.

There were a few moments of silence before a small sniffle broke the stifling air around them. Kenny broke his sight away from his fuming glare to his lover, seeing the boy shaking and hugging himself tightly. Ken's shoulders dropped and he felt a tightening in his chest.

"Kyle..." he said softly. The boy shook his head and dropped his chin to his chest, sniffing louder and more frequently. "I...I didn't...mean to..." he trailed off, biting his lip.

"I...I know...," he cried, clasping himself tighter.

Kenny's heart lurched guiltily and he sighed, kneeling down in front of the boy and brushed his bangs back. "Kyle...I'm so sorry," he said gently. "I...I really didn't mean it like that."

"Yes you did," he looked at him with tears coating his eyes. "And...and I know," he choked out. "I...I just really want...God, Ken..." he sobbed, leaning his head forward onto Kenny's shoulder and crying a bit.

"Shh...," Kenny cooed, wrapping his arms around him and rubbing his back soothingly. "It's alright."

"What do we do?" he sobbed. "What the fuck do I do?"

"I...I don't know..." he bit his lip. Kyle wrapped his arms around his neck and fell in front of him on his knees, clinging onto him tightly, burying his face into his throat. Kenny kissed him gently, holding onto him as tightly as he could.

"What do I do?" he repeated, shaking his head against his shirt.

"Kyle, look at me," he stated. The Jew sniffed before pulling his head back and looking up into his blue eyes. Kenny leaned forward, pecking his forehead. "Kyle...I know a way to get you out of this," he said quietly.

Kyle pulled away from him again, his face contorted in disgusted disbelief. "No," he said softly. "No. Fucking. Way."

"But I can get you away from him," he promised, shaking his shoulders softly. "I can save you. This time, I can get you away."

He shook his head slowly. "No...," he repeated. "No, no, no!" He got to his feet and grasped at his hair. "NO WAY!"

Kenny stared up at him. "Kyle, I want you safe!" he slowly got to his feet with him.

"You think I'd be safer without you?" he hissed, blinking back more tears. "You...you really think that the best thing for me would be to just...ugh!" he looked away in frustration, crossing his arms tightly. "This is a mess," he whispered.

Ken cupped his chin and kissed him lightly. "I know," he nodded. "I know. But...I can fix it."

Kyle took a deep breath before looking up at him and squaring his shoulders. "No," he said steadily. "I'm not letting him win."

"This isn't about him winning!" he argued. "This is about you not getting hurt, Kyle!"

"Look," he frowned, "No matter how we go about this, I'm going to end up losing something in the process. And I'd much rather just deal with him stealing my dignity or raping me...or something else equally degrading," he rolled his eyes, "I'd rather deal with that than the alternative."

"I...I don't know which I'd rather happen," Ken said softly, looking down at his feet. "I don't want you hurt. I...I just want that fucker to get away from you and to stay away. But...I don't want to lose you, either."

"So...we're gonna have to deal with it," Kyle gulped. He slowly wrapped his slender arms around the boy's waist and held him tightly. "I...I don't know what to do, Kenny."

He stared at the couch behind the boy, hugging him against him. "I don't know what to tell you, Ky."

"Tell me you'll be here," he whispered, clinging onto the back of his t-shirt. "just promise me."

"You know I will be," he replied, kissing his head softly. "You know I'll be right here for you."

"I know," he took a shuddery breath. "I...I know."

He sighed and held him tighter. "Ky, I'll find a way to save you from this."

"I don't want to lose you," he said softly.

"You won't," he promised, kissing him again. "I'll find a loophole in this damn thing."

"How?" he pulled back and looked at him questioningly. "I mean...it's a lock-in bargain with Satan...isn't it?"

He nodded. "But...I've figured out that not everything is what someone says it is. There can be a completely different way to look at things."

He looked down guiltily and nodded. "But...it's really hard to find those things sometimes, huh?"

"Beyond all reason," he snickered lightly. Kyle looked up and smiled crookedly and nodded. He leaned up and kissed his lips softly.

He pulled away and looked down at the blonde's chest with a sigh. "I guess all we can really do is...wait."

"We have to do something," he muttered.

"Maybe Damien has a plan," he replied gently. "I mean...maybe...maybe he agreed to compromise for a reason."

"Because we're out of options," he responded truthfully. "There's not a whole lot that you can do..."

"_When you're backed up against a wall,"_ Kyle finished softly, looking at Kenny's torso. He chuckled quietly and shook his head, leaning against him tiredly. "I think...I think everything'll be okay."

Kenny looked down at him in disbelief. "What." he blinked. "You...you were crying a few seconds ago."

"Momentary relapse," he looked up at him and smiled. "I really do think it'll be alright."

He continued staring at him confusedly. "Kyle...what the hell's going on with you?"

He smirked. "Look. This whole stupid trial thing...it's taught me a lot. I've figured out that I really need to stop thinking that everything's going to all apart...that...that everything will come apart and my life will fall into shambles or whatever. I need to just calm down and try to look at the brighter side of things."

Kenny raised his brow and put his hand on the redhead's forehead. "Are you my Kyle or did you get replaced with a humanized My Little Pony?"

He broke into laughter, brushing his hand off softly. "I'm really just...trying, ya know?"

He nodded with a smile of his own. "I couldn't be happier that you are, Kyle. But I have to say it's strange that you're trying to be positive in this type of situation, hm?"

"It's either that or I freak myself out into another coma," he shrugged. "There's always the possibility that something will happen...and that it'll be okay. Maybe he just wants to...punch me or something," he reached for an excuse.

He nodded, "I...I kinda would hope that was it."

He smiled softly, "Well...not much else we can do until then, hm?" he shrugged.

"I'm not gonna lie, I kinda like you like this," he grinned, holding him and swaying him back and forth. "All happy and optimistic and such?"

"Really?" he looked back at him with a small smirk.

"Mhm," he nodded. "It's nice seeing ya smile."

"Was I really that bad before?"

"Especially before we got together," he admitted. "You acted more gothic than Stan during his funks."

"I...I did?"

"Yeah. But I always thought that was just...you," he shrugged. "Turns out it wasn't by a long shot. You smile quite a bit."

"I do?"

"Yes, Sir," he smirked, leaning forward and kissing his head. "And I like it," he purred. "You're quite attractive when you're happy, ya know," he dove down and nuzzled into his neck, biting lightly on his skin.

Kyle gasped softly and dug his fingernails into his shirt. "K-Ken..." he shuddered. He pulled him closer and placed his face into his shirt and cuddled into him a bit. Ken laughed lowly and pressed him back and down into the couch. Kyle fell back with a small yelp and Ken followed, leaning astride his thighs and pushing him into the back cushion.

Ken receded from his neck and smiled saucily at the Jew. "Kids out?"

"Like lights," he smirked.

"Good," he purred, placing his arms on either side of him and pushing their lips together. Kyle snaked his own arms up and wrapped them around his lover's neck. He pulled away and smiled at him lightly.

"You're tired."

"Never too tired for this, though," he laughed.

"I dunno," he cocked his head. "You're lookin' kinda peakish there."

He raised his brow. "Are you saying that I'm not as good as usual?"

"You haven't started yet," he laughed.

"Damn straight I haven't," he growled, pressing him further into the sofa. He placed his fingertips on the boy's chin and tilted his head up. He drug his teeth against the skin, making small markings along his throat. Kyle let out a soft moan and Ken laughed softly, inhaling the Jew's scent. "Still think I'm tired?"

"A bit," he replied.

The blonde smirked, kissing his cheek and pulling back, licking his lips. "Oh really?" he blinked innocently. "Well I suppose that I have to prove you wrong, don't I?"

"Not too many people have been able to do that," he raised his brow.

"Oh, I've done it on a few occasions and you know it." he got off from his lap and pushed him firmly onto his side on the cushions.

Kyle grunted softly, turning his head and staring up at him. "So you have to push me to prove you're not tired?" he raised his brow.

"Nah. I just have to because it makes things funner," he laughed. He trailed his fingers along the boy's hip and slowly hooked his digits under the waistband of his flannel bottoms. Kyle roughly jerked his body away from him and he looked up, seeing the redhead sporting a mischievous smirk.

"I'm making things funner," he stuck his tongue out.

Ken blinked before breaking into laughter. He roughly held him down and leaned over him. "Oh really?"

The Jew squirmed under him a bit, "Really."

"Oh no," he feigned a gasp. "I guess that means I'll just have to make you, doesn't it?"

"I guess so," he grinned before sliding out from under him and leaping over the arm of the couch. Ken let out a small grunt as he toppled over. He looked up to see the Jew looking at him from behind the couch with a playful grin. He leapt up onto his feet and stared at him predatorily.

"You really think I can't make you?" he raised his brow.

"I'm not afraid of you," he met his challenge.

"You will be," he chuckled. He slowly started edging around the furniture towards him, with Kyle stepping back away from him at the same pace. Ken raised his hand and curled his index finger. "Come here, Kyle."

"Come here?" he repeated. "We've already done the dog thing. We don't need to do it twice."

"Oh, my darling, I don't repeat myself," he purred. "Come here and I'll show you."

"No," he shook his head.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Why must you make this difficult?"

He crossed his arms and smirked, "I'm a difficult person."

"Trust me, I know," he laughed, peeling off his shirt and throwing it aside. "Now get over here, Kyle."

He looked off to the side and shrugged lightly, "I'm not in the mood."

"Bullshit," he moved quicker towards him. Kyle sped away backwards, watching him closely.

"Back off," he playfully warned.

"Or what?"

"I'll...call the cops and say you're molestering me."

He paused a moment before smiling wider. "I don't think that works if you're enjoying the 'molestering', Dearie."

"Who the hell said I'd enjoy it?"

"Me," he growled before leaping forward and grabbing him by the arm yanking him into his body.

"No!" Kyle said, half-attempting to break away from him. Ken smirked, clasping his hand over his mouth and dragging him back into the kitchen.

"Just come with me," he cooed as he pulled him back. Kyle shook his head and tried to lurch forward. Ken wrapped his other arm around his waist and roughly drug him across the carpet. Kyle mumbled incoherently from beyond his hand, trying to pull it away from him with his own slender fingers.

Kenny pulled him into the kitchen and whirled around starting to push him over towards the counter in the middle of the room. He pressed his head down into the cool wood and held him down tightly by the wrists.

Kyle groaned and tried to shift away from his hold. "Leggo!"

"Never," he laughed. "Not until I get what I want, anyways."

"The money's in my wallet," he stated.

"Oh, I have no interest in the presidents," he said lowly. "I have my sights set on someone a bit closer to home," he licked his lips, leaning down and kissing the nape of his neck.

"Stop!" he ordered.

"Or what?" he cocked his head.

"I'll scream."

"And wake the children?" he raised his brow. "You really wanna explain to a six and an eight year old what you're doing naked in the kitchen?" he roughly pulled down his pajama bottoms and rubbed his ass pointedly.

"Perv," he murmured, trying to thrash away.

"Fuck yes I am," he laughed, grabbing a small paring knife from beside him and running it over his bare ass.

"Don't you dare cut me," he warned.

"How come?"

"I'm serious. I will fucking kick you in the balls."

"Aww," he pouted. "But..." he ran the knife over him again. "You look so good in red."

"No, Ken," he scowled.

He sighed and threw the knife aside. "Fine," he pushed him up further onto the counter. He held him down as he jumped atop it and slid to the opposite side, bending down and staring at him with a smile. "I'll have to find something else red, won't I?"

He cocked his head. "Whaddya mean?"

He laughed lowly and bent down a bit, opening a cabinet under him with his foot and grabbing a box before slamming it onto the counter in front of the redhead.

"Garbage bags? What are you gonna do, asphyxiate me? 'Cause I gotta tell ya, I draw the line before that."

He snorted, "Why would I do that? I'm not about to cover your pretty face," he stroked his cheek. "Now then." He grabbed a bag from the box and secured Kyle's wrists together. He pulled him forward and tied the other end tightly around the handle of a drawer on his side of the counter.

Kyle groaned and shifted uncomfortably, trying to pull back. Ken stepped back and watched him with a grin.

"Comfy?"

"What the hell do you think?" he rolled his eyes.

He smirked and grabbed another bag, walking around to Kyle's side before tying the plastic around his jade eyes.

"Ken, what're you doing?"

"Now where's the fun if you're expecting it?" he teased. "Just hang out for a minute, Babe. You'll see." He licked the boy's cheek and Kyle mocked disgust, trying to rub his face on his shoulder. Ken smirked and smacked his ass before walking over towards their fridge and yanking it open.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing?" Kyle asked, trying to look over his shoulder.

"Gettin' stuff," he replied, rummaging through the appliance. He grabbed a bottle and slammed the door shut before pulling the freezer open and grabbing a box. He pushed the door closed and walked back over to his lover, setting his supplies on the counter.

"Stuff." Kyle repeated. "What kind of stuff?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Hence the reason I asked, Genius." he drawled sarcastically.

"Hey," he frowned, grabbing a wooden spoon from beside him on the counter. "Don't get an attitude with me," he brought the spoon down on the flesh of Kyle's ass. The Jew lurched up as much as he could with a high pitched yelp. The blonde snickered and rubbed his marking. "Told ya."

"Most people give warnings first," he snarled.

"Yeah, well that was a warning. Next time I'm getting the metal spoon, so don't push your luck," he smirked.

Kyle shook his head and laid his cheek upon the counter, his clothed eyes facing his domineering fiance. Ken leaned down and kissed his temple lightly before stooping back up and grabbing his box, peeling the top off and sticking the spoon down in it. He looked at his unsuspecting victim and laughed to himself before scooping out a dollop of his weapon of choice.

"Kyle?"

"What?"

"Do you know why I tie you up like I do?" he asked, staring at the boy.

"Because you're a kinky freak?"

"Aside from that," he smirked.

"There's more?" he asked, a hint of disbelief lacing his voice.

"It's because you're so fucking hot when you're like this," he leaned forward and growled.

"....Thanks?"

He sniggered lightly. "In fact," he continued, "you're a little too hot. Let's cool you down, hm?" He tilted the spoon over his back and watched as a scoop of ice cream slid down and hit him in the shoulder blade. Kyle gasped and arched up, making it travel down his spine.

"Cold...cold..." he repeated, squirming around uncomfortably. Kenny laughed and grabbed another scoop, picking the treat up with his fingers and placing it on his other shoulder, gliding it down around his back to meet with the other melting spoonful in the dip of his back.

"Cooled down yet?"

"You freaking....oh my god...it's freaking cold!" he shivered. Ken chuckled, leaning down and kissing his back lightly. He ran his tongue up through a streak of vanilla and grabbed Kyle's head, turning him and assaulting his lips. He moaned softly before pulling away, licking his lips at the lingering sweetness.

Kyle smacked his lips a bit and his brow raised. "I thought you said red."

"I did," he nodded.

"...Kenny, vanilla's white."

He snickered. "Very good, Kyle. So we have to fix that problem, don't we?" He set the box down and walked around the counter, untying Kyle's wrists from the cabinet. He held them down still and stared at his concealed face. "You follow my movements, got it?"

"And if I say no?"

"I told you, I'm beating you with a spoon. Now come on," he walked to his side with his wrists still secure in his grasp and pulled him down towards the ground. He set him up on his hands and knees and ran his fingers through his curls affectionately. "Stay still, the blindfold stays on."

"And somehow I'm less than surprised," Kyle murmured. Kenny laughed softly and kissed his cheek. He reached up and grabbed the bottle from the countertop and set it on the floor beside them.

"What's your favorite ice cream topping, Ky?"

"Ken, I don't like ice cream that much."

"I know. But you do eat it with me sometimes, so what do you think goes best with it?"

"I...I dunno...syrup I guess?" he shrugged.

"Excellent answer," he praised, stroking his hair and grabbing his spoon, running it over his back and spreading the frozen treat around.

"What the hell are you d-doing?" he asked.

Kenny laughed softly. "I'm making you taste better than you already do," he purred. He slid his pants off and threw them across the floor before turning back to his lover. He leaned over top of him and started suckling on the sweet cream coating his spine. Kyle continued moaning, arching up under his mouth a bit with each graze of his teeth. Ken's hand moved down to his cock and he started stroking himself, listening to the sounds emitting from the Jew intently. He nipped at his soft skin as he continued cleaning him, matching his pumping to Kyle's breathing. He ran his tongue smoothly around his back before moving down and tickling the dip of his back. He moved behind him and pried the flesh of his ass apart, leaning in and tonguing his puckered entrance.

Kyle whimpered quietly as he dove his tongue into him and affectionately stroked his back and ass. He worked his hand down and ran his fingertips over his balls before loosely grabbing his cock and pumping on it slowly. He moved back from his ass, taking another finger and sliding into him, gently rubbing him and watching him closely. Kyle's fists tightened and his shoulders shook as he added another finger and began thrusting into him.

"Oh god..." he murmured, pushing his hips back slightly onto Kenny's appendages. Ken chuckled, releasing the boy's cock and reaching up, ripping the garbage bag from over his eyes and throwing it aside. Kyle shook his head a few times before looking back at him with a pleading expression overshadowing his face. The blonde smiled at him before receding his fingers and crawling up beside him, grasping his curls and pulling their faces together. They moaned and swirled their tongues around each other before Kenny pulled back and licked his lips.

"Well, I got a treat. You want one?"

"Sure, why the hell not?" he smirked.

Ken grabbed the bottle from beside them and held it to him. Kyle grasped it and raised his brow. "Strawberry Syrup?"

He nodded. "Yeah, we bought it for the ice cream," he laughed softly. "But I already had that, so I guess you'll have to enjoy your favorite topping instead, hm?"

"Ken, syrup is pure sugar," he protested.

"Not this one," he grabbed the bottle and pointed to the label. "See? Sugar-free. I was thinkin' of you when I got it."

He smirked, "How very thoughtful."

"Damn straight," he handed him the bottle back and sat against the counter with his legs bent up. "So, pour it on something and make yourself a treat," he wiggled his brows, shooting his eyes towards his cock pointedly.

Kyle smirked, crawling around and in-between his legs. He leaned forward, their lips barely touching and murmured, "close your eyes."

Kenny slammed his eyes shut and grinned with excitement. Kyle lightly kissed his lips and around his face. He heard Kyle snap the cap of the bottle open and spread his legs just a bit more around the small Jew.

He waited excitedly before jerking a bit as he felt something dumping onto his hair. He snapped his eyes open to see Kyle grinning at him innocently with the bottle in his hand. He felt the syrup working its way around his scalp and he groaned, wiping a bit from off his forehead.

"Kyle, that isn't what I had in mind!"

"Well, you just said on something," he replied sweetly.

"Oh, Jesus Christ, Dude, it's all over my hair!" he whined, taking his hand and swiping off another layer of the sticky goo. Kyle laughed softly and Ken looked at him and scrunched his brow. "You really suck at this whole sexy thing sometimes," he lectured. "You totally missed your cue to..." he stopped as Kyle took his hand and slowly ran his tongue along the back of his skin.

He pulled back a bit and licked his lips before kissing back down his appendage down his index finger. He lightly flicked his tongue out at his fingertip before taking it in his mouth and sucking on it sweetly. He shot his eyes up to his dumbfounded lover as he moved down on the finger, sucking harder and running his tongue around it fluently. He pulled off and moved to the next digit, never missing a beat. He took his hand not holding Ken's and wiped more syrup from his brow onto the palm of his hand. He reached down and lightly grasped Kenny's cock, running his coated hand around it almost teasingly.

Ken gasped and his hips arched up slightly into his touch. Kyle pulled off another cleaned finger and turned his hand around. He stuck his tongue out and trailed it over his palm, his eyes never leaving Kenny's. The blonde watched him in damn-near awe as he worked, his cock growing harder in Kyle's playful grip.

The redhead completely cleaned him off and kissed his hand, looking at him with a devilish gleam in his green gaze. "I'm sorry," he said lightly.

"Trust me, you're forgiven," he said briskly. Kyle laughed before leaning forward and kissing him passionately. He pulled back and smiled before scooting back a bit and leaning down, taking the head of Kenny's cock in his lips. He took his hand and cupped his balls before starting to engulf him repeatedly.

Kenny moaned, threading his fingers through his curls as he bobbed. "Ah, fuck Kyle," he hissed, leaning his head back against the wooden cabinets. Kyle continued swirling his tongue around the hardened flesh, flickering his emerald eyes up at his lover occasionally. Kenny's grip tightened in his hair and he dove down onto his cock, staying still for a few moments and lightly choking before pulling back up and swallowing his excess spit on the way back. He pulled off of his cock and looked at him lustfully, licking his lips.

Kenny roughly pulled him up and attacked his mouth. He got to his feet and pulled the boy with him, stroking his face with his thumb lightly. He pulled off and they looked at each other, breathing heavily as Kenny continued to caress his cheek.

"See? Now you're red," he smirked wiping some syrup from the corner of his mouth and displaying it. Kyle giggled lightly and shook his head.

Ken leaned forward and pecked his forehead before switching their positions; turning Kyle around towards the counter. Kyle bent down on top of it and looked back, watching as Kenny positioned himself. He reached forward and grabbed Kyle's shoulder before pushing up into him. Kyle moaned and his fingers curled around the opposite end of the counter. He reached both his arms up and held on as Kenny started quickly thrusting into him. He pressed his hips back onto him a bit, completely impaling himself on Kenny's blazing skin.

"Fuck, Ken," he exhaled shakily as he sped up.

"I am," he smirked, trailing his fingers along his sticky spine. "Wanting more?"

"Please," he whimpered, resting his cheek against the counter.

Kenny chuckled. "Happy to oblige," he claimed as he sped up once again. He listened as the counter shook and the cabinet's doors slammed a bit as Kyle was thrust into it time and time again.

"Ah...Ahh..." Kyle moaned loudly. "Ken...."

He reached under the boy and grabbed his cock, roughly tugging on him and listening to his feverish whimpers increase. "Goddamn it, Kyle," he panted, his nails digging into the boy's shoulder. He hit into him harder pulling him back all he could and jerking his hot skin still.

"I...I'm gonna..." Kyle mumbled frantically. "Oh god, KEN!" he screeched from gritted teeth as he lurched up and released into the blonde's hand. His muscles contracted around Kenny's throbbing member and he pushed himself deep into the Jew, holding onto him and exploding himself. Sweat mixed with the syrup now partially hardening on his scalp. He leaned down and clutched onto his redhead tightly, panting against his pale skin.

They stayed together as such for a bit before their muscles finally returned somewhat to normal. Kenny pushed himself off of the Jew and pulled him up, turning him around into his arms. He smiled down at him and leaned forward, kissing him gently.

He pulled back a bit and sighed, nuzzling his nose. "Love you," he smiled crookedly.

"Love you too," he smiled tiredly, wrapping his arms around him and snuggling into his chest.

He pecked the top of his head and laid his cheek down atop the curly mess. "You feelin' okay?"

"I'm fine," he replied. "Let's clean up, hm?"

He looked down on him and dropped into a saddened frown, "You're not fine. Not mood-wise at least," he shrugged.

"No, Ken, I'm okay, I promise," he sighed, nuzzling into him more. "I'm just tired. Can we just clean up and go to sleep?"

"Yea...I guess," he nodded solemnly. "I'll get stuff in here straightened up...you go start a shower. I'll join you in a bit," he winked.

Kyle pulled back and laughed. "Fine with me," he murmured, standing up on his toes and kissing him again. "I'll go get it running," he said, leaning down and picking up his pajama bottoms. He slid them on and shot Kenny another sweet smile before turning and walking out towards the bedroom.

Ken watched after him before picking up the items on the floor and counter and walking towards the fridge to throw them back in. He grabbed the carton of milk and took a quick swig before placing it back. He closed the door and sighed heavily before going and getting a towel to swab up the mess they'd made on his hand and on the floor.

Why he kept doing this, he'd never know. Kyle was hours away from being in the middle of what could very well be a bloodbath and all that the blonde could think about was tearing off his pants. Maybe he was doing it for the purpose of getting Kyle's mind off of it. There was always that possibility.

But more likely, he realized, was himself claiming his ownership in the small Jew. Kyle was his, despite whatever Satan may have said, despite the rules of the game. He and Kyle both knew that they belonged to no other but to themselves. But at what cost? This fact was hurting them more than helping them for this particular situation.

Ken's eyes flickered to his ring again and he bit his lip as he threw the towel into the sink. "He can't do this," he whispered, shaking his head slightly. What Kyle was doing was wrong. Himself allowing him to even think about doing it was even worse. This wasn't Kyle's battle, it was Ken's. Or at least it had started out that way.

But maybe that was a bit shortsighted. Kyle was in fact the one that Barney was after; the one he wanted his vengeance by. Ken just happened to be the pawn in the fat bastard's twisted game of dominance. He was merely a sacrifice set up for the prey; the bait. So what exactly could he do to save the prize when he held such little significance in the overall war?

He shook his head at that thought. Insignificance didn't exist in this situation. Every element had to be played in order for the dance to work; everyone had their own steps in the final showpiece.

Now only one question remained: Just who was going to be walking offstage with Kyle in the final act?

* * *

The air surrounding them was filled with the gentle, steady breathing of five individuals sprawled out around the living room furniture. Kenny gently played with Kyle's curls as he leaned against him, sleeping soundly nestled between his legs and against his chest. Kayla and Jacob laid back to back on the loveseat with Snickers curled up on the back of the furniture. He looked around at the four of them and couldn't help but smile. He laid his head against the back of the sofa and watched Kyle's chest slowly rise and fall. His eyes shot up towards the clock and his chest tightened as he saw it reading one-thirty.

"Family fun time I see," a voice came into the room.

He looked back behind the couch and found Damien staring at him amusedly. He smirked, "Funner than hanging out with you in Hell all the time."

"Hey, you were quite avid about enjoying your beer with me," he chuckled, going and sitting over on the chair. "Stan and the Fatboy are on their way," he leaned back and informed him.

"Lucky us," he sighed, playing some more with Kyle's hair.

There was a moment of silence between the both of them and Damien sighed as well. "Is the kid okay?"

"He says he is, but I really don't think so. I'm sure that this is playing on his nerves like crazy."

"Most things do," he chuckled.

"Yeah, but there's a lot more goin' on with this crap," he looked down at Kyle sadly. "He doesn't know what's gonna happen. He's trying to act okay about it, but I can tell he's scared out of his freaking mind."

"Well, we're going to try to make this as easy on him as possible," Damien assured him.

"What are you planning on telling him?"

"Depends on his own terms. My guess is that to become unstuck, he wants total control over Kyle again."

"The fatass wants to rape him again, doesn't he?"

He nodded slowly, "Yeah. I'm pretty sure he does. But I'm going to try to make this as painless as possible for Kyle."

"You gonna numb him or something?"

He shook his head. "I can't directly interfere with the actual process of a spirit becoming unstuck. The most I can really do is this bargaining."

"Why can't you?"

"Because as my father told you, we're not able to save spirits. It's not our job. We're merely there to maintain order among those who pass through Hell's gate."

Kyle groaned and stirred lightly, slowly blinking in the lighting of the room. He looked up and smiled softly at Kenny. "Hey."

"Hey," he leaned down and kissed his head softly.

"What time is it?"

"One-forty," Damien answered lowly.

He looked over at the demon and blinked a few times. "How long have you been here?"

"Only a few minutes," he shrugged. "The others are on their way."

"Oh goody," he yawned, sitting up off of the blonde and stretching. He rubbed the back of his neck groggily before Ken pulled him back up against him. He held him tightly and kissed his neck lovingly.

"Ken, you have to tone it down," Damien warned. "Do not let Johanson see you acting like that."

"How come?" he scowled, tightening his grip on the Jew.

"Because if he sees you acting so loving towards him, he'd be more adamant to make sure to hurt him more than he already intends on doing. He wants to make sure that not only his revenge is exacted on him, but on you as well. Don't forget that it was you who pulled the trigger on him and put him in this situation."

"It was my fault though," Kyle said meekly.

"He doesn't know that," Damien told him. "He has no idea about that condition. Kyle, I need to ask you something."

"Go ahead," he looked at him sadly.

"How...far are you willing to go for this?"

"As far as it takes to be able to stay with Kenny," he said quietly.

He nodded. "How far do you think he'll go?"

He shook his head slowly, "I don't know. Do you?"

"He wants to rape you again," he stated.

He nodded, "I was expecting so."

"Will you be able to handle that if it comes to such?"

"I'll live if that's what you mean."

A knock was heard on the door before it opened to Stan and Cartman who walked in and gently shut the door behind them. "Hey," Stan greeted them all.

"Hi, Stan," Kyle smiled at him softly. The two of them walked over and leaned over the back of the couch, staring down at the two lovers.

"So, what exactly are we doing here?" Cartman asked.

"We're waiting," Damien replied. Ken automatically pulled Kyle in closer to him and laid his head atop his hair, taking a deep breath of the scent of his clean skin.

"You're making this harder on yourself," Kyle looked up at him sadly.

"Not possible," he muttered, leaning forward and kissing his brow. "It's just not possible."

"Any plans?" Stan asked the demon.

"We bargain. Honestly, it just depends on how much we can make him willing to bend."

"What if he doesn't budge?" Cartman crossed his arms.

"Then we go along with it," Kyle said softly, looking down at his hands and intertwining his and Ken's fingers.

"What are you aiming for though?" Stan asked.

"Quick and as painless as we can make this for Kyle," he jerked his head towards the small boy. "I'm also planning on bullshitting a lot. I don't think he knows the consequences of you two not helping him, so we've got to play that angle."

Kyle looked over at him and shook his head. "Just how much have you been talking to Oliver?"

He smirked, "A good deal." He looked up at Stan and Cartman. "You two take the kids into the room. We don't want them to know what's happening."

They nodded and walked over, each reaching down and taking a kid into their arms and toting them off towards the bedroom.

The three immortals stared at each other before Kyle sighed. "Damien, what do you think'll happen? Ken and I...we're lost."

"I don't know, Kyle, I really don't," he replied. "He wants you dead. But he knows that can't happen. So I think he's just in this to torture you."

The redhead's expression dropped more so. "That...didn't make me feel any better."

"Were you wanting me to lie and say that he was going to come and give you roses and a kiss on the cheek and everything would be a-okay?" he raised his brow.

"Of course not, don't insult me," he frowned. "I was hoping for insight other than the blatantly obvious, Damien."

"I don't know, Kid," he shrugged. "All we can do is wait."

Stan and Cartman walked back out of the room and plopped down on the two-seater, staring at the three of them. "Why are we here?" Cartman asked.

"Good question," Kyle raised his brow.

"I want you two here for a multitude of reasons," Damien replied. "First off, extra bargainers just may intimidate him down a bit."

"You think?" Ken looked over at him.

He nodded. "We can hope."

"Yeah, but where does hope get you in the end?" a voice entered the room. They shot their heads towards the door and saw Barney standing against it with a dark grin overshadowing his face. "Hello," he greeted them.

Ken growled, pulling Kyle in tighter. "McCormick," Damien warned quietly. He looked over at the demon and sneered before releasing his hold just slightly. The man stepped away from the door and came over towards the group.

"Stay against the wall, Johanson," Damien nodded towards the opposite side by the TV.

He chuckled and shrugged, "As you wish." He walked over and leaned against it directly across from the redhead. "So. What are we discussing here?"

"You said you want Kyle in order to become unstuck," Damien started slowly. "Elaborate."

"I want the little fucker to pay for what he did," he shrugged again. "Not hard to understand, hm?"

"You're fully aware of his immortality, are you not?"

"I am. Doesn't mean he doesn't bleed," he growled predatorily, staring at the boy.

"We have certain conditions should we allow this deal to go through and they are expected to be followed."

"I have my own terms as well, Daddy's boy," he scowled. "Don't you act like you hold the cards here."

"I'm not," he replied monotonously. "But Kyle does. He can very easily say that he just refuses to go along with this."

"Which he should," Kenny muttered quietly. Kyle looked at him and shook his head lightly. The blonde met his gaze with misted eyes before having to avert his eyes away from the Jew's pleading gaze.

"Now then. What are your terms? Just what is it you're planning on doing?" Damien looked from Kyle back to the man.

He crossed his arms and smirked. "I wanna hear the little bitch screaming for mercy. I want to get as close to killing him as I possibly can."

Ken's eyes flickered to Damien, who remained emotionless. "Alright," Damien nodded.

"EXCUSE ME?!" Ken shouted, looking at him in disbelief.

"Shut up, McCormick, I'm not through yet," he frowned before looking back at Barney. "You have two hours." he said lowly.

"Oh do I?"

"TWO HOURS?!" Kenny intervened again. Damien growled and glared at him.

"Ken, stop," Kyle whispered, holding his hand tightly. "Please stop." The blonde blinked at him before his shoulders dropped and he returned to sneering at the man across from them.

Damien shook his head and went to look at him as well. "Yes, two hours. I am not subjecting Broflovski to endless torment. Two hours seems fair enough to me, does it not?"

He rolled his eyes, "Fine. Two hours. But those two hours are to be spent as I want them."

"I'm not through yet," he growled. "Second, you are not to put Kyle in any kind of immense danger."

"Define immense danger."

"Anything that lands him in critical care," he elaborated.

"But I can send him to the hospital under regular pain?" he smirked.

"You need to understand the line between the two. Cross that boundary and you'll be in more trouble than you can begin to comprehend."

"How so?"

"My father is Satan, Johanson. You should keep that in mind," he growled.

Barney snorted, "Yeah, I'll write it on my hand. Anything else?"

"Yes, actually. You're going to have someone with you at all times. They're going to make sure that you don't do anything that might involve Kyle ending up in the ER or you trying to take him."

"And who may that be?"

"ME!" Kenny jumped.

"It can't be someone with powers," Barney retorted.

"Fine. Stan will accompany you then," Damien nodded towards the raven-haired boy.

"No problem," Stan nodded back. "I'd be glad to," he glared at the man.

"And if you try in any way to prevent Stan from being there, I'll be stepping in," Damien warned.

"So you're gonna make one of his friends watch him get pounded all over again?" he smirked. "Where's your compassion? You really think Kylie wants to be subjected to that?"

Kyle tensed slightly in Kenny's grip and he held him tighter, scowling viciously at the man.

"Anything else?" Barney asked impatiently. "Time is wasting and I want what I came here for," he lowered his gaze to the redhead and smiled demonically.

"Keep in mind that we will be watching, Johanson," the demon stated lowly. "You're messing with a key component of Hell. You cross your word, you will regret it, do you understand me?"

"Trust me," he chuckled darkly, "I have no intention of crossing your little boundaries. After all, I know just how much abuse he can take," he smirked with a twinkle in his dark eyes. "Now if that's all...I'd like to go, hm? I have two hours and I intend to use them to their fullest extent."

"Kyle?" Damien asked. The Jew looked over towards him with a saddened expression. "Are you still comfortable with this?"

"I..." he looked over at Kenny's begging stare before sighing and looking at the ground. "I'm fine," he mumbled.

"Excellent," Barney smirked. "Now you understand that you're to do as I say for the next two hours, correct?" Kyle nodded solemnly at the floor beneath him, disconnecting his and Kenny's hands and wringing his own together. "Good," the man laughed. "Then stand up."

Kyle shivered lightly before pushing himself off the couch, his eyes still fixated on the flooring. Kenny wanted so desperately to pull him back down into his arms, but his eyes flickered to Damien, who glared at him. He knew the consequences of that. He couldn't risk it.

"Look at me," the man ordered gruffly. Kyle's eyes slowly raised towards him with a saddened glaze falling across them. Barney chuckled before reaching forward and grasping his arm, yanking him towards himself and staring him down. "Good boy," he stroked his hair.

Ken gritted his teeth together and shook violently in rage. Fucking asshole trying to run off with _his_ Jew.

"Well, come on," he pushed him around. Stan got to his feet and followed closely behind as Barney led Kyle towards the door. Kyle shot his head back around and sent Kenny an apologetic stare as he was shoved away. Barney flung the door open and looked back at the blonde stewing on the cushion. "Don't wait up, Kenny," he laughed. "Kyle won't be able to do much for you tonight." He violently shoved Stan and Kyle out the door and slammed it shut behind them.

Ken placed his face into his hands and let out an infuriated scream. "THAT FUCKING ASSHOLE!" he shook his head violently. "God, I NEVER should...Kyle's..."

"Calm down, McCormick," Damien said quietly. "He'll be alright."

"That's what you think," he hissed. "He's been through enough. This is just too fucking much right now," he sniffled, a loose tear straying down his cheek.

"Look, he's gonna be alright," Cartman rolled his eyes. "Stop crying about it."

"You don't understand!" he shouted, trembling harshly. "I promised him...that I would always protect him. That no matter what, he could count on me. But...I've just..._given_ him to a fucking maniac!" he claimed. "I...I mean at least when I was tied to a chair, at least I couldn't do anything to get him out. I could have easily held him back from doing this...but instead I basically wrap a bow around him and hand him over to that overweight fucker!" he cried out. "He...he doesn't deserve this and you both damn well know it!"

"Of course he doesn't," Damien agreed. "No one deserves this. But...he chose it. You did as well. You need to understand that."

"I DO!" he sobbed. "But...oh god, Kyle," he buried his eyes into the heels of his palms and cried. He felt the couch dip down beside him and looked to see Damien next to him, staring at him with those demonic eyes.

"Look, we'll keep an eye on him, alright?"

He sniffed and rubbed his eyes, "H-how?"

The demon's eyes glowed and he gestured out towards the coffee table. Ken and Cartman's brows raised as they watched an opaque image of the three depurators come up over the table. "What the hell?" Cartman murmured.

"This is how my father and I are able to keep watch on someone if we so see fit."

"You got TIVO on it?"

He shook his head and chuckled, "No. But now we can see just how far Johanson is going to go with his plan."

"What plan?" Ken murmured, watching as his fiance was led down the sidewalk by Barney's hand firmly grasping the back of his neck. "He just wants to hurt him..." he shook his head softly in disbelief. "That's all he wants."

"So Kylie," Barney started saying, "Just how have you been the past few months?" Kyle merely sniffed and continued staring at the ground as he walked alongside Stan. "Answer me," the man shook him roughly.

"Better than you, you ass," Kyle hissed.

"O-oh," Barney laughed. "Someone's got an attitude...," he whirled the boy around and stared him down. "I'm not too fond of my victims having attitudes. They tend to be irrational little fucks who do something insane like killing people, hm?" he stroked some of his scarlet hair back and grasped his chin. "Now then," he smirked, "Keep moving. And please, don't piss me off, Pretty boy. You know what I get like when I'm mad," he chuckled lowly, pushing him back around. Stan growled at the man defensively and Barney merely smirked at him as he continued leading Kyle down the walkway.

"Good advice," Damien leaned back and chewed on his fingernail.

"Whaddya mean?" Cartman asked, his eyes never leaving the image.

"I mean he has to bend to Johanson's rules all he can," he replied. "The kid's taking fate into his own hands. He needs to figure out everything that he can to be as safe as possible."

"What does it matter?" Ken mumbled, gazing at Kyle's face. "That bastard just wants him hurt. Nothing he does is going to make him back down."

"But further provocation won't aide his cause any."

He bit his lip and shook his head. "This...this is so wrong..."

"We know, Poor Boy, stop repeating yourself," Cartman rolled his eyes.

"Shut your fucking mouth, you fatass," he glared. "You have no fucking idea what this is doing to Kyle."

"He seems calmer than you!" he gestured towards the vision.

"That's because he knows he has to keep his emotions under control," Damien said lowly. "He knows he can't afford a breakdown by the spirits because he'll end up more vulnerable."

Kenny groaned and gripped at his hair, shaking his head. "Goddamn it...just...ugh."

He felt a pat on his shoulder and looked up to see Damien looking at him sympathetically. "Look, the kid's proven more than once or twice that he can handle himself. He's small, but he's sharp. If he finds himself in a bad situation, he finds his own way out."

"He shouldn't be in the situations in the first place," he muttered.

He nodded, "This is true. But...so is the life of a mortal, hm?"

"Yeah. An immortal mortal," he rolled his eyes. "Our powers don't mean shit in the long run."

"Not really," Damien shrugged. "They're there to aide you, but not to completely take over."

He scoffed, looking back up to his redhead. "Thanks a lot."

"No problem," he drawled with the same sarcasm lacing his tongue.

"Keep your eyes open and blink normally," Barney directed. He placed a hand over Kyle's eyes and continued shoving him forward. Kyle bit his lip and shook slightly at his sudden disadvantage. Stan reached down and grasped his wrist comfortingly, snarling at Barney. "Don't give me that look, Kid," he sneered. "Keep in mind who's in charge here."

"Yeah, Kyle. So shut the fuck up," he growled.

He rolled his eyes and kept pressing onwards, leading the two of them into the park. Kyle stumbled slightly and fell forward a bit and Barney grasped him around the waist, holding him upright. "Now I know you're desperate for me to fuck you, but you have to wait, Kyle," he teased.

Kyle shuddered and Stan's grip on his wrist tightened. "It's okay, Dude," he murmured.

Kenny shook his head at his words. Everyone knew that this was not okay. Not one single part of this situation was 'okay'.

After leading them awhile more, Barney finally came to a stop. "Let go and back off," he ordered Stan. The boy growled, reluctantly releasing Kyle's appendage and backing away from them a few yards. Barney smirked, pushing Kyle down onto his knees. He knelt down beside him, leaning in towards him with his lips just brushing against his ear. "Tell me, Kyle. Just what was going through your mind when you held that gun up, huh? What was screaming in that pretty little red head of yours?" He waited a moment before squeezing the back of his neck tighter. "Answer me, you little slut."

"I...I..." he stammered, trembling under his firm grasp. "I needed to get out."

"So you decide to take lives instead of just holding out, hm?"

"I didn't think you'd let me live...and you weren't planning on it!" he squeaked out, his fists tangling in the soft grass beneath him.

"You knew you were immortal. You knew you'd live."

"But...but..." he stuttered, breathing heavier. "I...d-didn't..."

"Didn't what, Kyle?" he growled, tightening his grip.

"I was afraid," he whispered, biting his lip.

Barney paused for a moment, watching him carefully. He grabbed the boy's wrist and turned it in his hand. "You were a cutter, huh? Were you afraid then, too?"

"H-huh?"

"What made you so upset, Kylie? Just what is it that drives a boy like you to such extremes?"

"It's none of your business," he muttered.

"I think I know," he smirked, grabbing his left hand and stroking his ring with his thumb. Kenny growled, feeling his insides clench as he continued to caress the gem. "You were a lost, lonely little kid with no where else to turn to. So you either hurt yourself or hurt others to get what you want. Is that true?"

Kyle bit his lip staring at the ground through Barney's hand. "I...I didn't mean to kill them."

"Holding a gun to someone's head and pulling the trigger? What, did you think he'd just need a band-aid?"

"No, I was thinking of how much I needed to save Ken and myself," he mumbled.

"And you did. You're the big hero of this little story, aren't you?" he released his hand and caressed his cheek. "The little scrawny thing kills in a battle for survival. He destroys all of his enemies one-by-one and gets to run off with his love in the end, right?" he paused and dropped into a scowl. "Well I'm sorry to inform you, Princess, but this isn't a fairy tale." He pushed him down onto his stomach and held him firmly in place. "This is my story now," he growled. "It's quite an epic, I'll tell you that much. Full of rape, tears, and pain."

"You think I consider my life a fairy tale?" he sniffled. "My life couldn't be any farther from it."

"How so?"

"Not too many storybook characters are raped," he replied monotonously.

He chuckled darkly, "So you're a unique one," he ran his fingers along his back. He clenched his fists above his head and fell into sniffles. Barney stopped stroking him and grabbed his fist. "Do you know what this is?" he asked, pulling him up a bit and laying his hand upon a rock in the grass.

"A stone," he replied softly.

"Very good," he pulled up on his curls and made his body all but completely limp in his grip. He removed his hand from atop his jade eyes and he blinked at their surroundings. His eyes fell on two crude stones and he looked at his attacker with a confused glance.

"W-why are we here?" he asked.

"Explain this to me," he gestured to the rocks, holding him tightly and looking at him steadily.

"F-for Morgan and...and you...," he stated shakily.

"I can understand Morgan in a way," he narrowed his eyes. "Though I'm not entirely sure as to why you would be so courteous to someone you probably weren't that connected with for that long."

"Because she was still a person," he replied softly. "Someone had to be there for her because God knows you weren't."

"Oh really."

"She didn't know," he mumbled sadly, looking over towards one of the rocks. Barney was silent for a moment before he took a deep breath and twisted his fingers roughly in Kyle's hair and pulled him back. Kyle let out a pained yelp and clawed for the ground.

"Explain the other stone, Kyle." he commanded.

"W-why should I?" he looked at him with pain-induced tears stinging the corners of his eyes.

The man paused before laughing darkly. He pushed the Jew onto his back forcefully and sat astride his torso, holding his ams down to the sides. "Because I told you to, Kylie." The boy's eyes flickered over to his best friend, who was standing mere meters away, looking desperate to run over and knock the spirit's lights out.

"I...We...We felt guilty," he said quietly. "We...we have no right to take life and we know that...we knew that."

"So you thought a rock and a flower would repent for your sins, hm?"

"N-no," he struggled under his hold. "We...we just felt like you were a person, just like we thought of Morgan despite that she didn't think the same about herself."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really," he groaned as Barney pressed onto his bones harder.

"So let get this straight," he looked up thoughtfully. "You kill me...after I rape the living hell out of you and beat the snot out of Lover boy...and you still give me a grave marker."

"It's just the kind of people we are," he muttered, looking away from him over to the trees to the side.

"Well I have to say that that makes you nothing less than fucking idiots."

"How?" he shot his head up and narrowed his eyes at the man. "How does compassion make you an idiot, you jackass?!"

"He's pushing it," Damien commented. Kenny chewed on his nail nervously, wincing only slightly as he bit clear down onto his finger and broke the skin.

"I'm sorry, Kyle, did you say something?" Barney cocked his head mockingly. "Because that sounded like an insult and I know that you're smart enough to know not to do that."

"Fuck you," he hissed.

Barney raised his brow, "Well. Someone's not too happy."

"What the fuck do you expect?" he snarled. "You fucking essentially kidnap me and bring me out here just to tell me that you think I'm stupid just because I felt bad for killing you?! Just what the hell do you think you're accomplishing from this?!"

His eyes narrowed and he growled, pushing down on him more violently. "I'm getting my answers and I'm getting my revenge, you little bitch," he sneered. "Just what were you trying to do with this rock, huh?"

"NOTHING," he yelled. "We just felt bad for you and Morgan! Or at least I felt bad for you," he looked away angrily.

"And why is that?" he cupped his chin and forced him to look back up at him. "Why would you feel bad after everything I did to you, hm?"

He blinked a few times. "I don't know," he finally muttered. I guess it's because I'm not a professional fucking murderer like you and I felt horrible for what I did. But that doesn't really fucking matter does it?" a few tears strayed down his cheeks and his eyes flickered between red and navy as his body shook heavily. "All that fucking matters to you is winning."

"Right. It's the only way you succeed in the world, Kylie," he glowered at him.

"You really think that raping me again is gonna change anything?" he hissed. "You're still goin' to Hell. I'm staying here. On Earth. With Kenny...you really think that you're the one who's coming up on top here?"

"You. Killed. Me," he growled from gritted teeth.

"And you fucking tortured me!" he retorted, shouting up into his face. "You...you fucking held me hostage for hours," he blinked away more tears. "A-and not once did you even see that something was wrong with what you were doing...you selfish son of a bitch," he looked away and laid his head down. He took a deep and shuddery breath. "Well if you're going to do something, then just fucking do it. I want this over with," he muttered.

Barney stared down at him, dumbfounded. "What, you're giving me permission?"

"It's not permission, but if it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen," he growled, looking up at the world above them. "Just get it the fuck out of your system and get away from me." The man just continued blinking at him in confusion. Kyle lifted his head and glared at him. "Well?! Did you forget how your fucking dick works? I know it's hard to find, but it's in there somewhere," he spat.

Barney's confused gaze dropped and he snarled, reaching down and clasping Kyle around the throat. "You need to learn just when to shut that pretty little mouth, Kyle," he narrowed his eyes. He raised other hand and brought his fist down into his eye. Kyle screeched lightly in pain and tried to shake his head away. "I don't think so," the man glowered, pressing down into his throat.

Kyle's arms came up and he tried to push away the restricting hand. "Stop," he rasped, trying to cough in some air. Stan started moving towards them before Barney looked up at him with a demonic glint passing through his eyes.

"Don't even think about it, Tough guy. He agreed to this, and he's going to deal with the consequences. You take another step and I will fucking destroy him, do you understand me?" Kyle looked over at his best friend, a purple bruise starting under his left eye, through his gasps for air.

"Stop!" he cried out, trying still to relinquish the man's grip.

Kenny jumped to his feet and stared with wide eyes as he watched his fiance struggling under the brute. "McCormick, simmer down," Damien warned.

"He's choking him!" he looked at him desperately.

"Look, we'll see what happens, but you have GOT to remain calm, do you understand me?"

"Damien, save him!" he screamed, "he's turning fucking blue!" They all watched Kyle as his face changed hues slightly and his attempts of pushing off his assaulter got weaker and weaker. Stan stood in place, watching the kid's suffering with a torn expression upon his face.

Barney smirked, roughly taking his palm and rubbing it along Kyle's pants and belt line. Kyle whined and squirmed under his hold.

"Not so for it now, are you, Kyle?" Barney chuckled. "Nothing but little words. In actuality you're just a scared, scared little boy. Someone incapable of defending himself in the slightest..." he leaned down and licked his cheek, watching his glittering eyes with interest. "I'm curious. Just what is it like to be like you?" he asked. "What's it like to be so. Damn. Weak." he kept pushing down on him. Kyle spluttered a bit and he chuckled, reaching down and starting to undo the boy's jeans button.

Kenny shot his head over to Damien. "Come on, Damien! He's in trouble!" he screeched.

"We're following the rules," he breathed. "Everything he does is only judged by Kyle. We don't have a say."

"It's hard for him to judge _anything_ when he's being choked to death," Cartman pointed out.

The demon sighed irritably. "Listen to me. We are caught here. Kyle's life is hanging in the air here and I want to know just what it is you plan on doing, Ken," he looked up at him with darkened eyes. "You interfere in this, you lose him."

Kenny blinked slowly, looking from around the house to the image playing out in front of them. He looked down, seeing his ring shining in the light, listening to the sounds of Kyle choking out his pleas for mercy and cries. He narrowed his eyes, turning on his heel and quickly retreating towards the door.

"McCormick, what are you doing?" Damien got to his feet with Cartman and watched him carefully. Ken stopped with his hand on the knob and turned back around to look at them. His eyes fell on Damien and he glowered at him.

"If you can't interfere in the case, then I'll have to," he said firmly. "I'd rather know that he's safe than watch this happen to him."

"Think about what you're doing, McCormick," Damien warned. "You're locked in this contract. Forever _means_ forever."

They stared into each other's determined gazes before Kenny nodded. "You're right. I'm locked in a contract. I promised Kyle that I'd be there for him for forever. Well now_ is _forever. So if you don't mind," he tore open the door and stepped outside it, looking back at the other two with a set face, "I'm going to go do my job."

* * *

_A/N: Kenny noooooooo, let him get raped D=_

_xD_

_Ahmygawd. Lookie here. We are at the edge. Are you sad? I'm sad._

_I'm also relieved xD_

_Next/Last should be out fairly soon =)_

_Thanks for R&R-ing...and promoting apparently. A lot of you have told me that you go around showing this story to your friends and I gotta say...that makes me really happy =D_

_Now let's hold hands and wait for the next step on their great adventure!...Just...don't hold my hand. I can't really type with my nose._


	53. And Forever Are We

_A/N:_

_....I'm sad now._

_Here we go kids. Let's see if you (we actually) love or hate it._

_Before we go, I just want to say THANK YOU for sticking this out! Seriously, I would've lost interest months ago, but you guys are just so freakin' awesome._

_More groveling of you at the end. Let's get it kickin' =)_

* * *

He ran. Oh god did he run.

His Converse smacked against the pavement furiously as he ran down the sidewalk, his heart beating uncontrollably. He paid it no mind however as he thought of what lied on the other side: his lover, his best friend, the one he swore on his life to protect at all costs.

His Kyle.

He growled as visions of that fat bastard touching him, being _near_ him at all, filled his head. He dodged passer-bys as he headed towards the park.

He had no idea just what he was doing. He never wanted to lose Kyle, but really, what kind of person would subject someone they love to what he was going through? No one with half a conscious would even _consider_ placing someone through such bouts of torment.

So why would he?

He bit his lip and took a shuddery breath in the midst of his exhausted panting, trying to find a way to possibly think straight. He found it near impossible as possible scenarios ran through his head. Seeing Barney hurting Kyle, violating him again...it was too much for him.

He scowled, blinking away angry tears and trying to convince his legs to go faster, to bring him to his trapped fiance as quickly as they possibly could. He groaned to himself as his body started burning from his exertion. His lungs began aching and his throat became nearly impossible to breathe through. He saw the park coming up into view and closed his eyes, willing himself to go as fast as he could.

Something suddenly grabbed him from behind and threw him backwards forcefully to the sidewalk. He crashed down into the cement, yelping in pain and shock.. He quickly propped himself up on his hands, shaking his hair out of his eyes and looking up to see a menacing scowl in front of him.

"Hi there, Ken."

"Craig, no," he growled, jumping back to his feet and trying to move past him, ignoring the relentless throbbing in his skull from the crash. "Craig, move the fuck out of the way!" he shouted.

Craig grabbed his arms and held him still. "Why? Where are you in such a hurry to get to?"

"To my fiancè you fucktard," he hissed. "I don't fucking have time for you!" he tried to yank himself away from Craig's grip. The boy held him steady and raised his brow at him.

"What? He stripping or something?"

"Craig, just let go!" he yelled, thrashing around. "I'll talk to you fucking later! Kyle's in trouble!"

"Trouble." he repeated. "Like what?"

"It's none of your business, Craig! Just fucking listen to me!"

"No, **you** fucking tell me why you're freaking out over that fucking kike!"

Kenny's eye twitched and he screamed angrily, ripping himself away from the stockier boy's grip. He bared his teeth and his fists shook at his sides. "I told you not to call him that!"

"What are you gonna do about it, you fucking asshole?" he flipped him off pointedly.

Kenny looked past him over towards the park and bit his lip. He was running out of time. "Craig. Look, I'll deal with you later. But I HAVE to get to Kyle."

"Tell me why."

"No, I won't," he growled. "You just have to fucking listen to me and figure out that I'm telling the truth! Kyle's in trouble!"

"And I'm the king of England."

"Well I'll bow down to you later, your majesty," he snarled. "You need to get the fuck away from me and let me through!"

"Tell me what's wrong with the Jew first."

Kenny let out a pained groan and grasped at his hair. "Craig, move the fuck out of the way!" he screamed, lunging forward and pushing him away. The black-haired lad went spiraling towards the ground with an angry yell and Kenny hopped over him, speeding towards the open parkway. The shouts of the infuriated attacker didn't deter the blonde as he sprinted towards the grassy alcove.

'_I'm comin, Ky. Hang on,' _he silently pled to the redhead.

He raced through the soft lawns and through a field of dandelions, trying desperately to remember where Barney and Morgan's markers were located. He ran through a large group of trees, dodging elms and firs with stumbling feet. He slowed to a jog as he wandered around trees in confusion. He couldn't fucking remember any of this place!

He came to a stop, placing his fingers on his temples in concentration, slamming his eyes shut. He heard a soft cry from out in the distance and he gasped out softly. He growled and broke into a sprint once again, heading towards the sound. He saw a soft green glow in the distance and started shaking in anger as he caught a glance of a large man bent over a smaller form.

He ran up atop the hill overlooking them and bared his teeth. "GET THE FUCK OFF OF HIM!" he screeched.

The three at the bottom of the hill shot their heads up towards him with wide eyes.

"K-Kenny?" Kyle croaked out, tears brimming his eyes with his pants down around his thighs.

Barney blinked a few times before smiling up at him. "Well well well. Come to watch me deflower little Kyle?"

He growled, heading down the hill towards them. "I said to get off of him, Johanson!"

"Kenny..." Kyle whimpered as Barney pushed down on him more.

"We had an agreement, Blondes," the man retorted. "I'm not about to let you break it just so you can play the faithful little hero to this kid," he grabbed Kyle's chin and tilted him up towards Kenny's view. Kenny came to a stopping point, eyeing the bruises across Kyle's profile and growing more and more furious.

"I'm stopping this," he stated. "Get off of him NOW before I kick your fucking ass!"

Barney sat up atop Kyle's hips, holding the boy's arms down as Kenny stepped up beside Stan.

"What are you doing?!" Stan hissed.

"Saving my fiancé that's what I'm fucking doing!" he yelled. "Now get off!"

"Well I'm trying but you're interrupting my party," Barney laughed.

Kenny's eyes fell onto Kyle's, who looked confused and afraid. "_What are you doing_?" he mouthed, shaking his head slowly.

"You keep quiet now, Kylie, the men are talking," Barney smirked, bringing both of his arms up and holding them down and clamping a hand over the boy's mouth.

"Stop touching him," Stan warned, stepping closer with Kenny.

"Ah ah ah...watch it," he taunted, gripping Kyle's face tighter in his large palm. "I still have someone here."

"I will kick your ass, Johanson," Ken snarled.

"Not when I have little Kylie here," he laughed._ "_You don't want me to have to hurt the poor boy, do you?"

Kyle cringed lightly and sniffled. His eyes stayed locked on that of his blonde lover's.

"Listen to me," Kenny growled. "This deal is off. You either get away from Kyle now or I'll have to do something myself."

"Oh?" he cocked his head. "And um, what, pray tell, are you gonna do? Because trust me, I have no intention of leaving without having my fun with Pretty Boy," he shook Kyle's head in his hand.

"I will fucking gut you," he threatened, taking another step with Stan towards the two.

"Good luck there, Ken. I don't think I still have guts," he smirked. Kenny looked down at his redhead with heavy eyes and Kyle's were tinted with the same somber glaze. They knew someone had to make their move.

It was now or never.

The blonde growled protectively and leapt towards the man, a ferocious scowl upon his slender face. Barney raised his foot and kicked him back away before he struck, sending him sprawling out back onto the grass. Stan ran up to him and picked him up onto his feet.

"Strike one," he taunted.

Stan grabbed a rock from beside them and wailed it at the man with impeccable force.

"GET OFF OF HIM!" he shouted as it separated from his fingertips and flew across the lawn. Barney smirked, going opaque for a moment while the rock flew straight through him.

"Strike two," he chuckled, grabbing the boy underneath him more tensely and standing, ripping him to his feet and holding him against him tightly. He backed up with him slowly. "Care to try for strike three?" he cocked his head teasingly. "C'mon."

Kenny and Stan stood across from them and stared, not sure of just how to go about this. He was stronger than them. he could choose when he wanted to be able to interact with their forms...and most importantly, he had a hostage he could use.

"Look. I'm not sure just what the fuck you're trying to accomplish here," Kenny glared, "but taking Kyle isn't going to help you with any stupid plots of revenge or whatever!"

"Au contraire you stupid kid," Barney smirked. "This is actually going to be quite fulfilling, huh, Kyle?" he squeezed the boy and shook his head yes for him. Kyle slammed his eyes shut and trembled, tears flowing down his cheeks. He looked back up at the boys across from him, his eyes now a deep navy blue.

Kenny's heart sank as he watched his chest heaving erratically as he cried. He shook his head softly.

"I...I'll give you something else if you let him go," he offered lowly.

Barney raised his brow. "Oh? And just what do you think you can offer in exchange for little Red here?"

Kenny bit his lip, his eyes darting around in thought. "Me?" he offered, his eyes wincing slightly.

"Hm, tempting, but no," the man smirked. "I've never really had a thing for blondes. After all, if we'd wanted to rape you, we would have done it," he smiled evilly. "Anything else to offer?"

Kenny's throat clenched up; that was all he had thought of. "I...I...What would you take?"

"I just want him," he nodded down at the Jew. "He killed me. You killed me."

"So we're even, so take me!" he demanded.

"But he killed my best friends and sent the last one to jail," he snarled, pulling Kyle in tighter. "He's mine to do with as I wish. Your little demon friend even said so. Doesn't he hold a higher rank in this than you do?"

Kenny's eye twitched. "No." He breathed heavily. "I'm the original vessel, not him! This is my job. If he has a problem with the way I do things, well that's his problem. Now I'm taking Kyle back and you can either take something else or you can just fucking wait two hours before you're dragged off to Hell!"

"But I won't be unstuck," he raised his brow. "After all...," he looked down at the boy in his grip and tilted his head up, smiling maliciously down on him. "All I want is this pretty little thing. But I want him dead. I want him as dead as me so I can fuck him all I want in Hell as well."

Kenny took an angry step forward as Kyle's shaking increased and he felt a hand wrap around his arm. He looked back and saw Stan staring at him and shaking his head. "Hold on," he said lowly, taking the step in front of him and looking straight at the man with a scowl.

"Look," he started. "I wasn't there. I didn't know the whole situation and I still don't. However, from what these two have told me, there was some girl involved with all of this."

"Morgan," Kenny muttered.

"Well what the hell would she say about this?!" Stan waved his arm frantically towards the two across from him.

"What are you talking about?" Barney narrowed his eyes.

Kyle mumbled something from underneath the man's hand and they all looked at him as he tried to talk out past the sobs. Barney removed his palm from his lips and he gasped for air.

"H-he means that...that should you be so c-compelled to l-l-love Morgan..." he paused and swallowed, "you s-shouldn't focus s-so much on m-me." he choked out.

He chuckled darkly. "Oh my. Poor naive little Kyle. Do you understand why I made you my victim to start with?"

"N-no..." he tried backing away from him as he stroked his cheek with his finger.

He laughed softly, leaning down towards his ear, "your hair. You look just like Morgan, you know that? The hair, the personality...but unlike Morgan, you seem to have a problem in listening to me."

"You're not his keeper," Kenny growled.

"Let's just say I have some control issues," he laughed. "Not too many people tell me no and get away with it."

"So you kidnap and degrade them?!" Stan stared at him disgustedly. "Jesus Christ, you fat bastard."

"Yeah, really!" Kenny inputted. "Did you get so little action that you thought it was okay to just go and steal Kyle?!"

Barney stared at them unamused. He grasped Kyle's left arm and wrenched it back roughly. Kyle let out a small whimper and he laughed, patting his hair. "There, there. Your friends struck out..." he started twisting his arm around slowly.

"D-don't!" he pled, trying to rip his arm away.

"What...what are you doing?!" Kenny demanded.

"You struck out," he stated simply, still pushing and pulling on Kyle's arm. The Jew started making pained groaning noises and fell still.

"Don't..." he whispered, seeming to pray it up to the clouds rather than the man holding him hostage.

"Sorry, Kid. Dem's the breaks," he smirked before pulling and pushing viciously on his forearm. Despite the redhead thrashing to be released, a sickening crack filled the air and Kyle's eyes welled with pained tears. He shook and opened his mouth to scream before Barney slammed his palm over him again. He screeched into his hand and let his tears run freely down his face, his left arm falling uselessly to his side.

"I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU AGAIN!" Kenny shouted, jumping towards them and reaching out for Kyle. Barney smirked and clasped the Jew tightly, watching as Kenny smoothly sailed through the both of them. Kenny looked back up at him in shock.

"How...how did you..."

"Oh, you didn't know?" he smirked. "We have the power to take other living things," he squeezed Kyle's reddened cheeks, "and make them translucent like us."

"Why didn't anyone...how...how come..."

"Because. I already know why I'm stuck," he grinned maliciously. "They focused too much on other matters. I was able to play around with my powers. And since I followed MItch around all the time, I was able to test out my abilities on him."

"God, even as a ghost, you're a manipulative asshole," Kenny grumbled. Barney snorted.

"Maybe so. But...I just know how to play the game," he smiled devilishly. He removed his hand from Kyle's mouth and clasped it around his throat, starting to cut off his air little by little. Kyle's eyes widened and he tried breaking away, only to be yanked back into the man's grip. They stayed in their translucent shade and Kenny started to panic.

"KYLE, GET MAD!" he cried out.

Kyle's eyes flitted around dully as the grip only tightened. He started choking, trying to find a way to sneak in some breaths, but coming up short.

"Stop being in control, Kyle!" Stan grasped at his hair, throwing another rock at the man and watching as it flew through him yet again. "FUCK!"

"Kyle, for God's sake, fight back!" Ken begged, watching him with wide eyes.

"K-Ken..." he gasped out, reaching a bit for him with his good arm before Barney retightened his grip. Kyle's eyelids fell shut and he fell limp, held up by Barney's strangling hand.

"Kyle..." he squeaked out, his voice cracking emotionally.

"Heh, shame. He's fun when he screams..." Barney cocked his head. "But hey, I'll take him unconscious, too," he shrugged. "I ain't picky," he threw the passed-out redhead to the ground and smirked at his exposed boxers. He bent over him and looked up at the blonde, who was staring at him in shock. "I gotta say, Kid. You picked a hell of a partner," he grabbed Kyle's broken arm and pointed to the ring around his slim finger. "I mean, not too many deranged killing machines want to settle down and raise some kids. You picked one of the most contradictory killers on the planet. Good for you."

Ken's eye twitched and he shook in his place. "I...Will...KILL YOU!" he screamed before a purple and red flash went off between the two of them. Barney yelped as he went flying back onto the ground away from the Jew. He sat back up and blinked.

"How...how did you..."

He smirked. "These powers transcend the living and the dead, you fat fuck," he laughed lowly. "Your fucking pathetic attempts at hiding from me don't work."

"Aren't you afraid of losing Kyle, you fucking idiot?" the man raised his brow.

"I'd rather lose him than see him hurt," he watched as Stan went over to the kid and checked on him.

"He may be okay. I have no idea since he kinda stops breathing when this happens."

"Get him away," Kenny directed.

The black haired boy nodded, grabbing the poor victim in his arms and pulling him up, taking him back over to a small group of flowers in the middle of the field.

Kenny watched them before turning his attention back onto the man. "You know, I felt bad. I really did," he stepped towards him. "I felt horrible. Like I didn't deserve to take your life. And Kyle felt the same. We thought that despite what you had done to us, we may have killed something human....but now I see that that was just a waste of our energy to think along those lines. No human would ever have such pleasure in the pain of others. No one would go so far as to all-but-completely destroy someone's sense of themselves just because they were so fucking greedy."

"All humans do that," he argued, getting to his feet with a set scowl. "Don't act so high and mighty over there, Blondie. You played with Kyle until he was putty in your hands, didn't you?"

"I let things run their course."

"Bullshit. Nothing ever just 'runs its course', he rolled his eyes. "Everything needs some degree of control over the situation. I just happen to prefer total control."

"There is no control in our relationship. We just let it go and whatever happened happened. We got lucky that it ran so smoothly despite the fact that we had to deal with fucktards like you."

He smirked, "I'm flattered by your word choice."

"Well trust me, that wasn't the intent," he growled. "Now find another way to become unstuck and I won't have to kick your ass."

"I've you you what I need. I couldn't have made the job any easier for you. You're just too possessive."

Kenny blinked before breaking into a small, dark grin. "You're right. Because Kyle's _mine_ and no one else is ever allowed to have him."

"You think you own the kid?"

"No," he shook his head slowly, the smirk still set upon his face. "I know I do." His eyes shone violet and streaks of the color rose from the ground in ribbons and circled around him. "Now pick something else and I won't maim you."

"I'm shaking," he replied dryly.

Kenny nodded, "Good," before one of the strands went and smacked into Barney, sending him stumbling back a bit.

"Ow, Motherfucker!" he yelled out, rubbing his face. He glared up at the blonde. "Got a problem there, Ken?"

"Yeah, you," he frowned, sending another streak flying towards the man.

"JESUS CHRIST!" he yelled, leaping out of the way and dodging it. Kenny couldn't help but break into a wide grin before sending an array of the ribbons towards him. Barney moved around frantically, trying to avoid each one as they brushed against his arms and send him into trembles. He tripped over his grave marker and stared up at the blonde. "Well aren't you special. Your little boyfriend can't even do that."

"One: he's my fiancé," he glowered. "And two: He has a lot better control than I do. After all, he doesn't mind being the hostage so much as he does watching others in the same situation. Be thankful it's not him in front of you. These are his powers and he's a lot stronger than I am with 'em."

"Yeah, Mr. Scrawny over there is just brimming with muscle."

"If you've been stalking us, then you should know that it isn't physical strength, it's emotional. Kyle's thoughts harbor a lot more than mine, so you're walkin' a fine line here, Buddy. If he wakes up and you're trying to hurt me, you're shit outta luck." His eyes flickered towards the redhead. He knew he couldn't actually wake up without himself making contact with him, but the less Johanson knew, the better.

Barney followed his gaze and they met eyes again. "So why do you look so worried?"

"You broke his arm. You choked him. All you think about is raping him. I think I have every right to be worried."

"Aw, ain't that just so sweet," Barney cooed. "He sacrificing himself for you, you standing up for him...it's a fairy tale romance, I tell ya."

"Not by a long shot," he scoffed. "Because the villains usually want power, not someone's ass."

"By which gives me power over the little fucking murderer. Not everything is black and white, Ken. You know this better than anybody."

"How so?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Well, look at your little Jew," he smirked. "I mean, you hadn't the slightest clue what had happened in that shack. All you knew was he was raped. Oh he took some up the ass, big deal."

Kenny's eyes began glowing furiously red and he sneered. "How about YOU fucking take it up the ass unwillingly and you let me know just how it fucking feels!"

"I'm always the man, but that's not the point," he smirked. "Point is, that's all you thought had happened. But no. Kyle hid so much from you I'm sure your head hurts just thinking about it."

"Kyle defended himself against four men who were torturing him," Stan intervened from beside Kyle. "There wasn't a lot for him to hide and in the long run, it still isn't considered that much."

"The lives of men are that insignificant to you?" he raised his brow.

"You weren't men," Stan narrowed his eyes.

Kenny nodded, "You were fucking monsters."

He chuckled, "Well, you had half of that statement right, Ken." Kenny growled and bared his teeth, his eyes glowing a bit brighter red.

"Listen to me. I am perfectly willing to just let you go back to Hell or wherever."

"You don't wanna fight?" he raised an amused brow.

"Kyle wouldn't want that," he replied quietly.

"Well if Kyle's callin' the shots, don't you think that you should let him wake up and fight himself?"

"No. I don't," he glared. "Kyle's my possession. You fight for what you have and I'm not about to just sit and wait for him to defend himself when it's my responsibility!"

"I'm sure he's ecstatic about that little issue with the deal, hm?"

"He accepts it because he knows it works in reverse, too," he stated, looking over at the small, unconscious boy in the grass with Stan.

"Oh? Seems like this relationship is pretty much required for the both of you, isn't it?"

"No," he set his jaw. "We want it the way it is, so you can shut the fuck up."

"I'm sure that Kyle wants to be unconscious right now," he broke into a sly smirk.

"I want him to be," Kenny muttered, looking over at the redhead again. He shot his crystal eyes back up at the man and growled. "Now," his eyes began glowing once more, "leave."

"And go where?" he laughed. "I think you're missing vital steps in this whole thing, Ken."

"Think of something else. think about the prospect of seeing your fucking girlfriend again or something! Just take your eyes off of Kyle!"

"It's hard to do though," he licked his teeth. "You understand my predicament with that."

"Fuck you and stop ogling my fiancé!"

"You know, we had a deal," Barney glowered. "The plan was that I get Kyle for the alloted time and then you could swoop him into your arms at the grand finale and live happily ever after with few repercussions. Explain why you don't want the easy way out, Blondie."

Kenny paused for a bit, looking between Kyle and Barney with worrisome eyes. "I don't want him hurt," he finally answered.

"Or is it just that you don't want someone else touching him?" he crossed his arms and raised his brow.

"While that may play into it just a little bit, it's not my main concern aside from the fact that you're fucking hurting him, you fat fuck!"

"Uh huh. Awfully defensive there, Ken," he chuckled. "Are you always this tense?"

"I am around fucktards who think Kyle's just a walking toy," he growled.

He laughed a bit more. "As you say. But, what is it exactly that you think's gonna happen? You can't...kill me," he taunted. "You just gonna try to beat me into all of a sudden coming to terms with everything?"

"That's pretty much my plan," he shrugged.

"Jesus Christ, no wonder you got with Kyle. You need someone smart to combat your stupidity," he rolled his eyes.

"FUCK OFF!"

"Well I was trying, but you took my doll away," he responded dryly. "I probably could've been done with the kid by now had you not gotten in the way."

"Look, I'm not letting you have him. If you want him, you have to fight me."

He broke into full out laughter, "Really? Jesus Christ do you think we're in a movie or something? Put on a cape and do a stance, hero-boy."

"I'm just protecting Kyle," he snarled. "And I can do it, too with these powers," he held up a glowing purple and red hand. "So either walk away and figure something out or fight me."

Barney looked up in contemplation. "Alright. Fine. I'll fight. With a few conditions."

"What?" he spat.

"One, you don't get to use your powers."

Kenny looked at Kyle's limp form and took a deep breath. "Fine."

"And two..." he broke into a devilish smile. "If I win, Kyle stays with me."

"WHAT?! NO FUCKING WAY!" Kenny screamed.

"What possible use could you have for him?!" Stan questioned.

He chuckled, "Absolutely none. But Kyle isn't the only one I need revenge on," he smirked at the blonde in front of him. "If I recall correctly, you were the one who shot me."

"Then just take out what you need on me and not Kyle," he snapped. "You've put him through enough, Johanson."

"No, not nearly. Three people dead and one in prison. I haven't even begun to exact revenge."

"Yes. You have. Countless nightmares and torture is plenty enough, don't you think?"

"No. No I don't," he smirked looking over at him.

"Fine, then I'll just kick your ass anyways. You have to give up eventually," he curled his lip.

"Not unless I get to your pretty boyfriend first," he flickered his eyes towards the Jew.

Kenny started glowing again and lowered his eyes. "Try me," he challenged.

Barney stepped to the side towards Kyle and Kenny growled, his eyes pulsing. As the man started to fly back, he fell forward, grabbing hold of the ground and pulled himself up, dodging over towards the redhead again. Stan reached down and grabbed Kyle, hefting him up into his arms and glaring at the man. He backed up away with him slowly, clasping the boy tightly.

Barney sprinted towards them and Kenny sneered, running towards him to intercept him before he reached the two other boys. A violet flash went out of his eyes and Barney flew back a bit again, falling and rolling a few times. He groaned, sitting up and rubbing his head. He glared at the boy. "Ya know, I can't say that's fair."

"And I can't say that I should treat you any better," he narrowed his eyes.

"Give me the fucking kid and we can be done with this thing!" he screamed at Stan.

"Fuck off," the black-haired boy muttered, backing away from him still.

"MCCORMICK!" a voice echoed around the space.

They shot their heads up to see Craig standing atop the hill staring down at them with narrowed eyes.

"C-Craig?" he blinked.

"You fuck, I told you not to fucking walk away!" he came tromping down the grass, infuriated.

Kenny looked between Craig and Barney and gulped. "Craig, not now!"

The boy looked between Kenny and Stan and narrowed his eyes. "What, Marsh kidnapping your little whore of a boyfriend?"

Ken's eye twitched and he took a shaking, angry breath. "N-no. Craig...leave. Kinda preoccupied right now."

"NO, YOU'RE GOING TO FUCKING LISTEN TO ME!" he shouted down at him.

"I'm sorry I fucking destroyed your fucking dreams of happy and sunshine and butterfly relationships, Craig, but I don't have the time right now!"

"FUCK YOU," he growled, flipping him off. "Why are your eyes fucking glowing?!"

"Because you're pissing me off!" he shouted.

"KENNY!" Stan screamed. Kenny shot his head around and found Stan sitting on the ground with a bruise starting on his cheek.

"What the- Where the hell is Broflovski?" Craig blinked.

"Oh God...OH GOD!" Kenny shrieked, looking around frantically. "KYLE?!" He ran over and yanked Stan onto his feet, "STAN, WHAT HAPPENED?!" he shook him back and forth furiously.

"While you were watchin' Asshole up there," he nodded up towards Craig, "Mr. Ghost went all untouchable and fuckin' hit me down and grabbed Kyle."'

"Mr...Ghost?" Craig raised his brow.

"Shut up and get lost, Tucker," Kenny hissed before turning back towards Stan. "Stan, we have to find 'em," he said. "Who knows what the hell he's gonna do?!"

"I have a pretty good idea," he winced. "Come on," he tore away from his grasp and they ran off away from the dumbfounded teen on the hill.

They looked around with shaking fists and darting blue eyes. "Where the hell are they?!" Stan bit his lip.

Kenny gulped. "I...I dunno. Kyle's out...he can't scream or anything..." he shook his head slowly. "Oh god, what do we do?!" he grasped his blonde hair between his fingers.

"Come on," Stan said. "He's got to be around here somewhere," he pulled on his sleeve and led him through some trees. "Here," he directed. "You go that way and I'll go this way. Whoever finds him can just call the other over."

"Got it," he nodded before they broke off and ran in their separate directions. Kenny pushed branches out of the way, stumbling through the grass and scowling to himself. How could he have let Kyle out of his sights? How could he have been so careless when this situation was so damn huge?

He stopped and felt something from his chest. He stared into nothingness, hearing the quiet rustle of the trees. Something was pulling him, calling for him to come help. Before he caught himself doing it, he was running. He had no idea where he was going, but something told him that he had to get there.

He ran furiously until his feet suddenly came to a stop and he found himself staring at Barney bent over Kyle on the ground, staring at him evilly.

"You're almost more trouble than you're worth, you fucking slut," he growled, fingering his jeans. "I wish you were up. I'd love nothing more than to see you crying some more. You deserve to cry and suffer for what you did, you whore."

"He didn't do anything," Kenny intervened, stepping out from his spot and glowering down on the man.

Barney looked up at him slowly and took a deep breath. "You really don't get it, do you, Blondes?"

"Get what?"

"He fucking killed me. My best friends. You don't think that I deserve some kind of revenge for that?"

"Not like this," he said quietly. "Revenge doesn't do anything for you. It does absolutely nothing but cause pain!" he shouted in a quavering tone. "Kyle...fucking fell apart from what he had done."

"Apparently not," he frowned. "Anyone completely broken wouldn't have agreed to _this_," he raised his hand with the garnet and stared at Kenny. "You really think that if he was just so fallen from what he had done he would have so easily said yes to getting married to someone like you?!"

Kenny blinked at him a moment. "You...you really think that that had any swaying factor in whether or not he wanted to marry me?!"

"It should have. He should've been more untrusting. Should've been more torn apart..." he looked down at the redhead and scowled. "He shouldn't be allowed any happiness."

"You...You selfish bastard," he said softly, shaking his head. "You have no idea. You've been stalking us for months and yet for some reason you think that everything is all roses for me and Kyle?! Well let me tell you something, you fat fuck, it's not easy listening to someone cry for reasons you don't understand."

"Not my fault you're fucking stupid," he glared.

"Fuck you," he replied, feeling the red glow emanating from himself, but trying not to explode. "Let him go."

"Make me," he smirked. He stood up and threw the redhead over his shoulder. "Just what is it you're gonna do, Blondie?"

"You already know what I can do."

"But I have the little boy here now," he nodded over at his captive. "Attack me and you're no doubt gonna end up hurting him."

Kenny bit his lip and took a deep breath. That was the whole reason he was doing this; to avoid his young lover getting harmed.

"I'll fucking kill you McCormick!" He turned to see Craig standing across from him by a tree and he groaned.

"DUDE. What part of 'NOT NOW' are you not understanding?!"

"The part where you-" he paused and blinked past him. "Uh...how is he..." he pointed at Kyle. Kenny followed his gesture and his eyes widened.

Uh oh.

"Uh...n-nothing. Go away, Craig!"

"Explain to me what the fuck is happening!" he demanded. "How is Broflovski floating?!...The...the eyes! I wasn't fucking dreaming!" he fell back a bit, nearing hysterics.

"Craig just calm down and go home and play with your hamster!"

"Guinea pig, you idiot!" he shouted, still staring at the redhead.

"Go ahead and tell him," Barney smiled. "Ya told me."

Ken looked at him angrily and sneered a bit before looking back up at the terrified boy. "Craig...please just leave!"

He gulped and shook his head a bit. "N-no..." he stepped forward, unsure. "What is he?" he whispered.

"He's Kyle," the blonde tried.

"No...no he's like...FUCKING POSSESSED!"

Kenny bit his lip, "Yes, but no."

"Jesus Christ!" he yelped. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his gun, pointing it at Kyle with shaking arms.

"WHOA, CRAIG!" Kenny shouted. He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "How'd you get your gun back?!"

"We found it under our porch," Craig muttered, taking it off of safety. Kenny's heart lurched. Goddammit, Damien...

Barney laughed, shifting Kyle so he was more vulnerable to his aim. "C'mon, Craig," he smirked. "Hit him. Fucking straight through the heart."

"NO!" Kenny shouted, running up towards Craig. "You can't!"

"SHUT UP AND MOVE," he ordered, glaring down on him. "The only way to deal with a possessed fucker is to shot 'em in the skull!"

"He's not possessed!" he insisted. "Not...not like that...."

"What?" he cocked his brow.

He slowed and starting walking towards him slowly, his hands raised defensively. "Just...put it down. We'll talk later..." he looked down to see Barney making a getaway and bit his lip. "Much later!" he finished before turning on his heel and running after him.

"McCor-Ken, come back!" Craig yelled, taking off after him. "We'll just shoot him and it'll be fine!"

"Shut up, Craig! You have no idea what the fuck you're talking about," he shouted behind him, keeping his eyes on the receding fatass and Kyle.

"Dude, slow down!"

"GO HOME!" He screamed desperately. He didn't know how much more of this he could take. He couldn't use his powers around Craig, it was just too risky. And God only knows what Barney's plans were for the Jew. He sniveled as he thought of Kyle being able to see and feel everything he could. He must be scared out of his unconscious mind right now.

He ran faster, his feet pounding into the dirt and leaving deep impressions on the earth. He reached out for Kyle, his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth in concentration. His fingertips lightly brushed over the boy before he was ripped away and Barney kicked back, sending the boy onto the ground.

Barney backed up and stared down on him with darkened eyes. "He's mine. We had an agreement."

"I didn't agree to shit for you," he hissed as craig came running up beside him, still holding the gun.

"Craig, put that fucking thing away!" he yelled.

"No way," he shook his head. "This kid is fucking demontized."

"That's not even a word," he frowned.

"WHO CARES?!" he shouted, aiming at Kyle's limp body. Barney grabbed Kyle's hair and held his head upright, looking towards Craig evilly.

"C'mon. Right through the skull," he licked his teeth. "He doesn't have to be able think for me to have some fun."

"Craig," Ken walked towards him slowly. "Come on. Put the gun down. It'll...it'll be okay."

"Dude, your fucking whore is just floating there and you don't think something's wrong here?! God, I hope stupidity isn't contagious." he rolled his eyes.

Kenny's eye twitched. "FUCK YOU."

"Already did," he sneered, looking over at Kyle. "You in there Broflovski? If not, I'm blowing your head off."

"Do it," Barney grinned widely. Kenny breathed heavily, looking back and forth between the two of them desperately.

Powers...powers would kill Craig. Which wouldn't be a bad thing really, but he didn't need the guilt trip. Besides, Kyle wouldn't be too happy with that.

And if he just fought Craig off, Barney no doubt would take Kyle and run again. And he could probably get him far enough away where Ken couldn't get to them in time to save his lover.

Damien wouldn't help him.

Kyle couldn't.

It was his turn. He made the decision months ago to become what he was now. To drag Kyle in on that same prospect. He made the choice to become the Angel of Death and bring along another purer angel on his quest. He made that decision with almost no second thoughts, no doubts. But now...now things were entirely different. Every little aspect of his job was coming down on top of him...he had to make a choice.

He heard the clicking of Craig's gun and leaped forward towards Barney and Kyle. He smashed into them, clasping onto whatever part of his lover he could hold before he heard a deafening bang ring throughout the park.

The pain was instantaneous, pulsing throughout his core and radiating from his shoulder blade. His heart seemed to increase in volume as he watched Barney stepping away from him and Kyle, his redhead glowing gold and breathing deeply as they fell to the ground. Kenny stared down at him as his eyes fluttered open.

"Ken..." he said, shaking his head. "Kenny..." he slid out from under him and laid him down on his stomach. He ran his fingers along the bullet wound and started breathing brokenly. "K-Ken..." he said, a tear or two dripping from his lashes. Kenny reached out and stroked the ring upon his lover's broken arm and smiled up at him. "Ken, stay up!" Kyle bit his lip and shook. "Stay up!"

"I'm...immortal...." Kenny breathed heavily, his eyes drooping as the pain coursed through him.

"Don't...don't..." he cried, leaning down, tipping his head up and kissing his lips forcefully.

"Ky...I don't...won't die..." he chuckled.

"Your heart," he whispered, placing a hand on his back over the wound.

Kenny swallowed before letting out a long sigh, watching as the world vignetted around him. "I...sorry..." he said. He watched as a set of glowing green legs came out from behind Kyle and ripped him away from his broken body. His vision faded off to the feeling of regret surrounding him as the echoing screams of his young, redheaded lover fell upon him.

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_Beep beep beep beep _

The steady pulsing of an electronic beat suddenly faded into his senses. His brow scrunched and he let out a long-winded breath. It felt like the first one he had taken in years. Felt good. He wiggled his fingers a bit.

Feeling still works...he shifted his legs. Those work too. He smiled, his eyes still shut to the white, fluorescent light he knew awaited him on the outside.

He made it. He was awake. From the smells of it and the feeling of medicine flowing through him, he was in the hospital. He was going to be okay and that was just great news for him. Something that he needed to hear after such a hellacious day.

Only then did a single thought rang through his head: _Kyle. _

His eyes shot open, throbbing in the light. But he paid no mind as he tried to struggle up in his bed. He groaned as his left side throbbed a bit but shook it off, looking around the room for his fiancé. Instead he found Cartman passed out on the chair beside him.

He narrowed his eyes. "Cartman."

No response.

"CARTMAN!"

He jolted up and stared in momentary fright at the blonde before his usual pissed-off demeanor took shape. "Welcome back, Fag."

"Shut up, where's Kyle?"

"I dunno," he shrugged.

Kenny's heart sunk. "You...you don't know..."

"No idea. He disappeared," he stated.

Kenny sniffed, looking down at his sheets and feeling his eyes welling up. He didn't even get to say good bye...to tell him he loved him. That he would miss him...he didn't get to say any of that. Because he was just too reckless.

Kyle was right all along, he was just too fucking reckless.

He'd lost what he thought was most important to him. What he _knew_ was the most important thing to him. Satan's word or not, Kyle was his. He was his responsibility. He knew that all along, even before the contract was fully explained. He knew that he had the young redhead's life in his hands.

And yet he constantly missed his chances to prove his worth of holding such a person in his arms. Kyle was consistently put on the line, just there waiting for Kenny to be able to show him, to show the world and Satan himself that he was indeed fit to be with the boy. To be with him for the rest of time.

But instead, what? He killed himself out of loneliness. He went through continuous bouts of depression. He was beaten, he was kidnapped, he was violated ruthlessly. And for what? Because the blonde didn't know how to protect him. He didn't know that there was a method for being able to save Kyle from himself like he had warned him about all those months ago.

It was him.

Everything in the end came down to him. His word, his actions, his decisions, and most importantly, his love.

But now...now none of that mattered. His foolishness and brash behavior caused him to lose absolutely everything. He lost his fiancé, the boy who was going to be a second father to the two children that they had found and grown so fond of. He lost his lover, the only person who'd made him feel like he mattered, like he wasn't just some poor little worthless rat.

He had lost his Kyle.

He watched the tears falling down onto his sheet and shook his head slowly. "I lost..." he whispered. "Goddammit, I fucking lost!" he cried out. "I...I made a deal with that...that fucker...and I...I thought it would be okay!" he buried his face into his palms and sobbed heavily.

"Dude, calm down," a voice said from next to him.

"FUCK YOU!" he shouted into his palms. "I just lost the most important person in my life, so fuck NO I'm not calming down!"

"Cartman, get out," the voice ordered. A scooting chair and footsteps were followed by a door slowly closing. The silence in the room was broken a few times by Kenny's sobbing.

"Most important, hm?"

"Yes..." he sniffed. "Goddamn...goddamn I didn't know what to do!"

"It's okay..."

"No it's not! He's gone...he's gone...and it's my fault...oh God, I want him back!"

"How much?"

"What's it to you?" he growled.

"Well, I'm curious."

"I want him...I want him back," he meekly repeated, his vision completely blurred by his tears. He felt an arm encircling his waist and lips pressed against his neck.

"I'm right here," he whispered, pecking around up his cheek. Kenny shot his head up and looked over, seeing his redhead sitting beside him with a tired smile on his pale face.

He blinked a few times before crying out, "KYLE!" he grabbed him and held him closely, placing their lips together and making out furiously. "Oh god, Kyle," he sobbed, holding his head and placing it down on his chest, kissing his curls. "You're here.....you're really here..."

"Yeah, and so are you," he sniffed, embracing him carefully with his right arm. "So are you..." a few tears ran down his cheeks.

Kenny pulled him up and kissed him again, wiping the water from his cheeks. "How...how long have I been out?" he asked.

"About a week," he replied meekly. "I...I had no idea what to do...I thought I'd lost you and everything was just..."

"Coming apart," he finished. "Trust me," he laughed, wiping some extra tears from his own blue gaze, "I know the feeling."

Kyle let out a small laugh back. "Are you alright?"

"My side hurts, but fuck it, I'm just so fucking happy right now."

"I know," he smiled.

"But...how? How'd you..." his heart dropped. "Oh god...Kyle you didn't...please tell me you didn't let him..."

"You got shot for me not to have to, so hell no was I letting him do that to me again," he said firmly. It would have been the easiest way to get out of this mess, but hey, I'm a complicated person," he grinned sheepishly.

"What happened?"

"Well, first, I knocked Craig the fuck out because....well..." he nodded towards the blonde's side. "Then I went like..."

"Berserk," another voice appeared. They looked to see Damien staring at them with a wide grin across his demonic profile.

"No one here wants to talk to you," Kenny growled.

"Don't care, I'm gonna anyways," he shrugged, walking over and leaning against the wall. "You should have seen Broflovski," he nodded towards the Jew. "I've never seen the powers used like that."

"Like what?"

"Kyle sent him straight to Hell," he laughed.

"What?"

"I...I dunno..." Kyle shrugged. "I got so fucking mad, the world ripped apart."

"Kyle found a way to send soul straight to the gates. It was the essence of pure Satanic power," Damien grinned, baring his fangs. "It was fucking amazing."

"So...is that why you're here? Because you sent him straight away?"

"No," Kyle shook his head. "His deal was fulfilled, so we completed the contract."

"What? You said you didn't let him rape you, though," he blinked.

Kyle sighed, sliding a hand over his arm secured in the sling. "This arm isn't really broken."

"Just fractured?"

"No. Barney full out broke it," Damien responded.

Kenny looked between the two of them and shook his head. "I'm so confused."

"Okay, Barney really broke my arm. He bruised my face too, remember," he pointed towards his clean complexion.

"Okay..."

"And do you think you'd only be sore from a gunshot wound?" Damien asked, poking his side pointedly.

"Ow..." he groaned, rubbing his side with a pout.

"Ken..." Kyle shook his head. "Dude, we're gonna be seventeen and eighteen forever."

Kenny blinked at him. "What?"

"This isn't the body you had a week ago," Damien explained. "You both transcended."

"Barney wanted me as close to death as he could get me and my body having to transcend to be with yours is as close as I can get. So his terms were filled," he smiled sadly.

"Wait, I thought we had more time!" Kenny looked at Damien and Kyle confusedly.

"We had double whatever your lifespan originally should have been." Kyle said softly. "Kenny, think about when you were nine. What happened?"

He looked up thoughtfully before his eyes widened. "Wait. The...the muscle dystrophy..."

"Was supposed to kill you for good," Damien nodded. "Were you a normal kid, you would have stayed dead. But since you were the vessel, we had to bring you back."

"So...I'm only...we're living in six month intervals?!" he cried out.

"Yeah," Kyle nodded, sighing. "We're gonna have to keep moving or something," he pushed some of Ken's oily hair away from his face.

"Hey, six months isn't that bad," Damien shrugged. "Come live in Hell or something and you can just go up when you need to."

Kyle frowned. "We have two kids and a cat. You really think that we should be raising them in fire?"

"It was just an offer," he chuckled. "Do as you wish."

"I wish for you to leave the room." Ken frowned. "Are the kids okay?"

"They're worried. Especially Kayla," Kyle smiled, stroking his head. "She wants to play doctor and fix you."

He chuckled, "Somehow I'm not surprised."

"I'll go get 'em," Damien sighed, walking over towards the door and opening it, stepping out into the waiting room and closing the door again. They stared at it for a minute before Kyle sighed.

"We've got one more thing to do," he said quietly.

"What?" he cocked his head.

Kyle reached down and grabbed a bag from beside the bed and hefted it up, pulling out Kenny's red notebook and handing it to him. "It is yours," he smiled.

Kenny smiled back and took it from him, sighing tiredly. He stroked the front of the notebook and opened it up.

_Anna Williams; March 15, 1956 - April 18, 1965; Unknowing of death/reason for death_

_Daniel Ross; February 3, 1970 - May 7, 1989; Unknown fate of love_

_Nina Richards; December 1, 1991 - April 6, 2009; No acceptance from father_

_Morgan (Bubbles) Peterson; November 25, 1990 - June 5, 2008; Feelings of lover unknown_

_Charlie Summers; January 7, 1913 - May 4, 1953; Could not find wife after he passed on_

_Madelynn and Madison Petronia; January 18, 1992 - August 29, 2008; needed separation from each other_

_Peter Golor; May 5, 1983 - December 4 2006; Guilt from drunk driving accident_

_Jibbles; October 8, 1945 - November 17, 2000; Lost his shoes_

_Natasha Belle; April 6, 1990 - July 30, 2009; Vehicular manslaughter guilt_

_Anthony Georgian; February 17t, 1963 - June 3, 1986; Did not know cause behind death_

_Riley Robbins; June 20, 1976 - November 11, 1994; Stuck in a false reality_

_Candace Jadin; July 7, 1977 - September 9, 1999; Wanted words of love from boyfriend_

_Seth Ellsworth; August 14, 1989 - November 21, 2008; Wanted success to find friends_

_Kayla and Jacob; x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x _

He sighed. So few people...so much time he had to work on expanding this list. On making it an endless array of names and causes...it was scary in a sense. He just had so much he had to do. And in such a short time, this job had betrayed him, it had thrown him against the wall and spit on him multiple times.

He looked up to see Kyle handing him a pen with a small smile and couldn't hold back his own grin. Yeah, this job was a pain in his ass, but just look at what he got in exchange for it. He got the one thing in his life that he wouldn't trade for anything. He took the pen and put it to the paper with a sigh.

_Barney Johanson; February 3, 1983 - April 11, 2009; Wanted revenge for death and death of friends._

They both shot their heads up as Kayla and Jacob came bursting into the room and smiled at them. "Daddy!" Kayla squealed, hopping up onto Ken's bed and clambering on top of him. She clasped him in a tight hug and Jacob came up and joined her.

"Does it hurt?" he asked.

"I'm fine...Much better now in fact," he looked up and smiled at his redhead. Kyle chuckled, leaning down and kissing him gently.

"Next time, listen to me when I say that I want you to let me take the bullet, hm?"

He chuckled lowly, "never in Hell, my love." he kissed him again. He pulled Kyle onto the bed with the other three and they curled in close to each other.

Kenny leaned back, stroking Kyle's hair and smiled down on him, pecking his curls.

This was not what he was expecting. Never would he have thought that this would turn out to be his life: Engaged to a childhood friend, having two kids already...being stuck as eighteen for the rest of eternity.

But there was some sort of magic behind that. There was a lot of bad that fit into this job, into this life that he was now being forced to live. But no matter how much bad, no matter how much pain and turmoil they were put through, there was always something waiting for them on the other side. There was almost always some kind of bright light awaiting them.

Cliche anecdotes aside, there was truly a silver lining on each cloud that overpassed the two boys. Ghosts, bullies, and anything else that stood in their way could easily be passed through as long as they stuck together.

They were given this task as a team. They were only able to function as the other's support and partner. Powers only did so much if they didn't know how to use them, if they didn't have the support in order to have the confidence to be able to yield their abilities. Powers only got you so far, they required the work and effort behind the two of them.

One day maybe to be the four of them.

Kyle nuzzled into Kenny lightly and the blonde laughed softly, stroking his hair. This was it. This was something that he had always wanted, something that he didn't even know he yearned for. But now that he had it, it was his addiction. This feeling of closeness, this feeling of love that was emanating from the four forms huddled up on the bed.

Together they were the angels of death; together they would become eternity.

* * *

_A/n: ;~;_

_I'm seriously crying right now, haha._

_Well, that's it. It was between this and having Kyle sent to hell...but that would be a kick in the balls to all of you xD_

_Here's the deal: there's SO MANY of you I want to thank. Like, seriously, too many. So I'm not going to list you all because I'm not playing favorites here. I love each and every one of you._

_So everyone who reviews is getting a response. Don't care who you are, don't care what you say._

_(Ok, I do to an extent.) Just leave one saying 'I liked it' or 'I hated it' and I'll reply._

_And because I know I'll get a few, thanks to the anonymous reviewers as well! ALL OF YOU!_

_Hell, thanks to the flamers, too xD_

_Congrats to you all on reading the longest freakin' SP fanfic to date! Final page count: 1376 pages. Holy. Shit._

_/applauds you._

_Seriously, though. Thank you so much for the reading and the reviews. You have NO idea how much they mean to me =)_

_Catch ya around!_


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